Trash Dumps....information please

[Postalrevnant]

I know where a few trash dumps are at they are basically 40 year run ones that ran from 1940's -1980's give or take. Know it will be hard with my BH to see deep or pick out more than one thing together.

So was wondering if it will be one really rough time, will be mainly looking for coinage or jewelry?

How would you approach this with a $400 dollarish detector that seems to be decent up to 6 to 7 real inches?

Lastly LoL would I just be better to bring the shovel and start digging down then make my way across?

Thanks in advance,

Postalrevnant

OH BTW...other than bottle possibilities, will have to use probe, what else can be cool to find in old dumps?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Agony and Death on a Gold Rush Steamer: The Disastrous Sinking of the Side-Wheeler Yankee Blade - Grab it through Amazon!

[Spitfire Reddie]

what type of bh do you have??

 

[stoney56]

You may have a problem with the amount of metal found in a lot of trash dumps. You might look at using some sort of screen to sift through the shovelfuls of dirt.
Expect to find small glass or ceramic items and especially the occasional marble along with other things of interest that a detector won't pick up.

 

[Postalrevnant]

BH pioneer 505 Reddielocks.

 

[TreasureTales]

Looking for coins and jewelry in a dump usually requires sifting the dirt through a screen. That can be slow, dirty work. Using a metal detector with a small coil is sometimes productive, but you really have to know your detector well to know when to dig and when to walk on. There are so many targets in a dump it's almost impractical to use a MD. I prefer to use a garden rake and rake off a couple of inches of soil at a time. First, you'll have to remove the top layer of weeds and/or recent junk with a shovel or rake. Use a rake and not a shovel to do the rest of the dump, the deeper layers. A shovel will tend to break some otherwise interesting and collectible china, glass, and ceramics. If you have plenty of time and can work on the dump at your leisure, I'd recommend using the rake to remove the larger pieces of stuff and set them aside in piles. Then go back and use a small coil on your detector in hopes of finding some coins, jewelry, watch fobs, etc. But to be thorough and to find marbles or beads, you'd have to sift the soil. That is often rewarding, but it takes lots of time. I spent a week in Nevada last year, sifting a dump. It was hard and dirty work, but rewarding...if you know what I mean. lol Good luck.

 

[SHERMANVILLE ILLINOIS]

Clear it out, no metal detector.
Shovel, rake, sifter if you want to do a good job,
whatever feels good. Go deep, go slow. Use gloves.

Never know what you will find.

have a good un....

 

[Postalrevnant]

I had not really thought of sifting it out in layers, but it sure makes a great deal of sense. I was wondering how to check it since I knew there would be lots and lots of trash targets, plus my detector is lucky to see 6 inches which would possibly be already not deep enough to even see past the dirt they covered the dump with.

Thank you for the great tips,

Postalrevnant

This might be an interesting venture come winter / spring when the foilage is down. Will post you all with results when I do it.