Two electronics questions

[denny48]

I would like to install some kind of instrument(s) that measure the charge of all our battery banks. (1 house, 1 engine, 2 a/c). It should be able to measure the charge of each bank separately. Does anyone have a recommendation on best type, mfgr., etc?

Also, I have a Garmin 440s GPS. The screen is pixalated, regardless of the distance setting I put it on. We are in inland waters (Arizona) but the Garmin guys say we should be getting a clear screen. Antenna is plugged in and all other readings (depth sounder, etc.) seem to work fine. Any ideas/suggestions?

We're going out to Lake Pleasant today to enjoy some beautiful 70 degree weather.

[Captains Cat]

What do you mean by "The screen is pixalated"??

Do you have a chip installed or are you running on the base maps built into the unit? If you don't have a chip, it sounds like the base map doesn't cover it and you need one of the chips that has lake coverage.

Charlie

[IT-SEA-BIT-C]

sounds like a bad conn. has it done that from the start or just recently?my garmin takes a beating out in weather all the time (open cocpit boat)never had any problems. mabey a mfg. defect or something broke ? as far as voltage gauge / take your pick look online /want to charge batt. with it also ?/just know state of charge/gauge at helm?/or remote?.lots of choices but imagine u want to keep it small as possible.hope someone chimes -in with what yuor lookin for on thier 21 only hear from a handful of 21"s,,, really enjoyed your photo album, please post more like to hear about ur tug too. enjoy your cruise is teaco with you got a kick out of pic sittin on transom lucky dog! buy the way hows the ac work ? can u run it on dc overnight . how long does it last bafore running batts>low? sorry for gettin off topic , TUGGER"s beautiful luv to hear about it thanks //////john

[denny48]

Charlie,
The screen looks like a fuzzy checkerboard. The farther out you set the screen 5 miles, 8 miles, etc., the smaller the squares get, but the screen cannot be read. I too thought I might need a chip and checked with the factory and West Marine. They claim I don't need a chip, but I'm beginning to think they may be wrong. You would think our local West Marine store would know that though.
Thanks,

[IT-SEA-BIT-C]

even without the card .you should still have a base -map and it should be (the screen)clear as a bell .check all conn."smake sure you are gettin correct voltage check for loose ground .again has it always done that /only when boat is moving? what about when still ? same? sounds like it"s broken..............john

[denny48]

John on IT-SEA-BIT-C,
Thanks for the compliments on Tugger. Yes, Teaco was at his normal watch station this afternoon, and yes, he IS one lucky dog! It was a BEAUTIFUL day to be on the water and we got our typical rash of admiring people wanting to learn about the little tug. We even had all the Sheriff's deputies from the lake taking pics and saying how it was the neatest boat they'd ever seen. They were especially blown away by the bow thruster.

Regarding the connection, I thought it might be that too, but kind of discounted that because all the other signals (depth, chart, etc.,) display perfect. My connection is a bugger to connect and disconnect though and we always remove the GPS when it's parked in our RV pad next to the house.

Regarding our A/C, we've only used it underway, but Andrew at the factory thought it would probably be fine during the night, as it has two deep cells and surprisingly enough, doesn't draw as much as you would think. Besides, it always seems to cool off enough at night to be tolerable on the water. During the hottest days of summer (110-115), it couldn't keep up so Jeff and Andrew sent me some hatch shades to keep the cabin a bit more shaded. I think that might do the trick. We'll know next summer.

[IT-SEA-BIT-C]

better get used to complements on tugger..glad to hear teaco is w/u but lets get back to it i may have one other suggestion for u try checkin mount or plug or whatever u have to disconnect to remove it as you stated . i had a sirius sat. raido that was intermently working when i moved it from home to car kit in my truck / which i do almost daily what happend was i diddn"t have it lined up properly and forced it and bent a pin connector(think thats what they call em) any way after that it was junk .,hope that may be revelant & hopfully your garmin aint broke /i wouldn"t have a clue on that repair ur best bet would probably be garmin .hope its warranteed. best of luck ,and thank you for talkin about your 21/sure wed all luv to hear more about it when u have time ........john

[Discovery]

Link 10 for one battery bank. Link 20 for two battery banks. Can't help with the Garmin.

