I have a 386ci unit with the transducer mounted as "shoot thru the hull" in the bilge of my 18' Pioneer Center Console. It is mounted with slow-cure epoxy like the instructions say. I verified with Pioneer that the construction of the hull is not double-walled. My problem is that the unit continuously freezes the depth after working for a few seconds. This happens when the boat is standing still. Sometimes I will continue to get sonar and bottom readings but the depth always sticks on a whatever the last reading was and then eventually I get no sonar readings at all. This happened last year as well and this year it has gotten worse as in the reading freezes after only a few seconds where last season it would give good readings for about a minute before freezing.
I have been told that it is the installation of the transducer but that seems odd that it can work for a few seconds and then stop working. Any possible fix requires a myriad of "check this first" and process of elimination to trouble shoot whether it is the unit itself or the transducer. There is also talk of a voltage issue, not sure how I would diagnose that.
Has anyone else had a similar problem that could maybe shed some light on this for me? Thanks.