Rigging, Wiring and On-the-Water Guides
How to choose and install a fish finder, mount a transducer where it can actually hear, wire a twenty four or thirty six volt motor, size marine cable, chase a voltage drop, rig a kayak, set a downrigger, and stay safe in cold water.
34 pages in this section.
Electrical
- Boat Electrical Safety Basics Boat electrical safety basics: why marine wiring rules differ from house wiring, where overcurrent protection goes, and what to check every trip.
- How to Crimp Marine Connectors How to crimp marine connectors with tinned stranded cable, a ratchet tool and adhesive lined heat shrink, so the joint outlasts the boat around it.
- How to Find a Voltage Drop on a Boat How to find a voltage drop on a boat by testing under load rather than at rest, plus the formula that calculates it before you ever pick up a meter.
- How to Size Marine Wire How to size marine wire with the ABYC voltage drop formula, the round trip length most guides forget, and why this site will not print an ampacity chart.
- How to Troubleshoot a Trolling Motor That Will Not Run How to troubleshoot a trolling motor that will not run: check the breaker, the plug, battery voltage under load, voltage drop, then the pedal.
- How to Wire a Marine Fuse Block How to wire a marine fuse block: the ABYC rule on where the first fuse sits, how to size each branch breaker, and why bigger is never the fix.
Safety
- Cold Water Safety for Early Season Fishing Cold water safety for early season fishing: cold shock, swim failure, why the hazard is water temperature, and wearing the life jacket instead of packing it.
- How to Use a Marine VHF Radio How to use a marine VHF radio: channel 16, DSC distress calling, mayday versus pan-pan format, and why a phone is not a substitute on the water.
- What to Check Before Every Trip A real pre-trip checklist: battery voltage under load, bilge pump and float switch, PFDs, a working-channel radio check, and dressing for the water.
Anchoring
Charging
Sonar
- How to Choose a Fish Finder How to choose a fish finder by sonar type, screen size, GPS and transducer mount, with a buying path for real boats and budgets rather than brands.
- How to Install a Fish Finder How to install a fish finder: mounting the display, routing the transducer cable, and wiring power the ABYC E-11 way with the fuse near the battery.
- How to Read a Fish Finder Screen How to read a fish finder screen: why fish show up as arches, how wide the sonar cone actually is at depth, and how imaging views differ from it.
- How to Set Up Side Imaging Side imaging setup that actually works: transducer mount, boat speed, range settings, and reading shadows to spot structure a straight-down cone misses.
- How to Use Live Sonar Learning live sonar starts with finding your own lure on screen. What to mount it on, which display it needs, and the mistakes that waste a season.
Propulsion
- How to Choose a Trolling Motor How to choose a trolling motor by thrust, voltage and mount type, using the pounds per hundred convention and the real battery cost of every volt step.
- How to Install a Bow Mount Trolling Motor How to install a bow mount trolling motor: bracket placement, wiring and overcurrent protection within the ABYC E-11 distance from the battery.
- How to Measure for Trolling Motor Shaft Length How to measure for trolling motor shaft length from the bow deck to the waterline, add the correct margin for your water, and round up to a stocked size.
Transducers
- How to Install a Thru Hull Transducer How a thru hull transducer install actually works: fiberglass only, never aluminum, never an unsealed cored hull, and why this is the job to pay a pro for.
- How to Mount a Transducer on a Transom How to mount a transom transducer so it stays in clean water at speed. The fix for ventilation is moving it sideways, not deeper, using a mounting board.
Kayak rigging
- How to Install an Anchor Trolley How to install an anchor trolley on a fishing kayak, run the pulleys correctly, and why anchoring by the stern in current is a real capsize risk.
- How to Mount a Fish Finder on a Kayak How to mount a fish finder on a kayak with a scupper mount or a swing arm, plus how to power it without a lithium bank sized for a trolling motor.
- How to Rig a Fishing Kayak How to rig a fishing kayak in the right order: track and mounts first, then storage and rod holders, then anchoring, then power and sonar last.
Livewell
- How to Keep Fish Alive in a Livewell How to keep fish alive in a livewell: gallons from length times width times depth, the 15 to 20 minute turnover convention, and the hottest day problem.
- How to Plumb a Livewell How to plumb a livewell: pickup, pump and spray head loop, thru-hull versus recirculating configurations, and wiring the pump on its own fused circuit.
Kayak power
Tackle and Line
Downriggers
Power
Electronics
Wiring
- How to Wire a 24 Volt Trolling Motor How to wire a 24 volt trolling motor bank in series from two 12 volt batteries, size the cable and breaker, and avoid the parallel wiring mistake.
- How to Wire a 36 Volt Trolling Motor How to wire a 36 volt trolling motor bank in series from three 12 volt batteries, or replace them with one lithium pack, sized and protected correctly.
Batteries and Charging
Researched, not professional advice. Everything in this section is compiled from published engineering and regulatory figures, manufacturer specifications and owner-review consensus, not hands-on testing. Published figures and rules of thumb are labelled separately wherever both appear, and where a published figure does not exist we say so rather than estimating one.