Wet, Damp or Dry ground - which is best ???

[Dave Nickum]

I just bought a bounty hunter and would like to know if the ground condition, wet, damp or dry, makes any difference if finding metallic objects?

my personal e-mail is dnickum@sunflower.com

 

[ronaldj2]

If given a choice damp is usually a good bet, plugs are easier to dig, and the soil stays together a little better. Also I heard that because water is a good conductor you get a better signal. Hope this helps, also if anyone has some better insight please share your knowledge!!

 

[garthbfan]

I heard the same thing. Day after a rain is a great time. Not only better signal but deeper also. That's what I have been told! Good luck

 

[GoGoGopher]

Definitely damp ground...after a light rain...it may be mushy, but your signals will go deeper, and sound off stronger on shallow targets...too wet, and you will get a LOT of false signals...

HH,

 

[slingshot]

Strangely enough, if you hunt too soon and not let the ground absorb the water, the depth lessens! I used hunt with an umbrella in my left hand (talk about having the fever bad!) and the detector in my right hand and noticed this effect. After the water has soaked, the depth increases. Back in the early days, the pros used to save their favorite areas to search after a good soaking rain. They also used to drive metal rods into the ground and connect them to an old telephone with a generator crank and electrify the ground.

 

[silversmith]

Never heard of that one, Slingshot. But you should take along your fishing pole, cause after the generator, there'll be worms all over the place!

 

[slingshot]

Never heard of that one, Slingshot. But you should take along your fishing pole, cause after the generator, there'll be worms all over the place!

Yeah-they used it for that, too. You can probably tell I'm from the old days-the "Karl Von Mueller" days-as I fondly call them. Back then there were all kinds of things they did to try to get more depth. Never was concerned enough to try anything like that, though. But the main tip back then was to go out after a good soaking rain.

 

[Oakman404]

That has been my expierience. If the ground is saturated (I don't mean with standing water) I always did much better.

 

[Ed in SoDak]

Some detectors (or maybe it's just their coils) will false more if gotten wet. Dry it off when it becomes and issue or wait to hunt when the grass has dried and it'll be fine. A timy leak in the coil near the wires can do this too, in which case it will continue to false till the coil's innards have dried. I'm reading more reports of leaky coils and had one myself, so just something to be aware of.

-Ed