Cell Phones During Paranormal Investigations

A cell phone can be beneficial during paranormal investigations.

I was hosting a private investigation in the Lemp Brewery Bottle Works when I heard the team leader of the investigating group say, “You must leave your cell phones in your car or turn them off.” Then they handed out a walkie-talkie to every member of the group.  I asked the team leader, “Why no cell phones?” His reply was, “Because they cause false K-2 Meter readings.”  Then I realized nobody on this team understood EMF.

There are two different types of EMF: Electromotive Force and Electromagnetic Fields. I’m not going to bore you to death explaining the differences between them. Just know your K-2 Meter will react to both, but it is designed to detect Electromagnetic Fields. What your K-2 Meter is designed to detect are low- to mid-frequency electromagnetic fields that are generally harmless to humans. These come from everyday items like power lines, appliances, Wi-Fi routers, and cell phones. So what’s the problem? The team leader was right: cell phones will give false K-2 Meter readings. But when any member of the team transmits or talks on their walkie-talkies, they are also causing electromagnetic interference with their K-2 Meters. Their walkie-talkies emit radio waves, which are also low- to mid-frequency electromagnetic fields. Anytime someone transmits or talks on their walkie-talkies, their K-2 Meter and any nearby K-2 Meters will light up. Also, walkie-talkies transmit at higher power levels than cell phones, which can cause greater interference.  

As a team leader, I understand the need for communication during investigations. Emergencies happen, and if you’re alone in a remote area of the investigation site, you need to be able to contact someone. Cell phones also have several other advantages. They have built-in high-quality cameras, so you can set up your camcorder to monitor one area and keep your cell phone on your person to capture footage or take pictures. Cell phones generally have better microphones than digital voice recorders. With voice-to-text apps, you not only have a recording of your EVP session, but also a written transcript. Being able to generate two sources of evidence for your EVP’s is the holy grail of paranormal investigations.

So, I allow team members to carry their cell phones during investigations. There are just too many advantages to having them. You can conduct an experiment yourself with your K-2 Meter and cell phone. Place your K-2 Meter on top of your cell phone and note the reading; you may need to wait a few seconds for the meter to respond. Then place your K-2 Meter six inches from your cell phone and note the reading. Then do this every six inches until you get no reaction on your K-2 Meter. At a distance of about 2 feet, your K-2 Meter will not react to your cell phone at all.  

A safe practice is to ask your team members to place their cell phones in “airplane” mode when they are on their person.  Since the detection range of a K-2 Meter for cell phone emissions is about 2 feet.  Ask your team members to place their cell phones in the left hip pocket and hold their K-2 Meters in their right hand, with their right arm fully extended.  The distance generated by this body posture will also be an additional safeguard against erroneous K-2 Meter readings.