The NEW Digital Soil Compaction Tester is a digital version of the Dial Penetrometer for testing hard pans in the soil, It uses an electronic force sensor that eliminates changing tip size for different soil types. The LCD display reads in PSI or kPa shows compaction severity with green/yellow/red color code. It is rugged and meets ASABE S313.3 Soil Compaction Standard.
By pushing the Digital Soil Compaction Tester into the soil with steady downward pressure and watching the digital read out, you can visually see any hard pans in the soil profile up to 24 inches deep (60 cm). It also reads the maximum or "Peak" PSI reading after each reading.
Soil compaction can occur in any type of soil. Years of traffic, tillage, Aerification and settling can cause soil particles to group together and fill in air spaces in the soil creating a "plow pan" or "hard pan" below the root zone. When this happens, a hard layer is formed making it difficult for moisture and roots to penetrate the soil. Some soil types are more susceptible to compaction than others; but once a compaction layer is formed, and moisture and traffic continues, the compaction layer will continue to get denser and thicker.
Digital Soil Compaction Tester / Digital Dial Penetrometer is a simple tool that uses downward pressure to determine soil compaction at different depths in the soil profile. With this easy to use tool you can test down to 24 inches deep (60 cm).