Garmin GPS.

[chrishelen]

My handheld GPS, 1995 vintage works perfectly.it cost a fortune back then and has never given any trouble thats why i still use it,however in the last couple of weeks the screen is starting to play up in the way of blank lines from side to side making some of the data difficult to read,is it time to bin it? or is there a quick fix?Ta.

 

[morgandlm]

I think you know the answer! You might try putting it in the airing cupboard for a while but I think it's destined for the bin.
Morgan

 

[Jock89]

Hi,
I also have a 10 yr old Garmin, a 2+ with the same symptoms, which I'm using for work right now. It started doing the same thing as yours 3-4 yrs ago & I called Garmin in UK at the time & they gave me instructions on how to do something like a 'reset to default' or something similiar, which fixed it. OK until recently, doing it again now but I can't remember the procedure. If I remember correctly you'll have to save all your waypoints 1.st, or be prepared to lose the lot. I'll have to call Garmin about mine again, when I'm back in UK soon, but if they give you the fix, please post it here & I'll do mine again. Personally I think at 10 yrs old now it should be kept as something like a 3.rd backup on the boat.
Cheers...

 

[Blue5]

If its 12 years old in technology terms its ancient history, I have a magellan from 1993, when I phoned them for information and possible repair you could almost hear them laughing. You will probably pay less for a new one now than you did 12 years ago.

 

[colvic987]

as long as you are replacing the batteries when they start to lose their charge, and don't leave the gps in a cupboard till you need it again in the spring.

you need to make sure it has got decent batteries in and make sure you don't lose the almanac settings, by turning it on every now and again, and let it synchronize with the sats.

I turn mine on every 2 months and take it into the garden and let it get the sats and get some waypoints up. so its talking...

The reason i do this is when i first bought my garmin76 i left it in the cupboard over the winter and the batteries lost charge and it lost the almanac settings, and was therefore useless, i ended up calling garmin and they gave me the reset code to reboot it, this took a hour or so to sort itself out..

if you have an old one and its lost its settings then you might be lucky to get the reset codes from garmin...

 

[chrishelen]

Hi jock,i will give Garmin a bell on monday,if i get any joy i will pass it on to you,thanks to every one who gave advice,chris.

 

[AIDY]

agree.... if it's playing silly buggers now. you don't really want to rely on it when you really need it. same happened to my 10 year old garmin, i replaced it and use the old one in the grab bag now.

 

[mikejames]

Lines on the screen means damp air has got at it., and the tin oxide tracks on the LCD glass have dissolved.

It will gradually get worse losing lines until you are fed up with it.

It is likely that it will still be making reliable fixes and reporting positions via NMEA even with a completely dead screen - the missing lines take a lot less corrosion to destroy than the main PCB.

On the day you are fed up with it go and get another one.


I have had three Garmin GPS since 1995 : GPS45 (cost £250) succumbed to a cracked case seal acquired when it slid off the chart table and flew across a boat heeling in Greece followed a couple of weeks later by a wind against tide slog from Hamble to Lymington one Friday evening, about 3 years into its life.
The replacement GPS48 (also £250) worked well until the antenna connector unscrewed inside and Garmin replaced it when 2 years old no questions asked with another GPS48 which has survived until today.

My 1996 GPS130 kept on the boat all year round developed missing lines on the screen about 2 years ago but has not gone further since I installed a solar powered ventilator on the boat, and stopped the rain coming through the chainplates.

 

[Csail]

My ancient Garmin was replaced by then free. Just call them.

 

[oldharry]

[ QUOTE ]
agree.... if it's playing silly buggers now. you don't really want to rely on it when you really need it. same happened to my 10 year old garmin, i replaced it and use the old one in the grab bag now.

[/ QUOTE ]

"... in the grab bag" Isn't that the time you are most likely to "really need" an accurate GPS?

No good telling HMCG where to look if you are not there. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[AIDY]

well i hope i would of picked the h/h dsc vhf and replacement h/h gps up before i jumped. i reckon two hh gps is better than none at all /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[chrishelen]

Hi yes it still hooks up perfectly via NMEA so i dont want to ditch it and buy new,if i remember it cost about 400 quid back when i bought it,it was all bells and whistles and its got me out of a few scary moments in poor vis,its also developing a nasty habit of freezing for a few seconds now and again.

 

[chrishelen]

hi i have heard storys of Garmin replacing knackered goods for free, i thought it was just tall sea stories,worth a try i suppose.

 

[Billjratt]

Hold the enter/page etc. key down while powering on, GPS 45
will reset/do receiver test,etc. and a screen test with ever-increasing squares.