Detecting In Really Cold Weather

[Rick N. MI]

Nice photo! I only did that once at a cellar hole in a pine plantation where there wasn't any snow yet.

[Tometusns]

2 hours ago, Rick N. MI said:

Nice photo! I only did that once at a cellar hole in a pine plantation where there wasn't any snow yet.

Rick we’re kinda silly here sometimes. That was a wet snow and it really collected on the coil so that hunt didn’t last much more than an hour. The ground hadn’t froze yet so digging wasn’t a problem. 
 The coldest I’ve detected was 19 degrees and the wind was blowing like crazy. There were three of us. The ground did have a small layer frozen that day but we were finding some old coins and relics. lol 

 I will say on that particular day the my machine did start to act funny after a while out there. It must have been time to quit. lol

 

[DOOGY-MD]

Glad to see a hardcore detectorist at work, good stuff!!

[phrunt]

I've been detecting in below freezing temperatures quite often, I actually prefer detecting in colder times as I hate heat.  One particular very cold day I was detecting with my Gold Monster and it was having trouble ground balancing in an area that should provide no ground balance issues so I thought I'd take my skid plate off to see if there was black sand under it, I'd never cleaned it before so there was possibly a mess under there. 

I removed the cover and from my thumb pressing on the plastic of the coil I can only assume I caused a crack in it, I didn't notice the crack before removing the cover.  Either way, the cold temperatures caused the plastic to become brittle and it cracked far easier than it should have.  It was either my thumb pressing on it or from it hitting a rock while I was detecting caused it, but certainly abnormal for it to crack in that situation.  The coil's skid plate did not crack, just the edge of the coil which was under the skid plate.  Minelab were fantastic and replaced the coil for me no questions asked.

I did some research on it and found plastic does indeed become brittle in a frozen environment, take your freezer at home, if you use plastic containers in it you'll often find they can crack.  While I don't know what plastics coil's or their covers are made out of, it's something to be aware of so you can be more cautious with impacts to the coils in the cold.

"All plastics have a minimum temperature rating. At this temperature the material becomes brittle and its impact strength has been significantly reduced causing it to be susceptible to cracking when under stress or pressure. ... Polypropylene and PVC are both plastics that are brittle at temperatures below freezing"

[wltdwiz]

cold is why i moved to AZ

heres me hunting lake Michigan back in the day brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

thats ice in the background

& im in a survival suit lol

[CoinShooter]

Here in Sterling, Alaska with about three feet of snow on the ground. Cabin fever is getting to me and I am thinking of a quick drive to Soldotna. Although I have never detected in the snow, I wonder if searching on the sides of parking lots, where the snow plows have pushed the snow, would produce finds?

Has any of you ever done this? If so, did you have any success?

Thanks,

John

[phrunt]

Something to keep in mind, electronics have operating temperature ranges, and may not work well outside of the range, even possibly causing damage mostly to the battery or even possibly the screen.

For the Manticore for example.  Operating Temperature Range –10°C to +40°C (+14°F to +104°F), check your detector manual for the range suitable for it but they'll all be pretty similar, especially if running the same battery.

I cracked a Gold Monster coil using it in subzero temperatures, I think the coil plastic was more brittle and when it bumped a rock it cracked.

Your snow idea sounds reasonable to me, when they clear the ski area carparks where everyone jumps out of their car and gets their gear out has proven good for me, they pile the snow up at the edges of the car parks, all sorts of finds in that snow from phones to wallets.

[HardPack]

19 minutes ago, CoinShooter said:

Has any of you ever done this? If so, did you have any success?

I crawl down through the hatch in the floor leaving the XP Deus RC setting close to the woodstove. But the only thing down here is firewood and a couple of hibernating chipmunks. I thinking of heading back upstairs for another try under the couch cushions.. Good luck finding a parking space in Soldotna.

[CoinShooter]

5 hours ago, HardPack said:

I crawl down through the hatch in the floor leaving the XP Deus RC setting close to the woodstove. But the only thing down here is firewood and a couple of hibernating chipmunks. I thinking of heading back upstairs for another try under the couch cushions.. Good luck finding a parking space in Soldotna.

In the winter, the traffic is down because the salmon aren't in. This makes for nearly vacant parking lots 🙂

[geof_junk]

On 1/18/2022 at 4:34 AM, wltdwiz said:

cold is why i moved to AZ heres me hunting lake Michigan back in the day brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr thats ice in the background & im in a survival suit lol

I have watch enough USA crime shows to know they also wear ORANGE suits, yours look similar. 😜