Using Your Humminbird Fish Finder

Fish finders have become so advanced and so affordable that every sport fisherman can own one. Using sonar signals, these depth finders give you a view under your boat so that you can locate fish easily, instead of having to guess where they might be. One of the most popular fish locators on the market today is the Humminbird fish finder. It is compact, and the durable design makes it ideal for small boats. In this article, we'll tell you how this great tool takes the guesswork out of finding a great fishing spot.

Humminbird produces ten different lines of electronic fish finders, each having several models within a line. The devices are made from sturdy, durable hard plastic that provides maximum protection from the elements and any possible damage that may occur on the water. Some lines of Hummingbird fish finders have stretch neoprene covers available to protect them from water damage. There are protective cases designed to cover the mounting assembly of the unit as well.

The Humminbird finder is small enough to be used on speedboats, canoes and even inflatable boats, as the suction cup transducer will work with any material. This fish finder uses dual beam, fish finder sonar. One beam is a 60 degree beam to find the fish and the other is a 20 degree beam to accurately display the bottom and structure. This allows you to see if fish are hiding among weeds or in a concave on the floor of the water.

One key decision you need to make before purchasing a higher end Humminbird fish finder is how and where you are going to mount it. Most fish finders will come with a standard mounting bracket and transom mounting transducers. This is the least expensive way to mount your Hummingbird fish finder. Ideally, it should be mounted somewhere convenient and accessible, like near the steering wheel.

The transducer, a key element in your system, is mounted on the transom in a spot where it will be submerged both at low speeds and high speeds. If your boat has a ladder, then mount it on the opposite side of the boat to avoid entanglement and possible damage to the transducer.

After turning on the fish finder, look at the digital readings that appear on the screen. Depending on the Humminbird fishfinder model you have, these could be depth, water temperature and boat speed readings. These readings are based on the location of the transducer that sends sonar signals from the water to the fish finder. The line across the bottom of the screen is the floor of the lake, river or reservoir.

The undulations on the screen mirror the terrain on the bottom. A thick, dark line represents a hard bottom, while a thin, light line indicates a soft bottom. Lines or other objects that extend up from the bottom likely are submerged timber, rocks or vegetation. Arches on the screen represent fish. On some models, you will see fish icons. The icons vary in size depending on the size of the fish. However, the device can sometimes mistake debris for fish.

Once your Humminbird fish finder is installed, you will need to program the settings. Choosing the "Normal" operation mode uses factory set defaults that allow some control over the settings. This mode allows you to quickly use the unit's sonar functions without making in-depth setting changes.

For more options, press the "View" button while in "Normal" mode to cycle through the different sonar modes. There are seven different options on this menu, from standard sonar all the way to side-looking sonar. Use the "Menu" option when you encounter factory default settings that are not accurate.

The Humminbird is definitely one of the easiest fish finders to use, and now that you've had fish finders explained, you will find one of these devices to be a handy tool to have onboard.