Over the past few years, and due largely in part to the success of shows like “Ghost Hunters” and other paranormal themed entertainment programs, the use of conventional electronics for unconventional means has become the norm.
When electricians first started using K2 meters to discover spikes in electromagnetic fields, I am sure they never thought that the very equipment they held would soon be used to search for spirits that roam the earth.
Let’s clarify one thing. K2 is a brand, similar to the way that Band-Aid and Q-tips are nothing more than adhesive bandages and cotton swabs respectively. The average K2 meter used to run between fifteen and twenty-five dollars and were available at any hardware/electronics store.
Because of the surge in popularity, the garden variety from K2 will now run you over fifty dollars. The ease of use and easy to ready color light display versus a moving needle on competitor models made the K2 the model of choice for paranormal investigators.
Enthusiasts have augmented the devices to include on/off switches versus using your thumb or a coin to hold down the “Take reading” button on the top of the device. It was thought that having to continually press a button to take a reading was causing false-positives as pressure on the button waned as thumbs grew tired.
The theory behind its use is that spirits are of composed of energy. In order to manifest they must draw more energy from a room. As they draw in more energy to do whatever it is they intend to do (show themselves, make a noise, move something, touch someone…) they increase in energy and therefore should cause a measurable spike which would be recognized by the K2 meter.
The higher the energy mass the higher the spike would register on the device.
The flip side of the coin is that if energy is being pulled from the room by the spirit and the spirit is assuming that energy then there should not be a spike because the energy has not been displaced or increased. It is the same science behind ice cubes melting in a full glass. As the ice melts, the beverage level does not increase because nothing was added. The energy level should remain the same regardless of from where the energy is emanating. No new energy was created to cause a spike.
That, of course, is working under the assumption that ghosts are present all the time and their energy is a natural part of the environment.
However, if the spirit itself gives off energy of its own as many paranormal investigators believe, then that energy on top of the existing energy in a room would indeed cause a spike.
In theory, a self-aware ghost could use its energy level to manipulate the lights on the detector to interact with the living. However we must also know that there are naturally occurring fluctuations in the electromagnetic field which could result in false-positives.
Shows like “Ghost Hunters” have a high success rate with the K2 meter, but fail to take into consideration that the stars of the show are mic’d, they have walkie talkies on, cell phones, camera equipment, boom mics and a myriad of other external stimuli that could easily cause the spikes that are passed off as paranormal evidence.
In actuality, there are more times where the K2 is unresponsive or too erratic to be considered paranormal than an actual instances of “ghostly interaction”. Because of its unreliability we have to discount a majority of the evidence collected.
It’s best suited to be used in accompaniment with others investigative means such as getting baseline readings of investigation sites to ensure that the owners of the site are not experiencing EMF sensitivity versus an actual haunting. Few and far between are the instances of interaction with the spirit world through the K2 meter.
Some of the best equipment you can bring on an investigation is a pad and pen(cil), a voice recorder and something used to measure external temps. (Do not bring your thermometer from your medicine cabinet, this will do you no good unless you are running a fever.) A camera, camcorder with night shot if possible, and a flashlight should also be a part of your equipment musts.
The SPIRIT Seekers utilize a myriad of EMF detectors and we have our fans of the K2 amongst us. It is a matter of professional preference and knowledge of the equipment you are using. Obviously, people who assume every noise, glitch, movement, or fluctuation in temp or EMF is a sure sign of a ghost should stay away from the K2 meter.
S.P.I.R.I.T 