I need to survey a plot of land for various heights and distances - can I use a handheld GPS unit to do this?

It's a hilly plot of land in the Philippines - I want to plot the profile of the land and various distances from a certain place (a house).

I need to survey a plot of land for various heights and distances - can I use a handheld GPS unit to do this?
Most GPS only give '+' or '-' 2.1 metres at best.
Reply:A handheld GPS unit will work within reason, just don't use it for surveying or trying to lay down something that needs accuracy such as the foundations of a large house on a hillside. In some parts of the world, GPS isn't as accurate because there aren't enough satellites in the area or they intentionally make it inaccurate. Some GPS units will constantly trace exactly where the unit is so you can walk to a point and see what the path looks like. If you have a unit that does this, test the accuracy of the GPS in your part of the world by staking off 3 points in a triangle shape of a considerable distance such as 100 ft (30 m) per side, travel from point A to B to C, and see if the GPS unit actually made a triangle shape that closed on itself. I had a problem with that on a field trip in Utah and had to build in uncertainty ranges for my map.
Reply:Handheld GPS units are not suitable for surveying.





For that, they make survey-grade GPS receiver systems that will give you millimeter accuracy. But they cost tens of thousands of dollars. You're likely better off hiring a surveyor to do the job.
Reply:you could use whatever you like, whether it would be any use or not is a different matter
Reply:Not accurate enough.
Reply:if you want to do it within a couple of meters accuracy, a handheld unit CAN be fine. Check the accuracy before you start surveying (usually this is displayed on the screen).

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