Blew $200 on a ground-penetrating radar rental and all I got was a soggy field

So I rented a GPR unit for a weekend to map out some old foundations on my property near the creek. Figured it would be fun to see if there was anything from the 1800s buried there. After two days of scanning and downloading data, the software crashed and wiped everything. No refund from the rental place either. Has anyone else had bad luck with rental gear for fieldwork?

2 comments

2 Comments

veram9915d ago

Used to think those rental places were fairly decent about stuff like that... figured they'd have some wiggle room if the gear failed on you. But after a buddy of mine rented a total station last summer and the battery died on day one, they told him tough luck too. That changed my mind real quick. Now I just assume if it's not in writing that they'll cover software crashes or hardware glitches, you're on your own. Sucks about your GPR data, that's a lot of cash to lose for nothing.

ruby45015d ago

Did you catch that article in GeoWorld a few months back about rental company liability? It said like 80% of these places have no formal policy for data loss or software bugs. Your buddy's total station story just proves the point - they'll fight you on EVERYTHING unless it's spelled out in their contract. I honestly think they bank on people not reading the fine print before signing. Like, who has time to go through all that legal jargon when you're just trying to get a piece of gear for a weekend job? But after hearing about your GPR situation, I'm thinking maybe I should start taking a picture of the contract page on my phone before handing over my card. Crazy that we have to treat it like a potential scam when you're paying them good money.