[jkidd]

From Garmins web site
Offshore fishermen and boaters will gravitate toward this sleek, space-saving chartplotter. The GPSMAP 440 features preloaded detailed maps for the U.S. coast as well as an ultra-bright 4” QVGA display; built-in, satellite-enhanced worldwide basemap and simplified user operation.

Chart the High Seas
The 440 has preloaded detailed maps that cover all U.S. coastal areas, including Alaska and Hawaii. For areas outside the U.S., the 440 has a worldwide basemap with satellite images in place of more traditional maps, and its SD card slot makes it easy to add additional maps without connecting to a computer. With fewer keys and a simple, intuitive interface, the 440 makes navigating your way through the water easy.

The base map doesn't have much detail for Inland waters, Look and see if the coast line looks good. If the detail is there for the coast then you need to buy an Inland lakes chip west. I think there is 4 zones.

I use the voltage readings off of my Garmin for the house battery and the voltage reading off of the SMIS gauge for the cranking battery.

[Captains Cat]

Marilyn and Denny

In looking at the Garmin website, it looks like the 440s covers coastal waters pretty well but inland lakes not well, or mostly not at all. They sell chips for that, if that's where you primarily boat, it'll be what you'll need!

Charlie

[denny48]

Jodie & Charlie,
Thanks for the input. Based on you're comments, it looks like I need to at least try a chip. Any suggestions on best buys?
Thanks again,

[IT-SEA-BIT-C]

so glad someone had an answer on this site gotta luv it

[jkidd]

The old chip was called fishing hot spots, the new SD chips are called Inland lakes Vision here is what Garmin says about them.

What is Inland Lakes Vision?
Plug an optional Inland Lakes Vision SD card into your Garmin chartplotter and tremendously expand its full graphic capabilities with detailed map coverage of inland lakes and rivers for the continental U.S.

By adding an Inland Lakes Vision card to your compatible chartplotter, you'll see shoreline, depth contours, bottom conditions, boat ramps, mile markers and more. Inland Lakes Vision also provides above and below water 3-D perspective, auto guidance technology and satellite imagery for over 300 of the most popular lakes.

Purchase your Inland Lakes Vision cards today, and see water in a whole new light.


Inland Lakes Vision Features:
Over 300 of the most popular lakes will also have:

High resolution satellite imagery for selected lakes, when overlaid on the chart, provides the mariner with unparalleled situational awareness. (A)
Mariner’s Eye View - Provides the mariner with a 3-D perspective of map information for a quick, reliable and easy position. (B)
Fish Eye View 3-D perspective below the water line for displaying bottom contours based on bathymetric mapping data. (C)
Auto Guidance technology searches map data to suggest the best passage to a destination. (D)
Inland Lakes Vision Compatibility:
Inland Lakes Vision is compatible with most of our new fixed-mount chartplotters. See the product compatibility table (below) for a list of products that Garmin recommends with this software.

[thataway]

check the coast line. As noted, this chart plotter has good detail of the coasts, but not inland. I have a 492 and the coast is fine, not much good at Powell, except if you have the G2 chart for inland lakes. I use a Lowarance which uses Create a map Topo--it has most of the canyons named at powell and is adequate for the positions.

You can either use a Link as Discovery noted, or you can get a digital volt meter. I use both (the Link 200 on the CD 25 and the volt meter on the Tom Cat.) For me, knowing th battery voltage is adequate--the Link tracks the charge of amps in and draw of amps out--as well as voltage. With the Blue seas digital volt meter you want to keep your batteries above 12.2 volts in a steady state (they may drop below that under load). In the Tom Cat I have a 6 position rotary switch--off on both ends, and 4 batteries for direct reading of voltage. I prefer to read voltage off the battery, rather than on an chart plotter, because there may be corrosion or voltage drop in the line to the electrics. With the volt meter they are wired directly (with a fuse) to the battery.

[Captains Cat]