Depth gauge (with alarm)

[Tafflad]

I bought a new FourWinns …..during Pre-sales was sent a lovely picture of the dash, which included a 2” round depth gauge … as I have had on all my previous boats.

With glaring oversight FourWinns have elected to now supply their boats without this and the 2” gauge is now just a blanking ‘dummy gauge’
They have moved to Medallion Integrated gauges, and this has the depth display, but no ability to set a depth alarm …… we use that all the time, do a lot of coastal towed sports and very handy to set depth alarm to 6’, then can focus in where I’m going and the driving, knowing the ‘beep-beep’ from depth alarm will warn me when I need to start turning out.
Medallion have advised the transducer is an NMEA2000compliant device …. So may well be able to work with a 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] party NMEA compliant depth display ….. anybody know of one ?

 

[Chris1956]

GPS/sonar combo units usually have depth alarms, and can get you home in a fog. Wouldn't that be a better idea?

 

[JASinIL2006]

GPS/sonar combo units usually have depth alarms, and can get you home in a fog. Wouldn't that be a better idea?

That is actually what drove me to get a GPS/sonar device. Not only do I get depth sounding, but I have maps, GPS-calculated speedometer, and it even measures the water temp. If I was a fisherman, I could even find the big ones! It costs a bit more, but the upgrade in functionality is nice.

 

[Tafflad]

No need to get home in a fog, not an issue - I don't go to sea in a fog, this is an inshore tow sports boat. I could have ordered GPS plotter but simply no need for the mapping. All I need is depth display & alarm., Original pre-sales pic showed the Faria 2" depth gauge/alarm, which would have been fine.

 

[Chris1956]

So the fog never rolls in on a sunny day?

Good for you!

 

[Scott Danforth]

you can buy a stand-alone 2" round depth gauge and transducer for about $150 USD. mount the transducer, plug it into the gauge, wire the gauge to your purple wire on the ignition circuit and the black wire to ground.......

https://www.iboats.com/shop/electronics/digital-instruments.html

 

[dingbat]

So the fog never rolls in on a sunny day?

Good for you!

Nope...would take some doing for fog to develop over 75 to 80 degree water.

Early morning phenomenon in early Spring (April) and late Fall (November) when water temps are transitioning.

Pretty localized when it does happen. Takes a very light Easterly wind which is rare when conditions are best suited for fog.

Can be an issue going out of the back waters of the western shore in early morning. Have never had an issue once the sun gets up over the horizon.

 

[Chris1956]

Good thing you restrict your boating when there is no chance of fog. Not many would wait it out like that, and restrict themselves.

I only needed my GPS a couple of times when there was no fog. Once it rained so hard...I couldn't see the opposite shore 3 miles away. Actually the rain and associated darkness was enough that no reference points could be seen at all once 300 yards off the shore.

Good thing that only happened once, as I have 9 lives, like my cat.

So $150 for a 2 " Depth Gauge, vs $200 for a GPS? Makes sense to me....

 

[Tafflad]

I have never been out in Fog in 35 yrs boating ... we do watersports, it needs to be clear to see who you are towing, so be too unsafe to go out.