Metal Detecting Advice

Designasaurus

Senior Member
Hi - I have a friend whose father buried a jar of silver dollars in the crawl space under their house 40+ years ago. Both his parents have passed away and the family home is being sold in a few weeks. I have an old Pioneer 202 detector that I loaned him to try to find his Dad's "buried treasure". So far he hasn't had any luck and time is running out.

Any suggestions from guys who actually know what they are doing? The crawl space is not open to the outside and varies from about 2' to 4' high. My friend is not particularly flexible or agile so he is not enjoying the process. He seems to remember the jar being buried 1-2 feet deep. The house is located in Florida.

Thanks in advance.
 

Jeff Raines

Senior Member
If it's 2 ft deep,the 202 may not hit it.If the coins are there,they will be closer to the 4 ft section,where a person can use a shovel or pick easier.
If the dirt has stayed dry,you may be able to take a yard rake and look for the loose dirt.
 

3ringer

Senior Member
Buy a Tesoro, Garrett, Whites or a Fisher. A good one will cost at least about 200 dollars. The shaft of the detectors are adjustable. When searching the basement, don't search randomly. Start in one corner and paint your way out. Don't miss any area. Go slow until you have covered every inch. Also turn off the discrimination. Search in all metal mode. Listen for a change in the tone. If it really is deep , a good detector should find it if it is there. A used detector from one of the manufacturers that I mentioned is ok too. Practice in your yard until you are confident.
 

treemanjohn

Banned
You can also probe the dirt looking for a soft spot. To dig 2 feet down you have to have a pretty wide hole especially since he couldn't use post hole diggers since he didn't have headroom. Digging a 2ft hole with only 2ft overhead would be a chore
 
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