PS30 Depth ? When mapping

[NeonBass]

Quick update & Question for those of you using the mapping technology.

I’ve been conversing with folks at Garmin since last post by LWinchester2 on 9/9. They’ve had me trying & attempting all sorts of test on the water, including looking closely at my GPS pages and sending onscreen shots. They were also searching to see if I was attempting to map while under tree canopies, which I’m not. I’ve sent them photos of my installation etc... They then told me that they were pushing my issue up to engineering to see if they’re experiencing mapping issues with other customers and possible updates needed to be built & sent out... I sent a follow up email after not hearing anything for a couple weeks. New person responded today informing me that they’re not seeing programming or software issues and that I may be attempting to perform mapping in too shallow of water. Basically telling me anything under 5’ depth is not good and most customers are using Garmin mapping tools in much deeper water. WOW! When their own marketing materials promote their products as the answer to mapping smaller private lakes. Like I told them, to hear a response like that after investing $10,000 just isn’t acceptable for end user customers investing financially. Especially when they also promote the PS30 as the top of the line best technology tool for mapping. Getting very frustrated with Garmin’s lack of concern & rabbit trails answers..

That frustration leads me to my question to all of you fellow Garmin users. Are any of you using this type equipment & technology from Garmin to map smaller private lakes? And/or are you having success with accurate recordings of shallower depths in the 2’ & shallower in any size lake? Thanks for any feedback I can get from end users!

[LWINCHESTER2]

I do not have that experience. Mapping in 2' of water is going to be very laborious. A 20 degree cone would only about 8 inches across on the bottom. So that would mean to do the mapping would required successive passes only that far apart. A lake/pond 200 ft across would require close to 300 passes. At 5' depths it's a little better with a cone width of 1.7 ft. I guess what I am getting around to is to ask if your equipment worked as desired, would you really want to put in that kind of time and work to do this mapping. If you are, maybe you could get them to send you a GT15 for free. I would ask. I have tested it in inches of water and it works well.

[SamMule]

I'm using the PS30 for mapping my local lake, and is phenomenal. Vast improvement in area covered per pass, as well as detail. However, my local lake is very large and deep. Definitely not private.
As Lwimchester mentioned, I doubt you will find a better mapping tool at those depths.
All of that aside, did they ever get your issue fixed?
Couple things I can think of to try...
1:set your depth range in manual. Maybe something goofy going on with auto.
2. Try using a different source of propulsion than your main engine. And go slow. See if that helps.
Maybe you've already tried these things. Just throwing ideas out there.

[BigBry]

Don’t give up on Garmin Support with this issue. It can be a long and tedious process before it gets resolved. An intervention by your supplier can be of help too.

I too use my Garmin for mapping a 500 acre private lake I live on and to map the lakes here So Cal. We unfortunately have very little mapping of the majority of lakes here and Quick Draw is critical if you run Garmin here.

I had had an issue with my 1040xsv and ps30. I was getting random double bottoms. Very similar to a return from a very hard bottom ie being in 10 ft of water and having a return at 10 ft And another at 20 ft. The caveat was I would be in 10 ft of water but the depth on the display would show 20 ft and my QuickDraw would draw the map at the 20 ft and change a previously pass (made at the correct 10 ft depth) to 20 ft. Very random and unexplainable. I worked with Garmin Engineers (early 2018) which included additional transducers that eventually led to a fix in an update they said. Unfortunately I was unable to see if the fix in that update worked on that issue with the 1042 because I had several orher issues arise with that unit. The unit was eventually swapped out with the intervention of the dealer I purchased it from and my new unit works flawlessly. It was not the transducer, it was either the unit or the fix in the update. I was unable to put that update on the first unit before it was swapped out. Just sayin stay the course and don’t rule out the unit it self. Sometimes you just get a bad unit. The crazy stuff that was going on with my first one would make your head spin. New one works flawlessly. If you purchased from a reputable dealer, get them involved. When I was at wits end, dealer took me to the top and got it resolved.

[NeonBass]

Thanks for the replies folks. No they haven’t fixed my issue yet. The point they seem to be missing is that my mapping depths are all over the place no matter what depth of water I’m in when mapping, I.e. the one private 11-12 acre lake I’m attempting to map is 18’ in depth at the dam. I’ve confirmed with string & measuring and depths are right on with the LVS32 transducer, as well as correct when the PS30 is behaving properly. The mapping has showed this area of the lake anywhere from 40’ to 100’+ ranges. I’ve also shared with them that when I’m in mapping mode with the PS30 and actually watching the mapping page the circle around the boat icon flashes between red & green, when the circle is red the depths are all over the place and the contours actually start showing up on dry land verses in the water. They somehow focused in on the GPS for a while and then ultimately came back with last comment of “under 5’ of water“.. My understanding of the mapping capabilities was not so much trying to map a bunch of 1’-2’ water but that the unit mapping would show those depths & contours around the banks of the lakes when mapping an entire lake. To answer SamMule, I have this equipment setup on a TwinTroller propelled by 2 trolling motors. I know, don’t laugh at me, but it is really one cool setup for fishing and hoping to map lakes from 4 acres to 300 acres. I purchased my equipment package from a board sponsor, MyGreenOutdoors and will heed BigBry’s suggestion of getting them involved. I truly appreciate all the feedback & help!!

