Fishfinder Issues

Ever since I bought my kayak from an un-named mooching pinoy it has had issues.

The depth reading goes from current depth to "0" ft and the sonar read-out intermittently flashes on and off. It will work for a few minutes then go blank for a minute or two and it's always like this, sometimes worse.

Could it be due to a bubble under the transducer?

Any help is appreciated.

I have a pic I will post later.

Here's the pic.

You can see the intermittent lines where the bottom seems to drop away. This picture represents the best it ever works. The temperature display remains constant, but the depth reading and display both turn on and off....or should I say the depth reads "0 ft" and the depth display just disappears.

Hi Rock Hopper,

I would double check the cable connections to make sure they are snug fitting and no sign of rusted pins.  Have you try to turn-on the FF without the sensor plug-in?  This should put it into simulation mode and if no display problem on the display in this mode then it's likely your sensor is bad.  Base on the above picture, it did not appear that you have a bubble under the transducer problem.

Sailfish

One more thing to check while you at it, make sure the voltages at the battery and at the FF's connection are the same.  If there's a significant voltage drop reading at the FF's connection then you might have a bad power cable.

Ever since I bought my kayak from an un-named mooching pinoy it has had issues.

Return it ASAP - he's a known criminal.

Sue! It's the only way to get justice.

How is the transducer mounted?

Also, check your battery.  it sounds like a power problem to me.  i had similar effects on my 383 when I first got my boat. Wild variations on depth readings from 0 to like 800 feet, and display craziness.  I was using an insufficient "new school" power supply, only 8 batteries.  Once I switched to a reliable power source the problems went away.



Allen

How is the transducer mounted?

I've never even seen the transducer...lol. But I believe it is just gooped to the inside of the hull.

And just for the record - Mooch gave me a sweet deal on the boat almost two years ago and it's been like this ever since, so I've learned to deal with it. I just thought I would try and fix it if possible so whoever is borrowing it at the time has a working FF...or in case I ever decide to sell it.

Also, check your battery.  it sounds like a power problem to me.  i had similar effects on my 383 when I first got my boat. Wild variations on depth readings from 0 to like 800 feet, and display craziness.  I was using an insufficient "new school" power supply, only 8 batteries.  Once I switched to a reliable power source the problems went away.

Allen

Brand new battery. One of the big bricks. But maybe it's the connections like Sailfish mentioned?

I appreciate the ideas, everybody, and I'll check on all of these things.

Sounds just like the issue I had with mine the transducer was not communicating with the software. I was able to fix it with the diagnostics built into the unit. What model is it Dustin?

Guess I shoulda mentioned that from the get go. 

It's a Humminbird PiranhaMAX215

And here's a pic of it "not working"