If you’ve ever been fascinated by the paranormal, you might have thought about participating in a paranormal investigation. It can be an exciting and thrilling experience to explore haunted locations and attempt to communicate with entities from the beyond. However, for beginners, it might seem challenging to know where to start.
Whether you’ve seen ghost-hunting shows or not, it’s essential to know what ghost hunting equipment to bring and how to use it correctly to have a successful investigation.
This article aims to provide you with some basic knowledge about different ghost-hunting tools that can assist you in your research. By having a better understanding of the available equipment, you’ll be able to select the most useful tools for your investigation.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the different ghost-hunting equipment that can help you conduct your paranormal investigation – all tried and tested by the GhostMag team!
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What Equipment is Needed for Ghost Hunting?
While there are many expensive pieces of equipment available on the market, such as the SLS camera often used on Ghost Adventures and Help My House Is Haunted, you honestly don’t need to spend a fortune to get started.
In fact, you can find lots of affordable ghost hunting equipment online and in stores, which are all capable of recording evidence of supernatural goings on!
The exact equipment you need for a ghost hunt will depend on the type of investigation you’re doing, however there are a number of staple pieces of equipment every ghost hunter should own!
Generally speaking, you’ll need items to detect and measure environmental changes (such as temperature and electromagnetic fields), audio recorders to capture EVPs (electronic voice phenomena), and cameras to capture visual evidence.
You’ll also need a few items to help you communicate with spirits, such as a foldable table for table tipping sessions, dowsing rods and cat balls that illuminate when touched by spirits.
While these tools can be helpful, there is no guarantee that you’ll experience paranormal activity. The equipment’s main purpose is to detect any unusual events that might occur, such as EVPs or temperature changes, which can be valuable evidence to support your investigation’s conclusions.
Ghost Hunting Gear
Your Phone
A recording device, flashlight, and camera all rolled into one, your phone can be an excellent tool to record electronic voice phenomena (EVPs), catch photos of orbs, and use different apps to detect if there is in fact paranormal activity. When using your phone near other electronic devices it’s always good to use airplane mode to eliminate any possible interference.
Camera
A basic digital camera is good for capturing evidence on video. There are also a few different types of cameras you can get in addition to a basic camera, and these include Infrared cameras and thermal imaging cameras. Both infrared and thermal imaging cameras are great for detecting paranormal activity because they pick up what our naked eyes can not see.
Dowsing Rods
Dowsing rods are a type of divination tool used to locate and communicate with spirits. They are usually made of copper and consist of two L-shaped rods that cross when a spirit is present.
Spirits are said to be able to use dowsing rods to direct investigators to a specific locations or to provide answers to questions. They’re easy to use, lightweight, and affordable, so they are definitely handy to have on a ghost hunt!
Cat Balls
Cat balls are another type of divination tool used to communicate with spirits. They are usually made of glass, plastic or crystal and consist of a single ball that may light up or roll when a spirit is present.
On our past investigations, spirits have made the balls glow upon command or in a ‘yes’ or ‘ no’ response to our questions. They are a great and affordable tool which allow you to receive seemingly intelligent responses from the spirit realm.
K2 / KII Meter
There are lots of EMF meters on the market and they are a staple piece of equipment for ghost hunters and paranormal researchers. The most popular model, by some distance, is the K2 meter or KII meter.
The K2 is a type of electromagnetic field (EMF) detector used to measure changes in the environment. It’s a handheld, lightweight device that emits a low frequency EMF and has a digital display that is said to changes color when a spirit is present. There are five small LED lights that flash to indicate different levels of magnetic field – from normal to extreme.
If a spirit in a haunted location is willing to communicate, they may be capable of illuminating the LED lights to answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to your questions. An absolute must have for your ghost hunting kit!
REM Pod
A REM pod is ghost-hunting equipment that detects changes in ambient temperature, enabling paranormal investigators to record data and any associated activity in their records for later review.
Spirit Box
A spirit box is a radio that scans through the AM/FM frequencies, creating a sort of white noise that allows entities to communicate back. Using a spirit box with the ESTES method is one way many paranormal investigation teams have experienced eerie success.
To successfully use this method of research you need at least two participants and you will also need a blindfold and noise-cancelling headphones.
One person puts on the blindfold and the noise-cancelling headphones hooked up to the spirit box. The second person asks the spirits questions.
Anytime an EVP or a word emerges from the spirit box, the person listening will say it out loud to their partner. More times than not, the answers will surprise you.
Read more about the spirit box here.
Foldable Table
Believe it or not, some of the most compelling ghostly activity the Ghost Mag team have experienced has been using a small foldable camping table for a table tipping experiments.
The experiment involves a small group of people lightly resting their fingers on the edge of the table. If a spirit is present, a vibrating sensation is often felt and it is possible for the table to move violently or even levitate if it is a particularly strong entity!
