FoamTransducer holder- too much Goop problem

Last night I Gooped the foam donut down and put a big wieght on it.  This morning I checked it and saw that I'd put so much Goop on it that it squeezed out and covered the
area where the face of the t/d will be.  Thankfully, it was still tacky so I was able to get it off - I finished with tearing some bits off a Scotch-brite pad and using needle-nose pliers to scrape off as much as I could of the residue.  If I ever do it again, I'll use less Goop and  maybe not so much wieght.  Rubbing some Vaseline in the area before applying the donut might work, but then you'd have to get the oil off, still easier than getting the dried Goop off. 

When you apply the goop and then the weight, how do you prevent the goop from seeping into the area between the holder and the bottom of the boat, which I would think would affect transducer performance?

Last night I Gooped the foam donut down and put a big wieght on it.  This morning I checked it and saw that I'd put so much Goop on it that it squeezed out and covered the
area where the face of the t/d will be.  Thankfully, it was still tacky so I was able to get it off - I finished with tearing some bits off a Scotch-brite pad and using needle-nose pliers to scrape off as much as I could of the residue.  If I ever do it again, I'll use less Goop and  maybe not so much wieght.  Rubbing some Vaseline in the area before applying the donut might work, but then you'd have to get the oil off, still easier than getting the dried Goop off. 

I got tired of pouring water into the foam donut every time I went out, so I just gooped the transducer in. It seems to work just as well. I know that it will take a little bit of work to remove it whenever it finally breaks, but I don't think it will be that big a deal.

I keep a sponge in my hull. I use that to fill the donut. easier than pouring. just squeeze.

I used about a  5" square chunk of 2" think minicell foam. The kind used for (surprise!!) kayak outfitting. Put a piece of drywall abrasive on the hull of your kayak, move the foam back and forth for a bit, and it is now mated to the hull. Then just use a fair amount of silicon to attach the foam to the hull. Oh, cut out the recess for your transducer before you adhere the minicell to the hull.  Use a cheap water bottle to occasionally top off, but even upside down, my transducer well holds the water from dripping.



Scott

The weak links with ff's seem to be getting a good seal with the bottom and the t/d, and the contacts between the wires and the head. 
I think the second problem has been my biggest - the Piranha models I've used don't really have a good seal at the wires/head, water gets in there and corrodes the contacts (made worse by running current through the wires), and the little clamps that hold the pins tend to get sprung outwards - I've pushed them back with a needle, not a great fix. The current gets cut off at odd times. Any sort of blow to the wires causes them to lever against the pin holes.
   So I'm thinking the big advantage of the gooped foam donut will be that I can just leave the wires attached to the head of my new Eagle Fisheasy 245 DS, where there is a much better and more solid seal between the wires and the head that I don't want to wear out by pulling it out and pushing it in all the time. And if the donut starts to leak, and I doubt that it will because it's flexible, I can remove it with a lot less care that with a gooped down t/d.
    It will probably take me another 2 minutes to launch because I'll have to open the mini hatch in my P15 & pull the t/d back to the donut and make sure there's water in the donut, but I think it will pay off in reliability.
Ask me a year from now!

There's not much you can do with the Piranha models (on a kayak).  Rinse and dry them after every use.  Coat the connectors with gel.  They still only last a season or two.  I think Chuck has managed to resuscitate a portable Piranha for 3 seasons or more.  That must be some kind of record.  Maybe the Humminbird guys will put it in a museum...

   So I'm thinking the big advantage of the gooped foam donut will be that I can just leave the wires attached to the head of my new Eagle Fisheasy 245 DS, where there is a much better and more solid seal between the wires and the head that I don't want to wear out by pulling it out and pushing it in all the time. And if the donut starts to leak, and I doubt that it will because it's flexible, I can remove it with a lot less care that with a gooped down t/d.
    It will probably take me another 2 minutes to launch because I'll have to open the mini hatch in my P15 & pull the t/d back to the donut and make sure there's water in the donut, but I think it will pay off in reliability.
Ask me a year from now!

It takes less than a minute and the pay off is WELL worth it. I have the 245DS and I leave the plug connected. It has a great seal and I see no sense in disconnecting it.
I just removed the old glued down t/d from my T160 and the wire that attaches to the t/d was corroded. Another disadvantage of not being able to take it out and clean it. I put a foam donut ( pool noodle ) in the T160 so now I can use the same FF on either the P15 or the T160.
I see nothing but benefits by using the foam donut for the t/d. One of the best ideas to come around IMO. Wish I thought of it..
Do not worry about too much Goop at the bottom of the donut either. As long as there are no air bubbles in it the t/d will still shoot the beam through with no probs as long as it is not RIDICULOUSLY thick.

It will even shoot thru thick goop. I have at least 1/2 inch of it at the bottom of the foam hole. Works the same as it did with just water in the hole. I don't know if there is a difference if you try to shoot it thru a layer of water and then thru a goop layer.

I got tired of pouring water into the foam donut every time I went out, so I just gooped the transducer in. It seems to work just as well. I know that it will take a little bit of work to remove it whenever it finally breaks, but I don't think it will be that big a deal.

Most people started with gooped transducers and have switched to the foam donut because of the problems you run into down the road with a gooped transducer. If you put your donut in an easily accessed location adding water is not an issue.

Yesterday's trip proved it was plenty easy to set up the ff and it kept running all day fine, maybe too sensitive.  I just tied a string to the small hatch cover in my P15 and led it forward to the large hatch and tied it off on the strap.  That way I can ferry the t/d back to the small hatch easily, when I remove t/d, I tie the string off in front again.  Putting it below the small hatch makes the hatch almost useless for storing stuff, but I never did anyway.