Investigation Techniques
 

Baselines

Complete Quality Baselines

Many groups never do baselines at all, which is surprising. Most of those that do, do not always go as far as they need to in this respect. For a paranormal investigator baselines are a vital aid to understanding a location and much can be learned with the lights on.

CaSPIR use a multifunction meter that can measure ambient sound, relative humidity and temperature, an EMF meter and a Digital Still Camera for our baselines. We may also sometimes use an ultrasonic tape measure, Geiger counter or Ionisation Meter where appropriate. If you are curious as to why the Geiger counter and Ionisation Meter are used, see the appropriate equipment pages for an explanation.

Record the Room Base Measurements

We make use of a set of forms that we have developed; a sample of these is available from the menu page.

Using these forms we take a set of temperature, humidity, EMF and other measurements from three to five areas in a room, more if it’s a large room.

Take note of any exposed wiring and all electrical sockets. This is useful if you decide to locate some electrical equipment in the room as part of a vigil or for remote monitoring.  Knowing where the power sockets etc are will also give you a clue where the mains cables are. We also note any natural noises occurring within the area and environmental conditions we feel may be important.

Even though you have the lights on make sure you have a torch with you to look in any dark corners or behind furniture.  We continue to take baselines within vigils also, so we have a comparison for lights on/lights off.

Photograph every room from all angles

This may sound a little daft at first, but if when you come to analyse your results later, when someone says “that plate was not there I am sure of it” you have something to refer back to, to provide a conclusive answer.

I also find these pictures useful when you get a strange light anomaly recorded and there is a doubt whether it has been caused by a reflection or not.

Once again a look through what else is in the room can quickly provide you with an answer and prevent blushes when you publish the picture on the web. All it takes is someone else who has been to the same place to point out it’s a flash reflection from x and you are made to look less than professional.

Note the Construction

We note down details about the construction of the room and its size and height. You can use one of the laser or ultrasonic tape measures if you have one to good effect.

We also do a small rough drawing of the room layout so that we have a record of what’s where.

Note as well the room’s relation to other rooms. This is important if you are dealing with a multi floor building. To give an example, someone later hears the sound of footsteps on a stone floor you check your plan and there is a stone floor in the room above and more importantly you have a team near that area. You may have an explanation or perhaps better. If there was no one in the area at the time there is an opportunity to do a vigil in the room above to see if the footsteps are repeated.

Be aware of ventilation grills and any windows that you cannot shut. Noise travels a very long way in the quiet of night, as do the scents from flowers, bread, cooking food etc.

Note Hazards

While doing the baselines you should also note down on your sheet any hazards, trailing wires for instance or a step or bump in the floor that could cause a team member to trip.

Also check windows for drafts and doors to see if they open easily, rattle, creak or have dodgy catches, again note anything of value down for later reference.

Look out in particular for things that may be on time switches or thermostats, these could easily turn on without warning during a vigil.

Ask Your Host

Never be afraid to ask your host questions, they will know everything there is to know about the location. For example there is one location in Portsmouth where birdsong can be heard all night due to a nearby illuminated electricity sub-station. Our host knew of course, but our investigators were pretty surprised to hear birds singing in a drawing room at 01:00.

One thing we always ask about is if the location uses electronic rodent or inset repellent devices, these can play absolute havoc with EMF meters and they are easily missed during a baseline. These use the electrics of the building to intermittently emit strong RF frequencies through the mains wiring acting as a repellent.

These are often found in restaurants, bars, offices, theatres etc. Even mains immune EMF meters are badly affected by these so beware.

Your baselines are a valuable asset on many fronts, they can be used to brief your team before they start their vigils highlighting any hazards or anything else that they need to be made aware of in the area.

Make sure the team that is holding a vigil has the baseline sheet for that area with them. If they start getting what they think are odd readings they can compare these with the baseline for that room. If all of the readings have changed by a similar amount then this may well be perfectly normal, but keep a record.

If just one area has changed and it’s not explainable by being on an outside wall at the corner of the building then this could be significant. Once again keep a record and keep checking the readings.

You can also use the baselines in your investigation report for your hosts, as CaSPIR do, your host will be impressed by your systematic approach.

Baselines are also useful if you go back to the same location again at a later date, you can see at a glance if something is different.

It is good practise to take many baselines over a period of time, just as it is to investigate a location many times in order to gain a more accurate picture of exactly what is going on.

Good Luck!

 

© County Society for Paranormal Investigation and Research - 2008


Last Updated 27/07/2008