I have been experimenting with turning off my sonar when in extreme shallows. My reasoning is the fish can feel the pings and since I’m sight-fishing anyway with very spooky targets, I need every advantage. So far, it seems like I’m getting more shots with the sonar off, but I haven’t logged anything official.
What say the SkiffHQ collective brain trust? Do you leave your sonar on or turn it off in depths less than three feet?
When I’m salt fishing I don’t use the sonar feature much at all, so I turn off sonar. I’ll run GPS to be able to find my way back to the truck. In fresh water, especially fishing around bridges and docks, it’s always on.
I only use sonar when fishing > 8’-10’ really.
same, my sonar stays off, unless I’m side scanning for new spots or checking a bridge for snook or poon. Also a good idea to have it of incase you leave your gps unit on when trailering, you could over heat the ducer.
When the outboard is off the chartplotter is off. But I’m in really skinny water 99% of the time.
How do you know they can hear the pings? I guess I never thought about it but I’m usually fishing super shallow water. I have never been able to find fish on my graph and then catch them or something. I don’t really even understand where they are in relation to where my boat is.
I’ve tried pausing the sonar pings and not. I never really saw much evidence to support it being anything more than a subjective action. The idea behind it always made sense to me so I’ll try doing it again when I get my skiff back.
I don’t actually use the depth when poling since I’m only in 1-2’ of water max and I can feel the bottom with the push pole. It just happens to be on from running across the bay. If the GPS is on, the transducer is pinging unless I pause it. It’s a few extra steps on the Simrad.
Funny you mentioned that. I recently added a depth gauge to my skiff, it just does depth nothing else, and wondered myself if the “pings” were something fish could pick up on.
FYI: it didn’t seem to bother the remora that had me thinking there was a cobia hiding under my skiff Sunday morning 
Interesting. Well if I can hear the ticking of the sonar when it’s on in the garage then the fish can probably sense it. I don’t turn it off but maybe I should….
I don’t even have a transducer for my Lowrance. I may add one if I get a trolling motor and start fishing the barge canal and other deeper areas like I used to. If we can hear it out of water fish can most likely hear it in shallower water. Anything to give me an edge, I can use all the help I can get!
GPS only for me, no transducer. I really never considered the fish getting bothered, I just didn’t see much use in the shallows.
I ripped my transducer off because I was sick of it being temperamental and only working when it wanted to. That being said, I always turn the chartplotter off when my outboard is off.
I turn mine off too. Same reason.
Maybe I should turn mine on when fishing. Whatever I’m doing ain’t working lately.
Like hipshot said, I’m in less than 2 feet of water almost anytime I’m fishing. I should turn off the transducer, except when I’m moving spot to spot. It’ll use less juice from my little 35 AH AGM battery. Maybe that’s why I don’t catch many fish! TexasJim
I turn off everything electric while fishing shallow. Lights , bilge , plotter troller. Everything.
I think of redfish just like the crazy brother in better call Saul.
I even wonder about my phone sometimes.
I don’t turn mine off…but those Flamingo bull sharks are certainly attracted to something. I always thought it was the trolling motor but I suppose it could be the transducer as well. I swear the sharks are waiting under my boat to jump out at an opportune moment for an easy meal.
I don’t know how fish hearing works, but sound travels much better underwater. I know that if I’m diving under a boat and the sonar is on, I can definitely hear it especially with larger offshore boats a 3 kW or bigger transducer you can feel in your brain.
Mine is off unless I’m zeroing in on a near shore rock pile or ledge. Once I get it located, the unit is either turned off or the I stop the transducer leaving the unit on standby.