Transom mounted transducer on 2023 222 FSH Sport

[Cajun Bill]

Although the boat comes with a thru hull transducer, it only gives depth and temperature. I wanted a transom mounted transducer, integrated with the Garmin MFD, for clear view, side view and seeing the bottom contour. With twin engines, the preferred location is in the center. But, it's hard to find room on the hull. In viewing the underside of the hull, the length of it looked clean just to the side of the centerline/keel. So, I decided to put it there. Plus, because I may later want to add trim tabs or the Seakeeper ride, it would keep the best areas of real estate free. I bought a short piece of 1/4 marine grade aluminum angle, cut it and drilled it to make a bracket. It's fixed to the boat with 2 bolts going into the ride plate. (If it didn't work out, I don't have any holes in the hull. There's no room for a stick on pad there). I used the template that came with the Garmin GT54UHD-TM transducer to get the mount and the holes in the bracket right. The cable's plug was just a little too big to fit into the drain outlet from the wet storage area. So, I replaced the thru hull drain fitting with a 1" one from West Marine and transitioned the hose back down to 3/4" at a tee above the water line. Here are a few pics. I'm pleased to report that I can run wide open in rough/choppy conditions, have a clear view of the bottom and receive continuous depth readings.

 

[Marvin willis]

I did this. Works perfect

 

[Cajun Bill]

We can't mount it like that on the 2023 222 FSH because the hull doesn't have the step that yours has.

 

[CastawayRK]

So @Cajun Bill the “ articulating keel“ doesn’t interfere with starboard side scan? I do have trim tabs already and side scan is near future project. TIA

 

[Cajun Bill]

Great question. I've only used side scan a few times since making the installation. I was most concerned about seeing the bottom while running. I scrolled thru side scan briefly. Let me put it in the water this week and get some pics of the display with various settings.

 

[Cajun Bill]

Here are some high-resolution images. In the open lake, you can see that the sidevu returns on the starboard side are impacted. When idling by a structure and making passes in each direction, it's evident that the articulating keel does block the signal and leave a blind spot on the starboard side. For some, it may be preferable to have the transducer mounted on the starboard side of the keel. But, the factory thru hull airmar is on that side and I didn't know if there would be any interference. For my purposes, I intend to leave it as is.

 

[JASmith]

If it meets your needs then great!

I ended up mounting mine in the exact same spot, but lowered a few inches so it wasn't impacted by the keel and it works great up to 30mph, where I get a little washout.

 

[CastawayRK]

@JASmith how did you lower it a few inches? Did you make a bracket like @Cajun Bill did? how did you mount it a few inches lower? Pics please! Thanks

 

[JASmith]

This is the thread and what I did. I ended up having a machine shop make it, but some others had bolt-together designs or welded, I'm not sure how much it cost since it was my father-in-law who actually did it.

210 FSH "Perfect" transducer setup - What is it?

Hi, this is more of a brain storm thread than anything. I've done searching and found a few of you guys have done some pretty creative things to mount transducers on your FSH and I may end up following one of those in the end, but I always like to do the brain exercise "What would be the...

jetboaters.net

It's been really good, and the 'sharpness' of the edge has yielded zero weeds being stuck on it so far, so I've been happy with that also.

 

[CastawayRK]

OK - sorry I misunderstood, I thought you had done something like the little one piece job Cajun Bill did. The thread you referenced does look like the way to go.

 

[Msenz]

View attachment 219888I did this. Works perfect

this looks great. its exactly what i want to do for mine. do you have a parts list of things you used?

 

[Marvin willis]

this looks great. its exactly what i want to do for mine. do you have a parts list of things you used?

I just put the mounting plate up there and marked the holes with a sharpie. I used bolts to mount it but some of the nuts were a pain to tighten. If I did it again I would rivet it.

 

[buckeyeblind]

Although the boat comes with a thru hull transducer, it only gives depth and temperature. I wanted a transom mounted transducer, integrated with the Garmin MFD, for clear view, side view and seeing the bottom contour. With twin engines, the preferred location is in the center. But, it's hard to find room on the hull. In viewing the underside of the hull, the length of it looked clean just to the side of the centerline/keel. So, I decided to put it there. Plus, because I may later want to add trim tabs or the Seakeeper ride, it would keep the best areas of real estate free. I bought a short piece of 1/4 marine grade aluminum angle, cut it and drilled it to make a bracket. It's fixed to the boat with 2 bolts going into the ride plate. (If it didn't work out, I don't have any holes in the hull. There's no room for a stick on pad there). I used the template that came with the Garmin GT54UHD-TM transducer to get the mount and the holes in the bracket right. The cable's plug was just a little too big to fit into the drain outlet from the wet storage area. So, I replaced the thru hull drain fitting with a 1" one from West Marine and transitioned the hose back down to 3/4" at a tee above the water line. Here are a few pics. I'm pleased to report that I can run wide open in rough/choppy conditions, have a clear view of the bottom and receive continuous depth readings.

Cajun Bill,
Thank you for sharing your information. I too have a Fsh 222 Sport and am facing the same situation. I like the idea of attaching to the plate instead of the hull. Is there any way you can share a few pictures of how you installed the tee to run the cable? Another question. How did you route the wire to the fish finder at the helm? Did you connect the power to the fish finder to one of the open switches? Any info will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Kirk

 

[Cajun Bill]

Hello Kirk,

I'm happy to assist. I'll try to pick you some more pics Sunday evening.

To be complete, I sent pics of our transom to Garmin's tech support for advice, after thoroughly reading guidance documents on transducer placement. They recommended against going with a transom mounted transducer. So, you have to understand that it's a compromise, which, as I'd mentioned, eliminates side scan on one side due to the articulating keel.

Regarding the power connection, I added an accessory fuse block. Coming off of the house batteries ( I went with 2 135 amp lithium's), I have a breaker. Then, power runs into the head compartment and the fuse bock. I used marine grade tinned copper wire installed in wire looms. The fuse block is now fully utilized with accessories, lol.

The tee connection on the drain line is very straightforward. The wet compartment with the manhole covers is easy to remove. You'll need to remove the screws and undo a few hose clams. Because the transducer plug wouldn't fit in the existing 3/4" I think thru hull, I drilled it out and installed a 1" thru hull. So, I had to install a length of 1" hose on the inside of the transom. I don't recall if I transitioned to 3/4" before or after the tee. But, the opening in the top of the tee just needs to be well above the waterline. There's no pressure in the hose. It's just a gravity drain line. So, you're sharing the space within the hose with the transducer cable. The transducer wire will come out of the tee and be routed thru the engine compartment and under the helm pad, above the fuel tank and straight into the head compartment and up to the back of the MFD. Again, I used wire loom to protect the cable.

Also about power, I wanted Garmin electronics. So, I didn't buy the E model. I installed a Garmin MFD and a NEMA 2000 network, to have everything interconnected. All of the added Garmin devices get power from this accessory fuse block that I installed. The only exception is the Force Kraken. For that, I installed a separate 36V electrical system.

I hope that this helps.

 

[Cajun Bill]

Here are a couple of pics. As you can see, I needed the fuse block. It connects directly to the house battery, with a circuit breaker mounted next to the battery switches. For the transducer cable, it comes up into the drain line thru the new 1" thru hull on the transom. The drain from the wet compartment is the only water that gets drained. I have the tee sending the added hose on the right routed up as high as possible. At the opening on the top is where the cable comes out of the hose and heads towards the head/center console compartment for attachment to the back of the MFD.

 

[buckeyeblind]

Such a great idea for routing the wire. Thank you so much for the help