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OK, well I used the sponge and Silicone like I seen on YOU TUBE. Well it didn't work for me. So, one of my questions is....When I push the transducer down in the sponge/silicone, do I need to push it all the way until it touches the yak?? Second question is, Does the transducer have to be on a flat surface?? I'm putting it in the middle of my yak and it's not completely flat. Do I NEED to use the sponge?? Hopefully I worded everything good enough to understand, Thank you for any help!!
I am not familiar with using a sponge.
Level (or nearly so) is best. Most tutorials that I have seen, either use a well (say tupperware) and you place traducer and water into or they direct glue the transducer to the inside of the hull (and you have to be bubble free).
The transducer should directly touch the plastic kayak bottom.
Try to minimize air bubbles in the adhesive (silicon, Marine
Goop, etc). Most yakkers swear by Marine Goop. It adheres
to the plastic very well but comes off when desired.
> Do I NEED to use the sponge?
No. For permanent installations, the foam block (or sponge,
etc) is just a "holder" to keep the transducer in place until the
Marine Goop sets up. Therefore, some installers do not use a
holder. They carefully make a large blob of Marine Goop
(no bubbles!) on the bottom, then simply clamp the transducer
in place until the adhesive cures.
The Hobie kit includes a foam block...
Hobie kit install
However, the foam block is NOT required...
Hobie Pro Angler Fish Finder Install
Some yakkers want a removeable rig so the entire sonar can
be moved to other kayaks in their collection. The foam block
is glued to the kayak bottom and let the glue cure. The cutout
cavity area in the block fits the transducer very snugly. The
cavity is filled with water before you launch, then the transducer
is pushed into place so that it contacts the bottom. The water
keeps out air so the sonar works properly.
> Does the transducer have to be on a flat surface??
There's certainly a few degrees of leeway, but I suspect
depth finder sonar works best if the beam fires directly
downward relative to the surface. I would make using
the most horizontal position a higher priority over the
exact middle of the kayak.
If the transducer is off horizontal a few degrees, then the
depth reading may be slightly inaccurate. But I doubt
you'd notice the difference. If the angle is approaching
10 degrees off horizontal, then if may not work.
So frustrating!! I've tried 3 different ways to install transducer and it's simply not working. The last thing I tried was gluing sponge to kayak and then puting water nside sponge and placing transducer inside. Didn't work! Is it a Pelican or Castaway thing?? Anyone else install transducer inside Castaway kayak??
What's the purpose of silicone, epoxy, etc?? Does the transducer need to have this stuff underneath it to work?? Does the transducer need some kind of moister or wetness to work properly?? If the transducer is held down by duct tape would the transducer still work?? I'm asking because I seen a You Tube video where the guy used DUCT SEAL and molded it around the transducer and then folded it over to hold the transducer down.
Thank you!!
Regardless of where or how you secure the transducer, you have to achieve a uninterrupted pathway for the signal pulse. Any layer of target that allows the signal to reflect will. If you have any gap between bottom of transducer and hull, the signals bounce off of the hull as a target. Seamless path of water, goop, etc. allows the signal to pass through downward.
What boatstall said is correct. The water should have worked if it was going to work. Your kayak hull is either reflecting or absorbing the energy from the transducer. I do not know if this is something particular with the Pelican/Castaway hulls or not.
Does your transducer work if you just hold it in the water ? may be a bad one
Yes it works directly in the water. That's what I've had to do, just hang it over the side. The FF does work, just not when I install it.
Where you located? PM me if you want. Be glad to take a look at it for you. I have lots of buddies with similar setups. Might be able to spot what is giving you problems.