Pagetslady
Well-Known Member
Where do you have your echo sounder depth set from I have always set the offset so that I get a reading that tells me how deep it is in mtrs what do you prefer?
Depth below Keel or depth of water ?
- Thread starter Pagetslady
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savageseadog
Well-Known Member
Depth of water is best as it's one less thing to calculate to relate depth where you are to charted and tidal depth. Less confusing for infrequent crew too
Piddy
Well-Known Member
Depth below keel in feet with chart plotter in feet.
I can visualise a foot rather than 0.3m. I don't take unknown crew often and if they are interested, they get told what the instruments relate to.
I can visualise a foot rather than 0.3m. I don't take unknown crew often and if they are interested, they get told what the instruments relate to.
Ubergeekian
Well-Known Member
For me it's depth of water, always. That's probably because my two uses of the depth sounder are anchoring and navigation, for both of which total depth is the thing to compare with chain or chart. Depth under the keel might be useful if there was anywhere nearby that I might run aground but even then how hard is it to knock off a meter and a half?
doug748
Well-Known Member
Depth below transducer.
I keep thinking I must update the old Seafarer
I keep thinking I must update the old Seafarer
SimbaDog
Well-Known Member
Depth of water in feet 
gregmlucas
Well-Known Member
Depth below bottom of keel
Offset to show depth from the bottom of the keel but then the frequently narrow channel to my marina berth can be as little as 2m total depth on a big spring so I prefer being able to tell how much water I've got left to play with at a glance (i.e. without having to think about it). I go in and out of the marina a lot more than I anchor or navigate by contour.
Offset to show depth from the bottom of the keel but then the frequently narrow channel to my marina berth can be as little as 2m total depth on a big spring so I prefer being able to tell how much water I've got left to play with at a glance (i.e. without having to think about it). I go in and out of the marina a lot more than I anchor or navigate by contour.
jwilson
Well-Known Member
Personally I leave it set to depth below keel, to which I add 1.5 metres for actual depth.
There is a special corner of hell reserved for the person who then reset it to actual depth and did not tell me or put it back again! Fortunately I had already slowed right down thinking "... surprised there's this much water here" as we came to a sudden stop.
bbg
Well-Known Member
I have no idea. I bought the boat and have never checked the offset. I assume it is set to depth of water but I should get around to checking it one day.
dt4134
Well-Known Member
I go for depth below keel. At 2.1m draught I often seem to end up edgeing into harbour and I'd rather know the accurate depth below keel.
If I'm following a contour line or deciding where to anchor I've more time to do the arithmetic, and anyway in both those cases I need the height of tide too.
If I'm following a contour line or deciding where to anchor I've more time to do the arithmetic, and anyway in both those cases I need the height of tide too.
prv
Well-Known Member
KS's is depth below transducer, as inherited from the previous owner. I don't know why he never set an offset - perhaps he didn't realise it was possible (he wasn't keen on technology). I keep forgetting to bring the manual to the boat and do it - it's an old system I can't find out anything about, and the procedure is not obvious. I just know that I touch bottom at somewhere under 0.5m indicated, depending exactly where is going to touch (deepest point is at the stern).
I will probably set it to read below keel - as "dt4134" says, there's more time to think when using it for nav and anchoring. Not that it's hard to add or subtract a metre either way.
Pete
I will probably set it to read below keel - as "dt4134" says, there's more time to think when using it for nav and anchoring. Not that it's hard to add or subtract a metre either way.
Pete
webcraft
Well-Known Member
.
Below keel. It's what counts and adding a metre for water depth doesn't tax the brain too much.
- W
Below keel. It's what counts and adding a metre for water depth doesn't tax the brain too much.
- W
dansaskip
Well-Known Member
Depth of water in metres as all charts are in metres its better for position and pilotage even though I can think and visualise in feet more easily. I know how much the boat draws
VicS
Well-Known Member
Mine, also an old Seafarer, only reads depth below transducer.
If i had a modern all singing all dancing one I would set it to read depth but set an alarm for the draft plus a safety margin.
If i had a modern all singing all dancing one I would set it to read depth but set an alarm for the draft plus a safety margin.
Alfie168
Well-Known Member
This reminds me with some embarassment of a gaffe i made whilst on the helm of H.M. Bark Endeavour. Trying to make conversation with the captain was never really a good idea, he liked to keep the gap between him and crew well defined, but foolishly I had a go and put my foot right in it and he showed no mercy.
I meant to ask "How much depth does the ship need to float in",,but what I actually said was "how much water does the ship need under the keel".
He gave me a brief withering look and said "An inch'l do for me" then looked away in disgust at my stupid question.
He was a decent bloke really with a very dry sense of humour, but at times he hid it quite well.
Tim
I meant to ask "How much depth does the ship need to float in",,but what I actually said was "how much water does the ship need under the keel".
He gave me a brief withering look and said "An inch'l do for me" then looked away in disgust at my stupid question.
He was a decent bloke really with a very dry sense of humour, but at times he hid it quite well.
Tim
andygc
Well-Known Member
Depth of water in metres.
If it reads 1.1 I'm floating. If it reads 0.9 - 1.0 I'm ploughing a furrow in the mud on the bottom of the Exe, or I've just found that damned bank of gravel again. If I'm somewhere else, I never let it read that low.
If it reads 1.1 I'm floating. If it reads 0.9 - 1.0 I'm ploughing a furrow in the mud on the bottom of the Exe, or I've just found that damned bank of gravel again. If I'm somewhere else, I never let it read that low.
Ubergeekian
Well-Known Member
Jumblie came with the echosounder showing depth below a point one metre below the keel. I have no idea why, but it explained why my first anchoring attempt seemed to have rather little chain out ...
Ex-SolentBoy
Well-Known Member
Depth below the keel in metres.
I really don't care about anything else and it makes death calculations for anchoring very easy. Plotter tells you how much the drop is to low water, as long as you have that below the keel then anchor away!
I really don't care about anything else and it makes death calculations for anchoring very easy. Plotter tells you how much the drop is to low water, as long as you have that below the keel then anchor away!
simonfraser
Well-Known Member
i use mine mainly to avoid running aground within the next few meters, hence it is set to read from the bottom of the hull downwards. still need to take the dagger board into account.
Lakesailor
Well-Known Member
I fitted one (don't know why) on Slippy. I set it in feet (I understand feet) below the keel as I was a bit hazy about my draft.
Simple really, if it starts getting below 4 feet it's a bit dicy. Other than that I'm not really interested if it's 60 feet or 200feet.
Of course that doesn't allow for the fact that Windermere has rocks that just stand up in the middle of nowhere.
So they only time I clouted a rock was when the sounder said I was OK.
Simple really, if it starts getting below 4 feet it's a bit dicy. Other than that I'm not really interested if it's 60 feet or 200feet.
Of course that doesn't allow for the fact that Windermere has rocks that just stand up in the middle of nowhere.
So they only time I clouted a rock was when the sounder said I was OK.
