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Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

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Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#41

Post by vegadw »

tavavex wrote: post #40
vegadw wrote: post #7

This project is neat and OP did a good job, but I think the interest in Geiger counters among hackers needs an update. The Geiger kit on Adafruit (Yes, I know that makes the cost a lot higher to be from them instead of Ali, but I think is a good baseline for "finished good" price) is $99. Meanwhile, Raysid or Radiacode let you do full on gamma spectrometry, for about 2.5x the price. And, like, yeah, 2.5x the price. I…

> Like, you might have a use where you ONLY need a cheap display card, but there's a reason LTT calls the 1030 eWaste from the factory. Similarly, you might get enough out of the Geiger or it might do something the Radiacode doesn't for you but for most hobbyist, I doubt it. I think the biggest difference here is that GPUs are fairly general-purpose devices. Even if you only need one as a cheapest possible way to out…

Maybe? I feel like the most in group of people who do have the discretionary income to toss $100 at a Geiger counter for fun also have enough to toss $250 at it and would rather given the extra utility. I might be wrong though. And it certainly depends as the $100 line drops. If it's $50 for a Geiger, that's a lot closer to "I don't care money"

I had someone tell me a while back $100 is an adult $20. As in, what you saw as a kid as $20 of fun but factoring in how long it took you to get the $20, it's about the same. I know that math will be massively variable, but I like the idea of equating kid brain money to adult money for "toys" like this. A $5 toy vs a $40 toy, as a kid, is a big deal. A $40 toy vs a $70 toy almost isn't, because they're both already "expensive".

I suspect for most on HN, their toy-money equivalence leans to the Radiacode or equivalent being the better buy.

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#42

Post by QuinnyPig »

morninglight wrote: post #13

Do a search for "MightyOhm Geiger Counter Kit Bundle" and you will find a stand alone version of the same circuit along with photos. Although the PCB has a "High Voltage" label, it is powered by 2 X AAA batteries which are might be very lethal if ingested.\s

You can shock the hell out of yourself with the capacitors for the flash in a disposable camera, so the AAA battery source isn't exactly exculpatory...

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#43

Post by zamadatix »

vegadw wrote: post #7

This project is neat and OP did a good job, but I think the interest in Geiger counters among hackers needs an update. The Geiger kit on Adafruit (Yes, I know that makes the cost a lot higher to be from them instead of Ali, but I think is a good baseline for "finished good" price) is $99. Meanwhile, Raysid or Radiacode let you do full on gamma spectrometry, for about 2.5x the price. And, like, yeah, 2.5x the price. I…

Tangential, but this is the right crowd to know: what's the best digital visible light spectrometer in that kind of price range?

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#44

Post by DoctorOetker »

BetterGeiger wrote: post #35

Cool project! My business is Better Geiger (www.bettergeiger.com), I design and sell radiation detectors. I just hope people keep in mind the capabilities and limitations of those simple Geiger tubes. Radon was mentioned on the project website, yes technically radon decay products are detectable but pracfically a Geiger tube is reacting only to terrestrial, cosmic, and other sources of radiation, not anything to do w…

> Radon was mentioned on the project website, yes technically radon decay products are detectable but pracfically a Geiger tube is reacting only to terrestrial, cosmic, and other sources of radiation, not anything to do with radon.

To measure radon (say in a cellar), you'd typically take some dust filter or filter foam, attach it to a fan and circulate the cellar air through the filter, then the radioactive dust collects in the filter, and one can measure higher doses more easily.

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#45

Post by numpad0 »

Chabsff wrote: post #2

I know that footguns are broadly "on-brand" for the flipper zero ecosystem, but exposing high-voltage leads like that without any warning whatsoever seems a bit much .

I believe it also doesn't make a lot of sense to have a real Geiger tube and have it exposed.

For the sexond, Geigers are binary, they only report detection events, not types. So you don't want it to be triggered on non-X rays like interferences from computers around, and you might also want to be able to occasionally remove surface contaminants from the equipment. Both of these are easily achieved by giving it a durable opaque case which is how everybody do these.

And for the first, I believe a modern photodiode taped over is by itself more sensitive than Geigers, even more so if coupled to a scintillator crystal(salts that glows in x-rays), not to speak of spectrometer based systems that can additionally tell energy levels therefore types and biological damage levels of incoming rays.

The real Geiger tube running on display is cool, but that's strictly it. I believe.

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#46

Post by dividedbyzero »

Hypothetically speaking, how useful would something like that be in a nuclear weapon fallout scenario? Can such a contraption detect the important isotopes and give the user an accurate idea of the level of danger they're in, does that change over time as isotope composition changes through decay?

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#47

Post by 9dev »

dividedbyzero wrote: post #46

Hypothetically speaking, how useful would something like that be in a nuclear weapon fallout scenario? Can such a contraption detect the important isotopes and give the user an accurate idea of the level of danger they're in, does that change over time as isotope composition changes through decay?

Are you willing to bet your life on it?

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#48

Post by BetterGeiger »

DoctorOetker wrote: post #44
BetterGeiger wrote: post #35

Cool project! My business is Better Geiger (www.bettergeiger.com), I design and sell radiation detectors. I just hope people keep in mind the capabilities and limitations of those simple Geiger tubes. Radon was mentioned on the project website, yes technically radon decay products are detectable but pracfically a Geiger tube is reacting only to terrestrial, cosmic, and other sources of radiation, not anything to do w…

> Radon was mentioned on the project website, yes technically radon decay products are detectable but pracfically a Geiger tube is reacting only to terrestrial, cosmic, and other sources of radiation, not anything to do with radon. To measure radon (say in a cellar), you'd typically take some dust filter or filter foam, attach it to a fan and circulate the cellar air through the filter, then the radioactive dust coll…

If you want to actually measure radon concentration quantitatively what you are describing is not the way. Typically devices simply measure alpha count rates coming from air, radon diffuses very effectively and no filtering or extra flow is necessary. Your technique would show "hey look there is a little bit of something radioactive here" but would be very difficult to turn into a concentration without a lot of extra complicated steps.

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#49

Post by renewiltord »

vegadw wrote: post #7

This project is neat and OP did a good job, but I think the interest in Geiger counters among hackers needs an update. The Geiger kit on Adafruit (Yes, I know that makes the cost a lot higher to be from them instead of Ali, but I think is a good baseline for "finished good" price) is $99. Meanwhile, Raysid or Radiacode let you do full on gamma spectrometry, for about 2.5x the price. And, like, yeah, 2.5x the price. I…

Yeah there’s definitely a price and price/performance thing with these. You’re right in that I’d rather have the Radiacode.

I do like my Flipper for how adaptable it is but then end up using it to copy RFID tags as primary purpose.

Re: Flipper Zero Geiger Counter

#50

Post by DoctorOetker »

BetterGeiger wrote: post #48
DoctorOetker wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Radon was mentioned on the project website, yes technically radon decay products are detectable but pracfically a Geiger tube is reacting only to terrestrial, cosmic, and other sources of radiation, not anything to do with radon. To measure radon (say in a cellar), you'd typically take some dust filter or filter foam, attach it to a fan and circulate the cellar air through the filter, then the radioactive dust coll…

If you want to actually measure radon concentration quantitatively what you are describing is not the way. Typically devices simply measure alpha count rates coming from air, radon diffuses very effectively and no filtering or extra flow is necessary. Your technique would show "hey look there is a little bit of something radioactive here" but would be very difficult to turn into a concentration without a lot of extra…

The relevance of the fan with filter is that it is analogous to your lungs which can also trap radioactive particles, like radon, causing say lung cancer.
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