[SamMule]

Sounds like a pretty cool setup. I bet its quiet! Sure sounds like a GPS issue to me.
Assuming you're using electric trolling motors for propulsion. Maybe try bringing an extra battery and isolate your mfd/transducer. Put only those two items in that battery and see what happens.
Trolling motors can do weird stuff to other electronics if they're on the same circuit.
Also, are there any other electrical devices mounted near your MFD? Maybe you've got some sort of RFI issue.

[Todd Driscoll]

I've mapped several thousand acres using QD and a PS30. I have also observed recorded depth readings of double or triple actual depths, but only rarely, and this occurred when the bottom hardness would abruptly change from soft to very hard. Recent software seemed to completely fix these depth errors I was only rarely seeing.

I checked with Engineering regarding your issues. As SamMule mentioned above, Engineering recommended setting the PS30 depth range in manual to eliminate those crazy deep depth errors you are reporting.

[NeonBass]

Hey Guys, I really can't express enough how much I appreciate everyone responding, making suggestions and trying hard to help me resolve my issue, THANK YOU! I wish I could figure out how to post pictures on here, because the TwinTroller X10 really is a cool setup and I would love to show it to you. The motors work via 2 foot pedals(like running a Bobcat or Cat) freeing up hands for fishing & playing with electronics. SamMule, Yes to your comment about GPS issue, and the Garmin folks made a lot of request for me to do with a lot of focus on the GPS. Those GPS pages that show your satellite connections & quantity of satellites never waivered on signals with a lot of them being picked up on a consistent basis, according to the screen info. I have 2 Lithium Pro M3110 110AH Batteries weighing 31lbs ea. One is dedicated to the two trolling motors mounted in the hulls and the other is dedicated to my electronics and lighting. I've ran all my electronics wiring in separate flex conduit along inside of the boat, while the trolling motors are wired inside the hulls and troughs molded under the rails for the seats running down both sides of the boat. I've played around with the batteries while on the water including turning off all connections to the battery dedicated/used for the trolling motors with no effect of changing the behavior of the electronics. I've carefully made sure that I've isolated all wiring away from each other for trolling motors and electronics, including my GLS10 black box, which I have mounted in a vented waterproof box. Todd Driscoll, one of my lakes I have access to is a private reclaimed gravel pit around 80 acres in size, and man are the fish big in that lake (but that's another story). That reclaimed gravel pit has I believe around 95%-98% all hard bottom with depths down to 140'. My setup does the same thing when on that lake trying to map. That circle goes red and the depths start fluctuating all over the place. I do sincerely appreciate you taking the time to check with engineering on my behalf as well as your feedback & confirming trying what SamMule suggested in his earlier post. You know the one thing I haven't tried yet and kind of surprised that the folks I've been conversing with at Garmin haven't suggested, is you 2 gentlemen suggesting that I try setting my depth range to manual on the mapping & PS30. I'm anxiously awaiting tomorrow or Sunday to get the boat back out and try this suggestion. I'll report back and let you guys know if that does it or if the circle around the boat icon continues to fluctuate between red & green.

[NeonBass]

Hey folks. Sorry for dragging this post back up to the front, but wanted to update the post. When performing research on google, multiple key words related to fishing & equipment actually will drive people to BBC, so I wanted to be sure I updated the ultimate results of this journey in case anyone else possibly experiencing this issue & searching can see the process & result.

So, I’ve tried every suggestion & tip from everyone in this thread and every test Garmin support directed me in. Ultimately, LWinchester2 had it called correctly. Garmin finally came to the conclusion to switch out the Panoptix PS30 Transducer with a new one. I chose the option of providing my CC, they send out the new one & you return the existing one under that option. I was called in the air for business and was offline for a while. Installed the new PS30 10/13, launched the boat today 10/15 and the new PS30 works great! Depths are correct, contours are showing and my depth shading programs are working. One other huge find worth noting in this thread. During all my research I read in another thread about NOT utilizing zip ties when installing transducer cables. I immediately checked my setup & realized that I installed (2) zip ties on my cables in my installation. I shared my finding (and learning) with the folks at Garmin and they still stepped up and supported me!! I very well could have created this issue & headache by damaging those cables...?

I know Al and our Moderators have their hands full keeping the trolls in check, like any other website. But I believe the good folks far outnumber the others! BBC is a great place to learn and to receive help from awesome folks all over our Great Country & Canada! THANK YOU to everyone who jumped in to help me, I’m in debt to you. I read on here all the time and will be sure to pay the help forward whenever I might know the answer or can help.

[SamMule]

Glad to hear you got it fixed!

[BigBry]

Good deal! Persistence pays. Great feeling when they swap out the unit and all the problems are gone and you can relax and enjoy it.