Topic: helix depth and gps issues

[CATNIP]

Last night I was out on the river and noticed the gps was cutting out and not getting a signal. It was happening quite a bit as the night went on. Then I noticed that the depth reading on the side bar was not jiving with what the sonar was showing. And that reading would fluctuate between correct and incorrect very frequently. So I checked the depth with a anchor when the readings were not the same and found the sonar is dead on and the side bar readout was wrong. I have a pic sorry its not the best. Anyone else have this happen? Any ideas on how to fix this? Also the gps would show me on land ocasinaly. The pic shows that I'm in about 3 feet of water and the side bar shows 17 feet.

[rnvinc]

GPS issues are often attributed to low or insufficient power ...and we've seen depth issues from low power also ...

Have the battery load tested ...
Check all wiring connections for corrosion ...including the fuse and fuse holder ...
Is the unit powered directly to the battery with an inline fuse ...or wired thru the boat's wiring ...??
Is the wire big enough to prevent voltage drop across the length of the entire circuit ... ??

Rickie

[CATNIP]

Thanks for the reply, the battery  is good and the wiring and connections are good. It is wired through the fuse panel for the rest of the accessories. It didn't seem to matter if anything else was on or not. This is the 6th time I've had it out and the 1st time I've had any issues.

[rnvinc]

HB always recommends wiring direct to the battery with only an in-line fuse as an added connection ...

You might think about bypassing the fuse panel to test ...

The 1st advice HB would give you is to eliminate your boat or its wiring as possible culprits ...

Rickie

[CATNIP]

Ok thanks for the advice. I will hard wire it directly to the battery and see if that works. It will probably be a couple weeks before I get a chance to get it out again.

[CATNIP]

I had a chance to get out on the water again yesterday. After wiring the helix directly to the battery and double checking the connection and charging the battery, the gps did not lose signal but was up to 1000 feet off. Yes 1000 feet! As for the depth issues that is still acting up . While moving or still with everything off and anchored. Tried the salt water settings, setting min and max depth and just about every other setting I could find short of a reset. So far this thing is as reliable as a politician. The gps on my phone with the navionics app was on the nuts as far as location is concerned so I dont think solar flares or anything is an issue. I have a couple more pictures. The gps pic is not the 1000 footer but I was at least 50 ft off shore As you can see.any other suggestions are very much appreciated.

[rnvinc]

I'm out of ideas catnip ...

Do you know anyone with a HB unit you can crosstest with ...??

It may be time to call HB ...

1-800-633-1468

Rickie

[CATNIP]

I dont know anyone else with a hb unit to do any cross testing.  I will call hb when i have a few minutes and see what the verdict is and let you know. Thanks for all the help and suggestions.