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Bottle Digging Tools

Hidden in the backyards of farms and estates from decades ago are some of bottle diggers' best finds. By scouring through the dirt of trash pits and privies, antiques and oddities a century old can be found. Most tools for bottle digging are common items found in tool sheds and hardware stores. Some dedicated bottle diggers prefer to own a few specialized tools, like a customized polycarbonate plastic scraper.

Tools for Locating Sites
- Two main tools are used to locate potential bottle digging sites: a metal detector and a probe. A metal detector can easily scan the surface of the ground for manmade objects below. Use the metal detector to scan the soil after it is taken out of the hole for small metal items that had been buried.
  
  When using a probe, take samples from around the area. As the probe goes into the ground, you will be able to feel if it hits any objects, such as a privy wall or buried bottle. Inspect the dirt sample collected by the probe for key signs of a site. For examples, many privies will lack any ash in the bottom, and the probe will be able to slide easily through the ground. After locating a potential site, take soil samples several feet deep with a post-hole digger to confirm that this is an area to dig further.
Large Tools for Excavating
- Large amounts of dirt will be removed during the excavation of a dig site, but it needs to be taken out carefully to prevent damage to the bottles. Always wear gloves while digging to prevent injury from the broken glass and ceramic shards that are common in trash pits.
  
  A shovel with a flat, square blade removes sod easily and neatly. Use a round shovel for most of the larger digging to minimize damaging the buried glass with a sharp edge. As the dirt is removed, place it on a tarp or inside 50-gallon drums. This keeps yards clean, and allows you to sift easily through dirt for smaller items before filling in the hole.
Finer Tools for Excavating
- As you get closer to potential treasures, change from the large shovels to finer digging tools, like small shovels and trowels. With the smaller digging tools it helps to have a bucket for removing dirt, especially as the hole gets deeper. After you find an object, hand-held scrapers or flat-tipped screwdrivers can be used to carefully clear dirt from around the object. Newspapers and boxes are useful for wrapping bottles or other fragile objects that you find.
  
  When you replace the dirt, place a screen with 1/2 inch mesh over the hole. Shovel the dirt that was taken from the site onto the screen, and sift into the hole. Small objects that were hidden in the dirt, like buttons and coins, will be caught be the screen.

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