Method 4: Use Your Metal Detector to Search for Gold Nuggets

 1. Transport yourself and your equipment to the area that you have chosen to prospect.

 

2. On the land move the metal detectors coils side-to-side and low along the surface of the ground. Avoid sweeping in a pendulum pattern in which the detector comes up high off of the surface of the ground when it goes to the far right or far left in your sweeping pattern.

 
3. Perform overlapping sweeps. If you do not slightly overlap your sweeps, then you may miss small deposits between swept areas.

4. Treat all positive findings as indicators of larger deposits. Gold rarely occurs in small swaths, so prepare to excavate more deeply if you find a small nugget.