Garmin sonar issues

[rmsbwt]

Has anyone else had any problems with the Garmin sonar unit not functioning while in water less than 5 - 6 feet deep?
If so, has anyone installed a real/true through hull transducer from any manufacturer in a Cutwater?
We are interested in the transducer installation location.
I am thinking it would be better to ask these question before drilling a 2" hole in the bottom of our boat.
Would the Cutwater factory shoot through hull transducer location (next to the shower sump in the V-berth) work for a true through hull transducer?
We have ordered the Garmin/Airmar B60 the 16 - 24 degree dead rise model.
The problem is not an install, set up or settings issue. We have spoken with Garmin and Airmar about 14 times.
Currently the Garmin 4210 is using the Airmar P79 transducer installed in the Cutwater factory location?
The Garmin tech line has said many time that the unit is not expected to operate in less than 5 feet of water.
I'm not buying this statement.
Any info. on transducer location would be appreciated.

 

[bbrh842]

The Raymarine depth finder works fine down to two feet. Seems like the Garman should be capable of doing the same?

 

[rt11002003]

Given the option of drilling a hole, or shooting thru the hull, I'd go for shooting thru the hull. Assuming, of course, one has a section of solid glass to shoot thru.

Modern sounders shooting thru a solid glass section of the hull are very accurate.

Fish finders may be another animal. My understanding they are somewhat more sensitive.

gene

 

[rt11002003]

An additional comment: My Garmin 704s sounder is very accurate down to two feet. Ask my wife. 😉 I thought she'd have a heart attack when I took Katie Marie into shallow water where she was positive there was only a foot of water under the hull. 😱

gene

 

[GulfSailor]

Has anyone else had any problems with the Garmin sonar unit not functioning while in water less than 5 - 6 feet deep?
If so, has anyone installed a real/true through hull transducer from any manufacturer in a Cutwater?
We are interested in the transducer installation location.
I am thinking it would be better to ask these question before drilling a 2" hole in the bottom of our boat.
Would the Cutwater factory shoot through hull transducer location (next to the shower sump in the V-berth) work for a true through hull transducer?
We have ordered the Garmin/Airmar B60 the 16 - 24 degree dead rise model.
The problem is not an install, set up or settings issue. We have spoken with Garmin and Airmar about 14 times.
Currently the Garmin 4210 is using the Airmar P79 transducer installed in the Cutwater factory location?
The Garmin tech line has said many time that the unit is not expected to operate in less than 5 feet of water.
I'm not buying this statement.
Any info. on transducer location would be appreciated.

You can test out the depth at which the P79 will read by taping it to a broomstick and lowering into the water as detailed in the Airmar instructions.

The location that the factory uses on the Cutwateris correct; it has to be in front of the hull step otherwise the air that's drawn under the hull will prevent the transducer from registering correctly.

However, the transducer must be installed in its base housing and not just glued to the hull (like mine was).
If it's not installed in that base it can't be correctly positioned to point straight down.

It's a tight fit but it can be installed correctly by the shower pump box and still have room to be removed if necessary.

It's explained in detail in the Airmar P79 instruction sheet, but essentially the base housing both allows the transducer to be correctly positioned, to be removed (it engages the base with a bayonet fitting), and because you fill the base with water or antifreeze there's no possibility of any air gap between the transducer face and the inside of the hull.

If you use a through hull transducer make sure it points straight down and mount it ahead of the step.

If anyone needs the P79 installation instructions, let me know and I'll put them up for download.

 

[starr]

Drill the hole and you ll have backup.on our r25 with garmin 5212 both systems were accurate at 2 feet.and by the way where is your boat? Fellow Vermont / lake Champlain boater

 

[walldog]

I can trace it out, but does anyone know where the transducer is installed on the Ranger Tug R27? Mine has become unreliable. It initially worked fair, only going off at high speed, but now it is off more than on at rest or low speed anytime. I think I need to check the transducer and see if it has not vibrated loose.

 

[gwwalsh]

My Garmin sonar is paired with the Garmin 740S chartplotter and Garmin radar and it too functions in a sporadic manner. While under way it begins flashing at a depth and it seems that the only remedy is to restart the chartplotter, which is very inconvenient. The depth at which the display flashes varies and has no consistent pattern.

