TORCH

The torch is probably the most important piece of equipment you can take with you on a paranormal investigation.

As the locations are usually dark, you'll need this light source to be able to find your way around, as well as to avoid tripping over anything that may be on the floor (old buildings and outside locations usually have lots of debris to watch out for).

The torch also allows you to see what you are writing in your reports and allows you to see what natural source may have caused something perceived as paranormal.

INFRARED THERMOMETER

The infrared (IR) thermometer is an important piece of equipment used in accurately obtaining a surface temperature.  

Our thermometer is laser-directed, meaning that whatever the laser shines on is where the temperature is being measured.

This is useful for determining if a cold spot has occurred, or if the witness is imagining it.  Likewise, areas that suddenly get cold with no apparent reason can indicate something paranormal has occurred.

Despite being extremely useful, it is one of the cooler pieces of kit to use.

INDOOR/OUTDOOR THERMOMETER

This piece of equipment is used to help monitor the temperature of the environment we are in.  It also provides us with the time.

As it monitors the temperature indoors and out doors simultaneously, it makes it useful for taking readings for the baseline readings.

Temperature readings of the environment are important as if we find an image with some ghostly mist, we can use the temperature to help rule out the possibility of it being photographer's breath.

ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELD (EMF) DETECTOR 

Probably the most recognisable piece of kit that is associated with paranormal investigators.  The EMF detector can indicate if there are any fluctuations in the area's electromagnetic fields.

Not intended in detecting ghosts and spirits as such, but mainly used to monitor if there are any areas of man-made electrical fields that may have adverse effects on witnesses (as changes in field can cause the sense of paranormal activity occuring).

Ours doubles up as a mobile phone detector, useful to esnure all team members' phones are switched off as not to disturb the investigation!

HYGROMETER

The hygrometer is a tool many people have never heard of.  It is a device that measures the amount of moisture that is in the air.

Many will wonder why this is important.  Well again, this may be down to just the photography aspect - if water droplets are airborne, we may see an increased number of orbs in our picture (suspended ater droplets are spherical.

It is said that lots of ghostly activity happens around water - if we get a high percentage of moisture, we may be in for a spooky night with lots of activity.  However, this is not a definite fact and will need to be tested.

BEAM BARRIERS 

The beam barriers provide and infrared beam of light between the two units.  When the beam is broken (i.e. someone or something moves between the barriers) an alarm will sound.

These are used for two reasons.  We use thses to "block off an area - so if we leave a trigger object in an area and want to ensure nobody goes in the room.  If it goes off, we can go to the area and check if anyone is there. 

The other reason is that if they go off and that everyone can be accounted for then it raises the question..."what set them off?". Of course, the answer doesn't necessarily mean it was a paranormal entity, pets like to move into restricted areas too!

AUDIO RECORDER/DICTAPHONE 

We use a digital dictaphone in our investigations.  This is used in EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) experiments and also to record witness interviews.

In EVP experiments, we hope to pick up low frequency voices thought to have been spoken by paranormal voices.

In witness interviews, these devices are important as they can record EXACTLY what has been said, so it documents it factually.  It also frees our hands so we can document how the witness looks.

We choose digital to reduce the mechanical noises caused by tape recorders and also to allow ease of transfer to a computer for analysis.