1.816.353.2100 www.rycominstruments.com
The PATHFINDER PLS
r
eceiver
contains a feature that is very useful in identifying a desired cable in
a field of various conductors and/or utilities. It is not unusual for the target conductor (the con-
ductor connected to the transmitter) to induce a signal into nearby conductors in a crowded
field. In these instances, the radiated signal on the conductors close to the surface of the earth,
may be stronger than the
T
ransmiTTer
signal on the target conductor buried deep in the ground.
The operator will find two or more paths and must determine which is the target conductor. By
using the current measurement feature of the PATHFINDER PLS
r
eceiver
, the operator can deter-
mine the amount of 815 Hz, 8 kHz, 33kHz or 82 kHz current flowing on the conductors, regardless
of the depth. The highest current flow indicates the target conductor.
Place the
r
eceiver
vertically over one of the conductor marks and rest the foot of the locator
on the ground. Holding the
r
eceiver
vertical, press and release the Shift Button & Depth button
simultaneously. When the meter changes from a “thermometer” type display to a “bar” type
display, hold the
r
eceiver
still until the measurement stabilizes. The blinking bar indicates the
signal level on the cable (adjusted for depth). Next, move to the second cable and repeat
the measurement. The blinking bar will show the signal level on the conductor. In addition, the
previous reading is shown as a solid bar. The higher of these two readings will show which con-
ductor is carrying the greatest locating signal.
C
urrent
m
easurement
Move to the location you want to measure depth. Stay at least 15 feet away from the
T
ransmiTTer
.
Move the
r
eceiver
left to right across the path until the cable is located. Mark the path on the
ground as precisely as possible using the Null Method.
Place the
r
eceiver
on the ground with the LCD meter facing up. Position the unit so that the
BUBBLE LEVEL on top of the meter is centered (45º). Pull the
r
eceiver
away from the cable path
(at 90º to the cable path) keeping the BUBBLE LEVEL centered. When the receiver indicates a
NULL reading, mark the location of the receiver’s foot. The distance between the
r
eceiver
and
the cable path is the depth of the pipe or cable.
A false depth reading may be caused by nearby buried metallic objects, such as a second
cable, pipe, sewer, fence or railroad track. Confirm the depth measurement by repeating the
above steps on the opposite side of the pipe or cable.
A variance greater than 5 inches in depth measurement may indicate the presence of
additional buried cables, pipes or other objects.
Buried cable or pipe
Earth
locate
Path
1st
Null
Null
centered
Bubble level
2nd
(end view)
Depth
Depth
45°
d
epth
m
easurement
45º a
ngle
m
ethod
