how to find a lost phone in water Tag | The Ring Finders

Phone Recovered from Geneva Lake in Williams Bay, WI

  • from Lake Geneva (Wisconsin, United States)
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A Daughter’s Phone Takes a Swim

It was a Saturday evening, September 5, 2026, when the call came about a phone dropped in the lake.  Ryan was anchored outside of the swimming area at Williams Bay Beach on Geneva Lake.  Family and friends were enjoying a perfect day on the water with jet skis, blue skies, and good company when his daughter’s phone went overboard.  The oft-repeated mistake of wrapping a valuable item in a towel and then promptly forgetting about it led to the phone taking a swim. 

“How deep are you anchored?” I asked.

Ryan’s depth gauge read 10.4 feet.  I explained that my maximum depth is 10 feet, but I told him I would be willing to give it a try.  He was securely anchored, so although drift would be minimal, the conditions underwater might prove to be challenging.

After a short jet ski ride to their boat, I donned my flippers and breathing apparatus and sank to the bottom.  Would I be able to reach the lake bed?

The water was clear, but significant seaweed obscured my vision.  Once I sank far enough, I was encouraged when I touched the bottom, though I soon realized the real bottom lay another foot deeper beneath silty sediment.  Perhaps the cell phone rested on top of the vegetation, and I would not even need to use my metal detector.  After a cursory swim around the boat and a little extra time on the port side, I popped up for a breather.  Ryan and I chatted a bit, and he felt that searching the stern area in an arc would be the best approach.  

I again sank to the bottom and started scanning.  It was quiet.  That was good.  I felt that if I heard anything, it would be the phone.  It wasn’t long before I heard a high-pitched screaming tone… the sound my machine makes over a cell phone.  I rescanned the area, and when I reached down into the loose vegetation, I felt the rectangular shape I was hoping for.  The pink case greeted me first.  When I flipped it over, the screen flashed on.  Success!

If you or someone you know has lost a phone, ring, or piece of jewelry, please call.  The smiles I enjoy when returning lost items are one of the best parts of what I do.

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Lost iPhone Sunset Beach, Tarpon Springs, Fl….Found!!

  • from Dunedin (Florida, United States)
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Steve Thomas

Dunedin Ring Finder

Lost a ring or other metal valuable in a grassy or sandy area? Jewelry slip off of you while working outside, playing with the dog or swimming? Please call me ASAP at (843) 995-4719. I offer a free metal detecting service, reward optional but appreciated upon recovery!

I was reading posts on a local social media page when I noticed that a person named Diana had posted that her son had lost his iPhone in the water at a local beach earlier in the day. I reached out to Diana who told me she was going to be back at the beach later that same day at low tide to do another search. I told her that I would meet her on site at 6:30pm to assist with the search which would be in knee deep rather than chest deep water at that time. When I arrived at Sunset Beach, I met Diana and several other members of her family including her son Gabriel who had lost the phone after only having it about two weeks! Diana showed me the area where they believed Gabriel may have lost his phone which included several hundred feet of beach out to about knee deep where a layer of sea grass began. I began my search down the shoreline from the starting point given to me by Diana by detecting the wet sand and very shallow water and I would move closer to the sea grass on my return sweep. I had not been searching for much longer that ten minutes when I heard several yells behind me. I turned around and saw Diana holding up Gabriel’s phone which she had found in the sea grass near my search start point! She told me that she had seen the phone in the clear water due to a reflection of sunlight. Diana gave the phone to Gabriel and he was overjoyed to see that it still worked even after soaking in the water all day. Later, Diana posted on social media that the phone had been found and gave me credit for helping with the phone search and a lot of positive publicity for what the Ring Finders do.

Diana, so happy you found Gabriel’s phone and thank you for all of your kind words!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Lost IPhone 13 in Dimond Lake…FOUND!!

  • from Spokane (Washington, United States)
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Andrew was tying up his family’s pontoon boat, when he bent over to grab the rope, his iPhone 13 slipped out of his shirt pocket and dove into the water. Andrew tried to dive down and find the phone without any success. Andrew turned to the computer and started researching metal detectors. After becoming overwhelmed with the idea, he decided to look up underwater metal detector rentals in his area . The Ring Finders website popped up with the answer he needed. So I got a text from Andrew today about his lost phone. We spoke on the phone and made arrangements for me to show up later that day. After arriving and putting on all my snorkeling gear I quickly made my way to where he said he bent over to grab the rope. Scanning around with my Equinox 800 I had very few targets and I knew that his phone would sing to me if I went over it. After about two minutes of detecting I got a symphony of sound in my headphones. I dove down two different times and the second, I came up with his iPhone 13. I’m completely thrilled with the reward you gave me Andrew and I really hope after drying your phone it turns on. Those iPhones are amazing when it comes to being waterproof.

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