Mounting a transducer in a canoe

[anglerdave]

Some years ago, Joe Hyde wrote an article about building a transducer holder out of sleeping pad foam and glued it to the floor of his glass canoe. He then put the transducer into the foam and filled it with water. I was wondering if anyone has tried this and how it worked out.

[waskeyc]

I can't answer your question, because I've been too much of a cheap$kate to buy a sonar unit.

I have thought about sonar for my canoe, but unless the canoe has a motor on it, paddling around a lake looking straight down at the bottom is awfully hard work. To me, it doesn't seem to promise much benefit when the water is shallow like for areas that would be interesting to a fly angler. However, there is one fairly new technology that finally makes sense to me for a canoe. You can scan everything in casting range without moving, and you don't need to look through your hull. The transducer can be mounted to the side of the canoe.

Of course, with the cost of this new technology, you might be better off buying yourself a fishing boat and keeping the canoe for floating down rivers. Here it is: Humminbird 360.

[gerri]

Hi Dave,
We have not tried the attachment method you speak of, however we do have 2 different types of portable transducer holders that attach to our canoe (and also on rental row boats) by means of a C clamp. They are aluminum and adjustable to depth. Worked well for us and our portable Humminbird. I cannot remember the brand name but I think they may still be available thru Bass Pro and also Cabela's catalogs. Hope this helps.
Gerri

[Bluegill Budd]

I have used a "fish finder" in both a fiberglass canoe and a roto-mold poly kayak. I silicone a plastic cup with the bottom cut out to a flat section of the floor, put the transducer and enough water to cover in it. It works fine. My sonar is an older Bottom Line model with a very narrow beamwidth which is good as a depth finder, but not much else. I have a newer Helix 5 DI GPS on my aluminum boat, but the transducer is mounted on the transom.

[anglerdave]

I have used a "fish finder" in both a fiberglass canoe and a roto-mold poly kayak. I silicone a plastic cup with the bottom cut out to a flat section of the floor, put the transducer and enough water to cover in it. It works fine. My sonar is an older Bottom Line model with a very narrow beamwidth which is good as a depth finder, but not much else. I have a newer Helix 5 DI GPS on my aluminum boat, but the transducer is mounted on the transom.

Clint

I like idea of using silicone as opposed to using Weldwood that Joe Hyde used. I would think it would be a lot easier to remove from fiberglass it it became necessary. Never thought about using a plastic cup. Probably could also use a piece of pvc pipe also.

Dave

[Bluegill Budd]

I have considered mounting my new sonar on my portable battery box. The transponder for it is much longer unit and I would have to find a plastic box to fit. And you are correct, when I sold the kayak I just peeled the silastic off.

[Duffin Boy]

Some form a dam from plumbers putty and fill with water.

I use a flyrod holder on the track of my yak to hold a metal rod/aluminum piece of metal to attach my transducer.
It is easy to swing up out of the way if beaching or shallow water. Totally portable and easy to pack away.
Humingbird portable fish finder contains battery.

DuFf
Looks and works something like this only DIY and Cheaper.(when Hummingbird is not in use I can use the extra Rod holder)

[Tim Murphy]

Dear anglerdave,

If your canoe is made of anything other than metal the transducer will shoot through the hull. You can just get a small food storage container like the ones made to hold a sandwich or a quart of soup and fill it with water. Set the transducer in it and you should be good to go.

If you want to permanently mount the transducer you can just epoxy it to the bottom of the hull on the inside of the canoe. You need to make sure you don't have any airgaps in the epoxy though.

An alternative to permanent mounting is a bracket or a magnetic mount. You can check with the folks at Float Tube Fanatics. I use one of their mounts on my Creek Company Voyager pontoon. Their products are well made, easy to set up, and they are great people to deal with.

Regards,

Tim Murphy