I am hoping that the Garmin folks have a fix for this at Bremerton.

 

[Bruce Moore]

My Garmin sonar is paired with the Garmin 740S chartplotter and Garmin radar and it too functions in a sporadic manner. While under way it begins flashing at a depth and it seems that the only remedy is to restart the chartplotter, which is very inconvenient. The depth at which the display flashes varies and has no consistent pattern.

I am hoping that the Garmin folks have a fix for this at Bremerton.

This happens routinely when crossing deep water. The sonar can't keep up with the deep soundings. I was told to expect this. I've never seen it happen in depths <100' or so.

If it's occurring in shallow water, definitely have them check it out.

Cheers,

Bruce

 

[tugfan]

I have an older Garmin GPSMAP 498 with a transom mounted transducer on Blue Moon. It holds depth steady from 1-2 feet to over 300 ft at speeds up to over 40 kts. Sometimes if the depth changes rapidly from 50-60 ft down to 300 ft over a very short distance, kind of like going over an under water cliff, it sometime takes 15-20 seconds for it to lock on the bottom. At most other times it rarely loses bottom contact. So, my point is somethings seems wrong that my hot rod, full planing hull rib seldom faults while a semi displacement hull with full water contact can't seem to hold bottom.

Bill

www.eclecticwonders.com ---- uncommon art

 

[gwwalsh]

Good to know! I was not warned about this and have found it to be necessary to restart even after waiting a few minutes to see whether the unit would "adjust" to the changes in depth.

 

[Bruce Moore]

I have an older Garmin GPSMAP 498 with a transom mounted transducer on Blue Moon. It holds depth steady from 1-2 feet to over 300 ft at speeds up to over 40 kts. Sometimes if the depth changes rapidly from 50-60 ft down to 300 ft over a very short distance, kind of like going over an under water cliff, it sometime takes 15-20 seconds for it to lock on the bottom. At most other times it rarely loses bottom contact. So, my point is somethings seems wrong that my hot rod, full planing hull rib seldom faults while a semi displacement hull with full water contact can't seem to hold bottom.

Bill

http://www.eclecticwonders.com ---- uncommon art

The depths in Elliott Bay, my homeport, quickly reach 400', 500' and more. My 7215, and the 5215 before it, perform fine until crossing those depths.

Cheers,

Bruce

 

[linedoctor]

I have an early model Cutwater.

When I first took delivery I was having problems reading anything under 30 feet deep. The display would just blink. The factory moved the transducer from the stern to the bow by the shower sump and I still had the same problem.

Andrew later had me try changing a setting on my 5212 and all has worked perfectly since. And I mean perfectly, as in entering and leaving Fishermans Bay at Lopez Island at minus/low tide with what must have been perfect accuracy because my boat still has its bottom. (NW boaters know what I mean)

What has the factory had to say about your issue? I can't recall what Andrew suggested but I could find it again if you can't get a timely answer.

 

[GulfSailor]

I have an early model Cutwater.

When I first took delivery I was having problems reading anything under 30 feet deep. The display would just blink. The factory moved the transducer from the stern to the bow by the shower sump and I still had the same problem.

Andrew later had me try changing a setting on my 5212 and all has worked perfectly since. And I mean perfectly, as in entering and leaving Fishermans Bay at Lopez Island at minus/low tide with what must have been perfect accuracy because my boat still has its bottom. (NW boaters know what I mean)

What has the factory had to say about your issue? I can't recall what Andrew suggested but I could find it again if you can't get a timely answer.

I'm sure that all those of us with Garmin 5212s would be very interested to know what needed changing, if you wouldn't mind taking the trouble to find it again.

 

[JohnH]

My appologies if this suggestion is so obvious that you have already done it, but have you updated your Garmin software recently? You can check on the Garmin website for the current version and compare the number to the version of the software in your unit. Upgrading is an easy process, using an SD card. I have had shallow water depth sounding problems on 2 separate Garmin units on 2 different boats, and both times the software upgrade improved the shallow water performance significantly.

-- John H