TROXLER 3430 User Manual

ASPHALT OR HARDENED CONCRETE SITE

Find a smooth, level location on the asphalt. Fill the voids on
open mixes with sand or cement. The gauge base must rest on
the asphalt, not the fill material! Ensure that the gauge does
not “rock.” It must remain level and steady. If the gauge rocks,
find a more suitable test site. If taking a measurement around a
core, the gauge may be moved a few inches away from the hole
to level the gauge.

OFFSET FUNCTION

The gauge can be adjusted using an offset. The gauge applies
the offset to measurements until the offset is disabled or the
gauge is turned off. The 3430 gauge provides three offsets:
density, moisture, and trench.

Press 〈SPECIAL〉 to access the Special functions. Then press

the down arrow key once to access the Offset function.

DENSITY OFFSET

To select the density offset from the Offset function display,

press 〈START/ENTER〉. To enable the density offset, press
〈ON/YES〉. Input the difference between the gauge and actual

density readings. To input a minus (–) sign (for a negative
offset), press the down arrow key first. To scroll through the
numerals, use the up and down arrow keys. To select the next

digit and/or exit, press 〈START/ENTER〉. When all digits are

entered, the gauge will enable the offset.

MOISTURE OFFSET

To select moisture offset from the Offset function display, press

the down arrow key once and press 〈START/ENTER〉. To
enable the moisture offset, press 〈ON/YES〉. Input the offset.

To input a minus (–) sign (for a negative offset), press the down
arrow key first. To scroll through the numerals, use the up and
down arrow keys. To select the next digit and/or exit, press

〈START/ENTER〉. When all digits are entered, the gauge will

enable the offset.

TRENCH OFFSET

To enable a trench offset, choose Trench from the Offset
options under the Special functions display. The gauge will
request both the Denst Const and Moist Const values. The
procedure for entering these values is the same as for moisture

and density offsets, ignoring the ± sign on the display.

To perform a trench offset, take the daily standard count
outside the trench and record the density (DS) and moisture
(MS) values. Place the gauge on the reference standard block in
the trench the same distance from the wall as the anticipated

5 6 1

readings. Set the count time to four minutes. With the source

rod in the SAFE position, press 〈START/ENTER〉. After the

count, record the trench density DC
counts. To determine the offsets, subtract the daily standard
counts from the trench counts.

and moisture MC

Trench

Trench

TESTING AND MEASUREMENT

Before taking any measurement, the operator must do several
things. Check the count time and depth. Enter the Marshall or
Proctor value. Prepare the test site.

After taking readings, lift the gauge from the test site by the
source rod handle. This returns the source rod to the SAFE
position. When not taking readings, always keep the source rod
in the SAFE position.

SOIL MODE

The Soil mode is automatically selected when a Proctor value is
enabled.

Place the gauge over the test site. Release the gauge handle and
push it down until the source rod is in the correct position.
Ensure that the indexer engages the notch in the index rod. To

take a measurement, press 〈START/ENTER〉.

After the measurement, the gauge displays the measurement
results in a series of six screens. Use the up and down arrow
keys to scroll through the various displays.

ASPHALT MODE

The Asphalt mode is automatically selected when a Marshall
value is enabled.

Place the gauge over the test site. Release the gauge handle and
push it into the backscatter position. Ensure that the indexer
engages the notch in the index rod. Gently tap the handle down
to ensure proper source rod seating. Set the depth to

Backscatter. To take a measurement, press 〈START/ENTER〉.

After the measurement, the gauge displays the measurement
results in a series of six screens. Use the up and down arrow
keys to scroll through the various displays.

RECALL FUNCTION

Although the 3430 gauge does not store multiple readings, the
Recall function enables the operator to view the data from the

last reading. Press 〈SPECIAL〉 to access the Special functions,
then press 〈START/ENTER〉. The gauge displays the data

from the last measurement in a series of six screens. Use the up
and down arrow keys to scroll through the various displays.

PN 109229
September 1999
Edition 1.0

Model 3430

Surface

Moisture-Density

Gauge

QUICK

REFERENCE

CARD

Troxler Electronic Laboratories, Inc.

3008 Cornwallis Road

P.O. Box 12057

Research Triangle Park, NC 27709

Tel [phone] Fax [phone]

GAUGE START UP

E

To enter or activate a Marshall or Proctor value, press

〈MA/PR〉. The gauge displays one of the following:

MA: xxx (↑↓)

Change MA value?

