Permanent Wet Transducer Installation - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

dsafety · 01-04-2010, 05:27 PM

Plumbers putty would be too weak of a sealant. Goop is much better. It will withstand anything you throw at it.

With my setup, the transducer is suspended in water above the hull. You have to have some solid or liquid connection between the transducer and the ocean. If there is an air gap, the thing will not work.

Bob

peguinpower · 01-05-2010, 06:24 AM

Brilliant! Great job!

Ive heard that Surgilube makes for a great medium and has anti-bacterial stuff that prevents algae and mold build up. Its the same stuff they use on ultrasounds. At 2 bucks for 4oz at your local pharmacy, seems like a good deal.

If you drill in an injection port, later sealed with a screw, you can fill up that reservoir real good.

/bing

WahooUSMA · 01-07-2010, 07:38 AM

Bob,

Great idea, and I am going to re-install my transducer with your method this weekend..Quick question (now that I have read the whole thread). How much space between the hull and the transducer do require? That will determine I guess, the length of PVC needed??? Also, why not mount this at the rear of the yak as they do in boats. The Revo has an access hatch that would make the install easy...I think?

Roger

dsafety · 01-07-2010, 09:40 AM

I am not sure if mounting the FF in the stern will effect the performance in a significant way but if you have a Revo, there may be a good reason to mount there. The space in rear hatch on the Revo is not easily accessible while on the water and therefore the real estate is less valuable, at least to me. Having the transducer mounted there would save some storage space up front.

I store my FF battery in the otherwise mostly useless tray that came with my Revo. The stern is usually dryer than the bow and therefore probably a good place for electrical stuff to live.

Give it a try.

Bob

P1020496.jpg

shortstack · 01-07-2010, 10:21 AM

That's some sick shit!!

dgax65 · 01-07-2010, 01:33 PM

Very nice work, Bob. I never seriously considered using a wet mount until seeing this. I always thought they were more trouble than they were worth. This has changed my mind. I'm getting a new Stealth in a couple of weeks and I'm going to use your idea.

THE CALI HOOKUP! · 01-17-2010, 01:30 AM

what are the benifits of haveing a wet mount transducer also what are the draw backs.

dsafety · 01-17-2010, 07:02 AM

Cali,

Others might be able to answer this question better than I but the main reason I went this route was that when I pulled up my old transducer I found that the goop that had attached it to the hull was full of bubbles. I was never very happy with the performance of my previous FF and have been told that it is important that no bubbles form in the goop as they are likely to cause poor performance.

I have also learned that the most efficient transmitter of sonar signals is water and that for best performance a transducer should be mounted in the water. For some strange reason the hull of a boat does not seem to cause any transmission problems so mounting the transducer in a pool of water inside the hull works very well. This is probably because the density of the hull is fairly close to the density of water.

Anyway, many of the guys who really know what they are doing have gone to the "wet mount" over goop. The problem with the installation method that most have employed up to now is that with the foam version of the wet mount, the water can leak away causing the transducer to perform poorly. I have seen guys on the water having to open their hatch from time to time to add water to the foam well. I wanted to avoid having to worry about this.

My version solves the leakage problem as the whole unit is sealed so the water cannot leak or evaporate. As a bonus, since the transducer is mounted in the rubber cap, it is easily portable to another location making it possible for one FF to be used on multiple boats.

Give it a try. The installation is easy and the materials cost only a few dollars.

Bob

Hunter (The 80's Man) · 02-20-2010, 02:18 PM

Hey Bob (or anybody else that has tried this application) ,

So I did both my Trident and my wife's Tarpon. I finished the install, everything looked great. Both held water with no leaks, UNTIL I went to load my Trident on the truck. I was strapping it down when I heard a "glug-glug-glug" ... all the water was coming out. When my boat flexed, it compromised the goop. I since went back to my wife's boat and put a little side-to-side pressure on the pvc and hers lifted from the bottom as well. I'm thinking I need to rough up the bottom before the goop application.

Any ideas??

How do I get around this problem?

Thanks,
Rob

jorluivil · 05-03-2010, 05:29 PM

Pardon my ignorance but what is the purpose of a 'wet mount transducer'? Will it not work if it's somehow fastened to the hull of a yak without any goop? I'm asking because rather than having to install and remove the ducer each time I go out I want to permanently mount the ducer for my Humminbird 323. Again, not trying to be a dumbsh*t I just need to know before I go and make any installations

01-04-2010, 05:27 PM	#1
dsafety Olivenhain Bob Join Date: May 2008 Location: Olivenhain, CA Posts: 1,122	Plumbers putty would be too weak of a sealant. Goop is much better. It will withstand anything you throw at it. With my setup, the transducer is suspended in water above the hull. You have to have some solid or liquid connection between the transducer and the ocean. If there is an air gap, the thing will not work. Bob Last edited by dsafety; 01-05-2010 at 01:51 PM.

