Lost my GPS signal!

[Boatist]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

Phil<br />Your problem will not be the GPS signal. I would check closely the antenna connection on the unit. Pull it off and make sure it is clean. Also check all 30 feet of wire out to the antenna. Look for any damage to the cable. Call Garmin. Last see if there is a total System Reset on the unit. Before doing the reset make sure have all your waypoints recorded.<br />Good luck and let us know the outcome.

 

[lund17]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

My boat didn't come with a compass thingy and am I required to have common sense on a boat under 20'? If so, where do I buy it?

 

[vidar]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

when one of these solar storms erupts you can kiss your gps goodbye until they get those sattelites going again.....that happends just a feev veeks ago ...gps is a good helper but it can and WILL fail at some point....

 

[AndyL]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

I am not sure about your particular set but I have a Simrad gps system that had the same problem where it wouldn't track anything. It turned out to be the internal back-up battery getting weak and so the machine lost its Almanac and didn't know where to even look for the satellites. Just a thought!!

 

[SeaMasterZ@aol.com]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

somewhere, written in stone, is the words<br /><br /> THOU SHALT KNOW THY COMPASS <br /><br />if you dont, get ready to say hi to the big guy in the sky, lol<br /><br />GPS, great tool, wonderful toy, and I am getting it to ferret out the hot spots in the bay<br /><br />but always keep your return heading in mind, always<br /><br />wrong way on a smaller lake or for the most part, a bay, no biggie<br /><br />wrong way in the ocean, BIG PROBLEM<br /><br />Gotta be careful out there!

 

[mattttt25]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

it's funny how we used gps 100% of the time on my u.s. navy ship. it was reliable 100% of the time. the only time we switched to visual fixes was when we were pulling in to port (and there was really no reason, since we knew where we were). our old loran c remained off.<br /><br />phil- same exact thing happened to me. i'll assume your unit has a plug in the back for the antenna wire. disconnect and cut the little metal connector off. go to radio shack and buy a new one for 35 cents. put the new one on and try it out. chances are you'll have signal back.<br /><br />good luck-

 

[philtheskipper]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

Thanks for the tips. I have the boat stored for the winter. I'll check things out in the spring and post what happens. I did contact Garmin and they said if it isn't the antenna that I should send it to them for $100 to fix it. Not much help.

 

[LadyFish]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

philtheskipper, we had the same problem three different times. It was always the internal battery.

 

[philtheskipper]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

Wouldn't I lose all my waypoints and stuff if the battery was dead?

 

[LadyFish]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

On one occassion we lost only tracking capability. Two other times we lost all our waypoints. I don't know what the difference was, all I know that each time they fixed it by replacing the battery. We sent it back to the factory each time since it was still under warranty. We only had 20 hours on it when it first happened.

 

[gaugeguy]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

I had a Garmin GPS II plus handheld, about 6 years old. The internal lithium batteries went bad on me. I had really lousy satellite reception and every time I changed the AA batteries in it I would lose all of my waypoints. I got ahold of Garmin and they replaced the batteries for free and even updated the software. It's on their website that if you have a 12 channel reciever that the internal battery replacement is free. With 8 channel recievers you have to send them a check along with the unit when you send it in. Talk to these guys...techsupp@garmin.com I talked with a guy named Kyle, really helpful.

 

[Mr.Ladyfish]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

Figured I better clear up what LF was trying to say. When we first bought the unit (Std.Hrzn. CP150) it could not get a fix. I returned it and they gave me a replacement unit but not antenna. That unit worked once then it could not get a fix. I returned to the dealer and they gave me a whole new CP150, including antenna. When I installed everything new it worked for about 50 hrs. The original antenna had a slight crack in the washer between the top and bottom halves. This past summer the unit lost all waypoints. I returned to the dealer and they said they had to replace the onboard battery. After the repair the unit worked for 2 trips before losing waypoints. I contacted the manufacturer. They had me send the unit to them where they replaced the battery again. The unit worked once and then lost all waypoints again. I sent it back, they kept it for 6 weeks and returned it saying it was all fixed. I set a waypoint, turned the unit off then on and it had lost the waypoint. I contacted Std.Hrzn. againg. They said they would replace the unit if I returned it. I did. They never sent a replacement for 3 weeks. After repeated calls & emails I finally got a new unit. We have used it about 3 times and so far, so good.

 

[philtheskipper]

Re: Lost my GPS signal!

Well, figured I would post what I ended up doing. Garmin wanted $100 to fix my gps120. I ended up buying a used gps128 on ebay for $50 more and will be using this newer unit. I tested each gps unit with both the new and old antenna. The gps128 worked with both and the gps120 didn't work with any. So at least I know it was my unit and not the antenna. Now all I have to do is decide if it's worth fixing the old one for a back-up or to sell it for a small profit. What would you do?