And, I never exaggerate.
Those of you who followed my adventures with my dipstick in the Chesapeake know that a lot of troubles have multiple causes. You should always keep this in mind diagnosing boat systems.
Another example popped up recently. Right after my relaunch a couple of weeks ago, my Standard Horizon depth sounder started intermittently losing its signal and showing the display for very deep water, "- - ". I think it's worth summarizing my "Ask All Sailors" post on the subject.
Whenever something happens right after a major event like a haul out, the first thought is that there is a connection. In this case, the prime suspect was signal attenuation due to new bottom paint. However, I've never had the problem before so I inquired on AAS whether this might be an warning of aging electronics for this model. Nothing else related to the haul out seemed as if it could have effected the unit.
I read the manual and learned that there is an RCA connector plug on a short lead hard wired into the display for connecting to the transducer. I removed some joinerwork and was able to work the connector out to where I could get at it. It was tight and looked clean and bright. I sprayed it with this stuff:
http://www.all-spec.com/products/D5S-6.html
Some of you may remember MaineSail saving me several hundred dollars and a week departure delay with a quick squirt of this on the connector to my radar last spring.
Two sails later, there has not been a single signal drop out on the sounder. Every boat should have a can of this stuff on board.
Why was this related to the haul out? Well, I'm sure that the painting did play a part. The signal from the transducer has been slowly deteriorating as the connector corroded where it was buried back behind the cabin bulkhead paneling. The additional signal loss of a generous coat of bottom paint suddenly pushed the signal loss over the edge. Clean the connector, and the additional bottom paint is no longer an issue.
Even without the bottom re-painting, I probably would have started having signal drop outs before long. If I had done what I usually do and jumped to the conclusion that some of that extra paint I spread liberally around the critical parts of the boat just before launch was too thick over the transducer, I might have sprung a few hundred dollars for a quick haul to thin it out a bit.
Take home lesson: Check everything. Also, re-read your manuals even if you have read them before. The hints that resolved both my oil loss through the dipstick issue and this depth sounder problem were found in the manuals.
Those of you who followed my adventures with my dipstick in the Chesapeake know that a lot of troubles have multiple causes. You should always keep this in mind diagnosing boat systems.
Another example popped up recently. Right after my relaunch a couple of weeks ago, my Standard Horizon depth sounder started intermittently losing its signal and showing the display for very deep water, "- - ". I think it's worth summarizing my "Ask All Sailors" post on the subject.
Whenever something happens right after a major event like a haul out, the first thought is that there is a connection. In this case, the prime suspect was signal attenuation due to new bottom paint. However, I've never had the problem before so I inquired on AAS whether this might be an warning of aging electronics for this model. Nothing else related to the haul out seemed as if it could have effected the unit.
I read the manual and learned that there is an RCA connector plug on a short lead hard wired into the display for connecting to the transducer. I removed some joinerwork and was able to work the connector out to where I could get at it. It was tight and looked clean and bright. I sprayed it with this stuff:
http://www.all-spec.com/products/D5S-6.html
Some of you may remember MaineSail saving me several hundred dollars and a week departure delay with a quick squirt of this on the connector to my radar last spring.
Two sails later, there has not been a single signal drop out on the sounder. Every boat should have a can of this stuff on board.
Why was this related to the haul out? Well, I'm sure that the painting did play a part. The signal from the transducer has been slowly deteriorating as the connector corroded where it was buried back behind the cabin bulkhead paneling. The additional signal loss of a generous coat of bottom paint suddenly pushed the signal loss over the edge. Clean the connector, and the additional bottom paint is no longer an issue.
Even without the bottom re-painting, I probably would have started having signal drop outs before long. If I had done what I usually do and jumped to the conclusion that some of that extra paint I spread liberally around the critical parts of the boat just before launch was too thick over the transducer, I might have sprung a few hundred dollars for a quick haul to thin it out a bit.
Take home lesson: Check everything. Also, re-read your manuals even if you have read them before. The hints that resolved both my oil loss through the dipstick issue and this depth sounder problem were found in the manuals.
