I'm all wet: making my own dowsing rods for fun and profit

This month I asked the Ermas to try something new, stretch themselves a little and see what talents they could bust out. For myself I decided to try constructing something. I'm not, ahem, the most adept at power tools so I started with vise grips -- after my daughter showed me what they were. The concept was easy: bend a piece of steel and see if I could find water using two rods as dowsing sticks. I figure if I use them in ghost hunting, I'm going to make my own and find that gusher I know is on this mountain somewhere when I need a new well.

How to use: Dowsing rods have been used for millenia as a way to tap into the Earth's natural electromagnetic fields. They may be constructed of wood, copper or steel and are as easy to use as walking around in the forest looking like a dork and hoping the rods cross. Once they do, it's possible you have tapped into a water source -- or a ghost. Just be careful of what you're digging up, Sparky.

First: steel and grips (which I had been calling a wrench this whole time, who knew)

Second: Bend the steel and grunt like this actually takes effort

Third: Resting the rods easily in your hands, head out into the aforementioned forest and watch for them to cross. The rods are in one hand for this photo, otherwise it's one each, Tiger.

Bonus: I'll be using these tonight at a hotel I'll be exploring for ghosts. I'll keep you posted!

Stacey Graham's newest book, The Girls' Ghost Hunting Guide, will be released May 1st from Sourcebooks. When not wandering the woods, she uses perfectly good faucets for water and scares maids in hotels by trying to record EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) while sitting in dark rooms. Please visit her website at Late Bloomer, on Facebook and on the Twitter.