# Fishfinder Reliability



## Crikey (Oct 30, 2005)

Without wishing to state the obvious we all know that electronics and sea water do not mix. I have just given the last rites to my second Humminbird Piranhamax sounder. I would guess that they have been averaging 18 months service life before expiring. This attrition state whilst annoying has not been the the end of the world as while I was still doing a lot of travelling I was able to pick them up for under $100 each in the US, they were so cheap I still have one more left to sacrafice.

The question is that given the track record to date I may as well start the search for a replacement now.

The only location to fit a sounder on the Classic without major work is at the forward end of the footwell so the unit is more exposed to the elements than it might have been if fitted further aft but the cockpit sides do not lend themselves to any sort of neat install.

Covering the unit with a bag has not been a good solution so I would prefer to look at a unit with a better water resistance rating, I appreciate that you will not get a waterproof (submersible) unit but are there any that tout some form of rating other than splashproof. I am sure there was one unit quoted good for 1mtr for 30minutes but for the life of me cannot find it again.

Any ideas would be appreciated, thanks.


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## wopfish (Dec 4, 2006)

Mines be an submersable unit several times .... bit of condensation... but not too bad !!!! Mines a NAvman.... still working for the moment .......


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## bazzoo (Oct 17, 2006)

Woppie if that sounder is still working on that submarine of yours , thats the brand i want :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## sbd (Aug 18, 2006)

Mine took a hit this morning that saw me retrieve the screen from under the surf. After I'd bent the pins back (that's why I had the damn knife out) it was all fine. Can't kill the Eagles (I'm not sure of the official rating, but mine is certainly submersible).


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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## Guest (Feb 7, 2008)

My sounder just died on my Quest, its a lowrance X50ds, very similar to the cuda range. Has those damn push in plugs where the pins have to meet up. I have had so many problems with this sounder I'd doubt whether I would buy Lowrance again. It seems to plug in and work but as soon as you bump it it goes dead.

I have a Humminbird 343 on the Revo, its a sweet unit so far early days tho.

Cheers


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## Guest (Feb 7, 2008)

The humminbird 100 and 300 series are fully sealed gasketed units and are fine for use on kayaks. For maintainance on the plug areas simply spray some wd40 after evry trip.


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## wopfish (Dec 4, 2006)

I spray Innox on my connections..


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## chrissy (Jul 7, 2007)

I've already told you guys that my tranny is stuffin up on a recent post. I went to BCF, which is where i got it from. The guy there rang the humminbird guy and he said ya cant have it reading through the hull :? , but everyone on here does it. I've tried it out of the hull and it still doesnt work. So what doyou guys think would they send me a new tranny? For humminbird matrix 12 by the way.


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## wopfish (Dec 4, 2006)

Chrissy - test it in a bucket of water first. You should get a reading of sorts........... If no reading make sure everything else is good (by the manuall). If your still having probs - give the manufacturers a call if I were you
Good Luck


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## ausbass (Feb 15, 2007)

a while ago, our old humminbird sounder (for out tinny) got some condensation in it and dad got it fixed/repaired (im not sure) for free by the manufacturers.
the w/proof rating is known as IPX and the highest is 8. (more here; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Code)

hope it helps, just make sure that if taking reds advice with using silicon not to accidentaly glue the removeable bracket and sounder together, if you want it to be removeable.


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## DGax65 (Jun 7, 2006)

Silicone grease on the waterproof O-rings/seals.
Dielectric grease or Inox/Lanox/Fluid Film on the connector pins after every use.
Remove FF head unit for surf launches/landings if possible (make sure connector pins are protected OR
Cover head unit for launches/landings

I keep my FF covered with a marine electronics cover.








This cover has a couple of mesh vents on the back to limit condensation build-up.

Most waterproof FF are rated for a static water pressure. Dynamic forces from wave strikes can exceed the static pressure ratings. Bagging the FF head unit helps to limit the force with which the water hits the seals. My bow-heavy kayak tends to go through waves, rather than over them. This means that my FF has gone through quite a few waves. Since I started using the cover, I've never had any water intrusion problems on any of my fishfinders. Even if you don't want to use a cover while you're fishing, you can still put a plastic bag around it on launches and landings.

The high-end Humminbird FF seem to handle the water better then the Piranha series.

Electronics environmental ratings: http://www.ameradio.com/systems/certifications.html#IPX-8


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