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And when not in operation, the tunnel creates turbulence. If your vessel is pitching, the
tunnel may be filled with air or aerated water in the upper position and release this in the
lower position.
In general, all transducers must therefore be placed well away from the bow thruster. In
most cases, a location forward of the bow thruster is advantageous.
However, this is not an invariable rule. Certain thruster designs combined with its physical
location on the hull may still offer suitable locations near the thruster. If you are in doubt,
consult a naval architect.
Summary and general recommendations
Some of the installation guidelines provided for transducers may be conflicting. For this
reason, each vessel must be treated individually in order to find the best compromise.
In general, the most important factor is to avoid air bubbles in front of the transducer face.
For this reason, the recommended transducer location is normally in the fore part of the hull,
well ahead of the noise created by the bow wave. The maximum distance from the bow is
normally equal to one third of the total water line length of the hull.
If the vessel hull has a bulbous bow, this may well be a good transducer location, but also
in this case the flow pattern of the aerated water must be taken into consideration. Often
the foremost part of the bulb is preferable.
This applies to the vessel in normal trim and speed.
Important
Under no circumstances should the transducer be tilted backwards when the vessel is moving
at an appreciable speed. Mounting screws must never be extruding from the transducer, and
the space around the screws must be filled with a compound or a locking ring.
Simrad ES38-18/200–18C Installation manual