PR: xx (↑↓)

Change PR value?

Model 3430 Keypad

NOTE

The operator should wear a dosimeter or radiation
badge when working with the 3430 Surface Moisture­Density Gauge.

Press 〈ON/YES〉. The gauge performs an LCD test and a 300-

second self-test. Following the self-test, the gauge enters the
Ready mode. The display is:

<READY> xx min
Depth: xx inches

The first line of the display indicates the current count time.
The second line indicates the selected source rod depth.

To switch from a Marshall to a Proctor value, or vice versa, use
the arrow keys.

To activate the displayed value, press 〈OFF/NO〉.
To change the displayed value, press 〈ON/YES〉. The first digit

of the value will flash. Use the arrow keys to scroll through the
possible entries (0 – 9 and .). When the correct value for the

current digit is displayed, press 〈START/ENTER〉. The gauge

will proceed to the next digit to the right.

When the value entry is complete, the gauge activates the
entered value and returns to the Ready mode.

THE STANDARD COUNT

GAUGE SETUP

COUNT TIME

To change the current count time (length of measurement),

press 〈TIME〉. Use the up and down arrow keys to scroll

through the available count times. When the desired count time

is displayed, press 〈START/ENTER〉.

DEPTH

To change the depth of measurement, press 〈DEPTH〉. Use the

up and down arrow keys to scroll through the available
measurement depths. When the desired depth is displayed,

press 〈START/ENTER〉.

MODE (MARSHALL/PROCTOR)

The 3430 gauge may be used on construction materials (soils,
asphalt, concrete, and so on). To select the Soil mode, enter or
activate a Proctor value. To select the Asphalt mode, enter or
activate a Marshall value. The gauge can store one Marshall
and one Proctor value.

NOTE

To measure concrete, use either the Asphalt or Soil
mode. For moisture results, select the Soil mode. For
density measurement only, select the Asphalt mode.

2 3 4

To compensate for the source decay and to check proper
operation of the gauge, take a standard count daily.

Place the reference standard block on a dry, flat surface of
asphalt, concrete, or compacted soil at least 10 cm (4 in) thick.
The location should be at least 3 m (10 ft) from any building or
vertical structure and 10 m (33 ft) from any other nuclear gauge
or radioactive source.

Ensure that the top
surface of the
reference standard
block and bottom of
the gauge are clean of
debris. As shown at
left, place the gauge
between the grooves
on the reference
standard block. Place
the source rod on
your left and the right
side of the gauge
against the metal butt
plate on the block.
Ensure that the
source rod is in the
SAFE position.

Press 〈STD〉. The gauge displays the last standard count. To
take a new standard count, press 〈ON/YES〉. With the gauge in
the standard count position, press 〈START/ENTER〉 to begin

the standard count.

After taking the standard count, the gauge displays the results.
Troxler recommends that the operator keep a daily log of the
standard count results, see Appendix E of the Model 3430
Manual of Operation and Instruction (user manual). For more
information on taking the standard count, refer to Chapter 3 of
the user manual.

SITE PREPARATION

To ensure measurement accuracy, properly prepare the test site
before taking gauge measurements.

SOIL SITE

CAUTION

Safety glasses must be worn during this procedure.

Place the scraper plate on the test surface. Smooth the area by
sliding the plate back and forth. Lift the plate from the surface
and fill any voids or depressions. Replace the plate and press

down slightly to further
level the surface.

As shown at left, put
the drill rod through the

DRILL ROD

EXTRACTION TOOL

SCRAPER PLATE/
DRILL ROD GUID

depth. Mark the test area. Remove the drill rod by pulling
straight up on the drill rod extraction tool. Do not loosen the
drill rod by moving it from side-to-side.

Place the gauge on the smoothed surface. Insert the source rod
into the hole. Lower the source rod to the correct depth and
release the trigger. A click should be heard when the source rod
is locked into position. Gently slide the gauge toward the
keypad so the source rod touches the side of the hole.

extraction tool. Put the
drill rod through one of
the guides on the
scraper plate. Place the
drill rod assembly on
the test site. Wearing
safety glasses, step on
the scraper plate and
hammer the drill rod at
least 50 millimeters (2
in) deeper than the
desired test depth. The
drill rod increments
include the additional