raymarine depth sounder

[elly]

My raymarine depth sounder (C120) has started to act up.

It works fine for a while and then I get a "DSM signal lost" warning and the depth display shows dashes. The last few times this has happended it was when I was going from deep to shallow.

If I turn off the battery switch for a minute or so and then power everything up it will work again for awhile.

A call to raymarine tech did not help.

Any suggestions or experience with this.

Thanks.

 

[j&lgray]

A couple ideas:
(1) Check the network connections behind in the area behind the steering wheel to see if something is loose.

(2) Check the transducer, a black box that is typically located on the port side and way aft and nearly at the stern. The transducer needs to "be sealed" to the fiberglass for the signal to be effectively transmitted and received through the hull. Sometimes this seal is broken by normal wear and tear. If the transducer is loose, the quick fix is to use a 100% silicone caulk, after removing and cleaning both surfaces, and put a good size puddle of caulk on both surfaces and squish onto the hull. Put some weights on it and let it sit for 24 hours. The results should be immediate, even before the caulk has set up. By the way, do not use an adhesive caulk. If the transducer looks like it is tight and sealed, it may be:

(3) The transducer may be dying and it needs to be replaced. The new transducer ins a black box and cable. Do the above and run the new cable. Another alternative, one that I did on our Ranger 25 was to buy a stand-a-alone depths sounder kit. It was a bigger job than just replacing the transducer but I wanted the depth sounder separated from the chart plotter. If one died, I still had the other. Look online, like at boatersland.com for unit.

Let us know how this turned out.