Reading the NavSounder depth gauge

[Robert Wenhold]

I'm having trouble reading the NAVSOUNDER depth instrument on my Hunter 37.5 (1987 vintage). I just bought the boat two months ago. The gauge will randomly display "199.9" (feet), and I know the water is less than 60 feet (northern part of the Chesapeake Bay).It's quite frustrating to have these numbers (sometimes similar numbers such as 158.9, 185.9) when I'm sailing into areas that I am not familiar with, or where the sand bars shift on a daily basis (Rock Hall, MD)Could any give me an idea what the numbers are trying to tell me.Thank alot.Bob Wenholdrobert_wenhold@merck.com

 

[R. Young]

They're telling you "I'm broke"

Seeing similar numbers such as 158.9, 185.9 could be the 7 segment display of the read-out. An 8 is the same as a 5 but with 2 line segments added. This is a typical aging problem with old indicators. Something like a display of 199 - sounds like a max display (Im not really sure). Make sure when you painted the bottom you didn't paint over the transducer.If the unit is no longer current, I would just replace it the next chance you get.

 

[Sam Morris]

Could Be A Poor Connection

most likely at the instrument. If you can find the manual, see if it will give you a hint of what's wrong. On mine (different make), I had a similar reading along with the letters MSD (Missed Signal Detection). The first time it was a loose connector to the instrument, The second time, I had to solder some leads that had become loose and were making contact only intermittently to the motherboard.