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I have studied the cape dory skipper's recommendations on mounting an inside the hull transducer; however, my CD 22 seems to have a plastic shell inside the boat. Does this mean that I need to cut a hole in the plastic to get the transducer through to the hull - I know the transducer has to be immediately attached to inside the fiberglass hull - Or is there some place on the boat where I don't have to cut through the plastic that will work?
Next question, on the inside port the fuse box system and wires are located. I know I am suppose to keep the transducer cable away from the antenna wire. The port side where I would mount it so I could see the digital readout from the cockpit is also where my compass is mounted. Can I mount the digital readout near the compass and are there any other things that I need to consider. As always, thank you for your advise.
Tom
oatmealraisin
The boat has a thin FRP liner which has to be cut away (a small circular cut with an appropriately-sized hole saw will do the trick, or you can use a Dremel with a cutoff wheel). There is a void between the liner and the hull, and this will make it impossible for an in-hull transducer to function. There must be no air void between the transducer and the hull.
Once you have access to the hull, you can either make a well and fill it with mineral oil, as suggested, or just plop the transducer into some silicone and let it set. As long as the bond is good and there is no void, it will work.
Do not use polysulfide to bed the transducer. Polysulfide can attack plastic. And do not use polyurethane unless you want your transducer to remain there until the pyramids are dust.
Dick's suggestion to locate the transducer as close to the centerline as possible, way forward of the keel, is a good one; the deadrise of a slack bilge such as that of a CD22 will otherwise make the transducer look to the side, rather than down.
Cordially,
Carter Brey
Sabre 28 MkII "Delphine"
City Island, NY
I am just finishing up this job, with the additional work of plugging an old through hull mount.
I pulled the old transducer with it's gigantic wood block and built the hull back up. I am just now in the fairing process but this would not concern a new installation.
I had an existing 4 1/2" cut through the liner inside a forward, port side locker, so decided to put the new puck in the same location. The hull slopes a bit there and it was originally compensated for with the for-mentioned boat stopping block. What I did was cut a large yogurt container down so I had just the lip and enough of the side to reach the top of the hull liner. I taped this to the liner and sealed the bottom edge with a small bead of caulk. Since the boat is still on the hard it made things easy but a quiet slip would probably work too. I mixed small batches of epoxy being sure to work out all the air bubbles and poured them into my dam, allowing each to set before adding another layer. If you try to do it all in one pour, you will get too much heat build up and a very good chance of bubbles. Once cured you can pull out the yogurt form. When I had built up enough to form a level area the size of the puck I glued it in place with the adhesive, supplied with the unit. The last step, which could be eliminated, was to make a nice wood cover to hide and protect the transducer as well as to keep from losing small objects into the remaining void between the hull and the liner.
I believe the mineral oil method was a first generation solution to in hull mounting. It definitely works but do you really want an open container of oil in your bilge? It also leaves the puck free to move around somewhat and doesn't necessarily keep it in proper alignment.
I had to make openings to access the wiring
then went to home depot and bought a plastic toilet flange ,epoxied it up side down to the hull
had to grind the flange to contour the hull
filled with mineral fluid and then attached the depth transducer to that,it was threaded.
whole job took 3/4 of a day
A LOT easier than drilling thru the hull!!!!!!
the company that sold the unit was very helpfull as well.
Outstanding Skippers. It is really educational when different perspectives and experiences are presented, because it allows such a wider range of learning. I have an idea of what to try and, without the insights, I would have made some mistakes!
The second question needs some help though. My digital depth readout unit is a bit over two inches in diameter and I suppose the best place to mount it is on the port or starboard section on either side of the hatchway, so it can be seen while at the tiller. When I am in the cockpit, facing the hatchway, the electrical panel is ( in the corner inside the cabin) on the port side. I am concerned that if I mount it on the port side, then the panel electrical lines, antenna line, etc., will mess up the digital unit. My compass is mounted on the starboard side of the hatch. Can I mount the digital readout unit near the compass without having it influence the compass?
Thanks, Oatmealraisin
before you mount it just tape it to the port and stbd sides to see what readings you get....mine is on the stbd because it replaces an old meter....if you run the wires on the stbd side you will have to fish the wires...when you do that leave a line along the path you fished of whipping line so that in the future all you need to do is tie a new wire to the whiiping line and fish it...when you fish wire coat it with joy detergent to ease the pull...check for nicks in the insulation.
caulk the meter. you may have an option on the meter to hook up a buzzer for shallow alarm.
Instead of using mineral oil, I use the pink polypropylene glycol (the stuff you winterize your water tanks with). The instructions that came with my puck gave that as an alternative to mineral oil. Works fine.
I have studied the cape dory skipper's recommendations on mounting an inside the hull transducer; however, my CD 22 seems to have a plastic shell inside the boat. Does this mean that I need to cut a hole in the plastic to get the transducer through to the hull - I know the transducer has to be immediately attached to inside the fiberglass hull - Or is there some place on the boat where I don't have to cut through the plastic that will work?
