Do You Think Your House is Haunted?

Is your house haunted? Are you experiencing paranormal phenomena? Have you seen an apparition or heard noises you can not explain? Are you experiencing disembodied voices or footsteps? If you answered yes to any of these questions your house just might be haunted.

The best way to examine the noises and or phenomena you are experiencing is to do your own investigation. You do not need to invest money into fancy gadgets to find out if your house is actually haunted. EMF detectors and thermal scanners are nice, but they are not necessary. You can perform your own investigation with some simple items you probably have around your house.

Tape Recorder or Digital Recorder

You can use an old fashion tape recorder, or if your into the latest gadgets and have a digital recorder, that will work too. If you decide to use a tape recorder, make sure the tape you are using is brand new. Never use an old tape. You do not want noises from old recordings to bleed through. An external microphone is best. If you do not use one you might pick up the noise from the wheels turning while it is recording. A multi-directional microphone is also recommended. This allows it to pick up noises and or voices in multiple directions. Digital recorders work well too. One word about voice activated recorders, they do work, but sometimes I find that they might not pick up all paranormal noises. Sometimes a voice you might be able to capture is so faint it does not trigger the recorder to turn on.

Capturing EVP

EVP stands for electronic voice phenomena. This occurs when voices from an unknown source are imprinted on your recording. You will use your tape recorder or digital recorder to try and capture EVP's. An unexplained EVP can actually be the voice of a spirit or ghost. There are several ways to try and capture an EVP when your investigating your own haunted house. You may turn on a recorder and leave it in a specific area, and come back to it later to check for recordings. This is fine as long as you are sure your not going to pick up your own voice and or noises from you walking around the house. A recording performed like this should always be done when the house is completely still. Another way to try and capture EVP is to have a question and answer session. It is a great way to interact with a spirit or ghost that might be occupying your home. When you are asking questions, be sure to leave a pause to give a spirit time to answer the question. Think outside of the box when your asking questions. You can ask typical questions like, " Who are you.", or " Is there anyone here." These are great questions, but get creative. Why not try some other questions such as:

" What is your name? "

" Do you want to talk to me? "

" What is your favorite color? "

" What are your favorite games? "

" Are you married? "

" What year is it? "

" Are you dead? "

Trigger Objects

Another great investigative technique is using trigger objects. Trigger objects are placed in an area that is believed to have a lot of activity. What your going to do is track the object and see if it moves. Items such as a doll or a ball are great if you believe it is a child haunting your home. Other objects could be a glass placed on a counter top with salt or flour around it. If there is movement you will be able to tell by the displacement of salt or flour. Another item you can use is a penny placed on a piece of paper with a circle drawn around it. Even a picture of a loved one passed could be used if you believe it is them visiting your home. The idea of trigger objects is to pick an object that the spirit or ghost would be likely to move. You can even ask for an object to be moved and see if you get a response.

Paper and Pen

Although a paper and pen may seem very simple, it is one of the best tools you can use. When your investigating write down any feelings you may be having, or any noises you are hearing. If there is more than one group investigating, this can help confirm any activity you experienced. It is great to be able to compare notes at the end of an investigation and find out others were having the same experiences you were. For example: I was taking notes at a investigation when one of the members keep hearing the song Frère Jacques. I wrote his experience down not thinking anything about it. Later while heading home with another member, she told me she kept hearing a song when we were investigating. She began humming the song Frère Jacques. Imagine my surprise when I realized what she was humming. She had not been present when the other member mentioned what he was hearing. She had not seen the notes I had taken either. It was great because there was a confirmation that it was probably something paranormal.

Video Camera

Setting up a video camera in area is a great idea. You can check it later to see if anything paranormal shows up. You can also walk around with your video camera while investigating too.

Digital Camera

Digital cameras can be used during an investigation of a suspected haunted house. One quick note is to always say, "Flash" out loud before taking a picture if there is more than one person taking photographs. This allows the other people with you, to hold off taking their picture. It keeps you from interfering with other photography that is being used. Be advised you will probably have some orbs in your pictures. Before you get too excited, you must check out the picture completely. Many orbs are simply dust or water droplets if it is raining. If you want to test this theory out, just shake a small rug and snap a couple of shots. I guarantee you, that you will have several orbs in the picture.

The Library and County Records

Your local library is a wonderful place to do research. Many of the main libraries have a historical records section. You can look up census records, marriage documents and other information that might lead you to who exactly is haunting your home. Another great source is where your county records are kept. Our county government building has land plat maps, and you can also look up any address in their files to see previous owners of a property. Early I mentioned the "coincidence" concerning the song Frère Jacques. Well when I checked local records I found out their was a little brother named John that lived at that residence almost 100 years ago. Another "coincidence" was the neighbors were from France and had children the same age. You could make the connection that they spoke french and played with the children next door.

EVP, video recording, picture taking, using trigger objects are all great ways to investigate if your house is haunted. Compare your findings with local records and see if you can make a connection to any evidence you find. Always make sure to keep your notes and compare them to all your evidence. You never know when a "coincidence" occurs. This will only help you to build a stronger case that your home is indeed haunted.