01-07-2010, 07:38 AM	#3
WahooUSMA Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Rancho Cucamonga Posts: 753	Bob, Great idea, and I am going to re-install my transducer with your method this weekend..Quick question (now that I have read the whole thread). How much space between the hull and the transducer do require? That will determine I guess, the length of PVC needed??? Also, why not mount this at the rear of the yak as they do in boats. The Revo has an access hatch that would make the install easy...I think? Roger __________________ GO ARMY BEAT NAVY! Bad decisions make great stories!

01-07-2010, 10:21 AM	#5
shortstack Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: LJ Posts: 97	WOW!!!! That's some sick shit!!

01-07-2010, 01:33 PM	#6
dgax65 Guerro Grande Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 629	Very nice work, Bob. I never seriously considered using a wet mount until seeing this. I always thought they were more trouble than they were worth. This has changed my mind. I'm getting a new Stealth in a couple of weeks and I'm going to use your idea. __________________ Douglas Gaxiola Team No Fish- Amateur Staff

02-20-2010, 02:18 PM	#9
Hunter (The 80's Man) Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Riverside Posts: 243	Hey Bob (or anybody else that has tried this application) , So I did both my Trident and my wife's Tarpon. I finished the install, everything looked great. Both held water with no leaks, UNTIL I went to load my Trident on the truck. I was strapping it down when I heard a "glug-glug-glug" ... all the water was coming out. When my boat flexed, it compromised the goop. I since went back to my wife's boat and put a little side-to-side pressure on the pvc and hers lifted from the bottom as well. I'm thinking I need to rough up the bottom before the goop application. Any ideas?? How do I get around this problem? Thanks, Rob __________________ What's in YOUR hatch?

01-05-2010, 06:24 AM	#2
peguinpower bing! Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: socal Posts: 246	Brilliant! Great job! Ive heard that Surgilube makes for a great medium and has anti-bacterial stuff that prevents algae and mold build up. Its the same stuff they use on ultrasounds. At 2 bucks for 4oz at your local pharmacy, seems like a good deal. If you drill in an injection port, later sealed with a screw, you can fill up that reservoir real good. /bing

01-07-2010, 09:40 AM	#4
dsafety Olivenhain Bob Join Date: May 2008 Location: Olivenhain, CA Posts: 1,122	I am not sure if mounting the FF in the stern will effect the performance in a significant way but if you have a Revo, there may be a good reason to mount there. The space in rear hatch on the Revo is not easily accessible while on the water and therefore the real estate is less valuable, at least to me. Having the transducer mounted there would save some storage space up front. I store my FF battery in the otherwise mostly useless tray that came with my Revo. The stern is usually dryer than the bow and therefore probably a good place for electrical stuff to live. Give it a try. Bob P1020496.jpg

01-17-2010, 01:30 AM	#7
THE CALI HOOKUP! Junior Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 17	what are the benifits of haveing a wet mount transducer also what are the draw backs.

01-17-2010, 07:02 AM	#8
dsafety Olivenhain Bob Join Date: May 2008 Location: Olivenhain, CA Posts: 1,122	Cali, Others might be able to answer this question better than I but the main reason I went this route was that when I pulled up my old transducer I found that the goop that had attached it to the hull was full of bubbles. I was never very happy with the performance of my previous FF and have been told that it is important that no bubbles form in the goop as they are likely to cause poor performance. I have also learned that the most efficient transmitter of sonar signals is water and that for best performance a transducer should be mounted in the water. For some strange reason the hull of a boat does not seem to cause any transmission problems so mounting the transducer in a pool of water inside the hull works very well. This is probably because the density of the hull is fairly close to the density of water. Anyway, many of the guys who really know what they are doing have gone to the "wet mount" over goop. The problem with the installation method that most have employed up to now is that with the foam version of the wet mount, the water can leak away causing the transducer to perform poorly. I have seen guys on the water having to open their hatch from time to time to add water to the foam well. I wanted to avoid having to worry about this. My version solves the leakage problem as the whole unit is sealed so the water cannot leak or evaporate. As a bonus, since the transducer is mounted in the rubber cap, it is easily portable to another location making it possible for one FF to be used on multiple boats. Give it a try. The installation is easy and the materials cost only a few dollars. Bob

05-03-2010, 05:29 PM	#10
jorluivil Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 6,856	Pardon my ignorance but what is the purpose of a 'wet mount transducer'? Will it not work if it's somehow fastened to the hull of a yak without any goop? I'm asking because rather than having to install and remove the ducer each time I go out I want to permanently mount the ducer for my Humminbird 323. Again, not trying to be a dumbsh*t I just need to know before I go and make any installations