Ouija Board
Sometimes Ouija boards get a bad rap. With many myths about leaving portals open, these board games or forms of divination are often touted as something not to be trifled with. However, they can be an immense help in communicating with ghosts because, with the help of the board, you are able to discern more than simple “yes” or “no” answers.
Tarot Cards
If you have a talent for reading tarot, then using tarot cards in an investigation can be really helpful. We would consider this a more advanced ghost-hunting technique because it involves knowing the meaning of the Major and Minor Arcana and how to properly interpret those meanings to apply to the location you are investigating.
Voice Recorder
A voice recorder is a type of audio recorder used to capture EVPs (electronic voice phenomena). They are able to pick up on sounds and voices that may not have been heard in the thrust of an investigation (direct voice phenomena).
Audio Recorders are relatively inexpensive, but the voice recorder built into most modern mobile phones is also suitable. On recent investigations at the incredibly active former RAF control tower at Coleby Grange near Lincoln, we believe we may have captured spirits responding to our questions on an iPhone.
Check out the following EVP GhostMag editor Matt captured below. We think you can clearly hear a male voice whisper ‘No’ to our question (at around 9 seconds) in the clip below!
If you don’t want to use your mobile phone, the most common audio recorder used on paranormal investigations is the Philips Voicetracer. This is a tried and tested best seller that has been proven to record EVPs all over the world. You can read our review of the Voicetracer and other audio recorders in our article on Electronic Voice Phenomena.
Using the Voicetracer, we recorded a ghostly voice in the Galleries of Justice in Nottingham! Listen to the clip below and let us know what you think in the comments!
Tip: Record in short, sharp bursts of around 15-30 seconds, so the recordings are easier to review at a later date. Try to listen back to all clips with headphones so you can really focus on the audio to see whether a spirit may have tried to communicated.
Benefits of Using Affordable Ghost Hunting Equipment
One of the biggest advantages of using affordable ghost hunting equipment is that it’s more accessible. You don’t need to spend a fortune to get started and we believe, after many hours of paranormal investigation, that more often than not affordable equipment produces the best results.
Whilst it may be all the rage to have an SLS Camera, a spirit box or an ITC tool like the Ovilus in your kit bag, sometimes the most affordable ghost hunting equipment is often more reliable.
Remember that there is no concrete evidence that any of these devices, which can be very expensive, are actually communicating with spirit.
Barri Ghai, tech expert on HELP! My House is Haunted explains on his website: “The devices available today are plentiful and many do the same jobs“, so be sure to shop around and read reviews before making any expensive purchases.
Where to Buy Ghost Hunting Equipment
If you’re looking for ghost hunting equipment, you’ll be glad to know that there are plenty of options available. Given the huge surge in the popularity of ghost hunting in recent years major sites like Amazon and eBay now offer a wide selection of ghost hunting equipment at discounted prices.
There are also specialised retailers such as GhostStop in the United States and Spirit Shack in the United Kingdom that offer a wide range of equipment specifically designed for ghost hunting.
These heavyweights in the world of the paranormal even supply equipment to many of the paranormal investigators you may have seen on Television including; Ghost Adventures, Ghost Hunters and Kindred Spirits.
Whist they stock some of the high ticket items such as SLS Cameras and Spirit Boxes, they also provide some affordable equipment that can really help on your search for spooks.
How to Assemble Your Ghost Hunting Kit
Once you’ve purchased all the necessary ghost hunting equipment, you’ll need to assemble your ghost hunting kit. Start by finding a sturdy bag or box that can hold all your equipment and make sure it’s large enough to fit all the items you’ll need.
You’ll want to make sure that everything is easily accessible and that there’s enough room for everything. You may also want to include some extras such as flashlights and spare batteries as ghosts have been known to drain batteries and interfere with electrical equipment.
Tips for Using Your Ghost Hunting Gear
Now that you have your ghost hunting kit assembled, it’s time to start using it! Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your ghost hunting gear:
- Test your equipment in a safe, controlled environment before using it in the field.
- Always be respectful of the environment and any spirits that may be present.
- Keep an open mind and be patient.
- Take notes and document any evidence you find.
- Keep your ghost hunting group small to avoid any potential disturbances.
- Take some spare batteries! Ghosts have been known to drain batteries so it is important to carry spares for your torches and cameras!
Can you ghost hunt on a budget?
Ghost hunting on a budget is possible with the right equipment! With a few simple pieces of affordable ghost hunting equipment, you can begin your journey without breaking the bank. There are plenty of places online and in stores where you can buy affordable ghost hunting equipment, so do some research and find the right gear for you.
Finally, make sure to assemble your ghost hunting kit and follow our handy Ghost Hunting tips for the a smooth investigation.
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