Cobaltchat.com

Hello all,

Proud owner of a new (to us) 2014 cobalt 220s(pics below). Where we boat is somewhat shallow (rarely deeper than 10 ft), so I am constantly looking at my depth meter. My question is: is there a way to set an alarm to go off at “x” ft deep on my boat like others have mentioned on other models?

Bonus question: does anyone know what the minimum depth is to be at “normal” trim (I.e. the two lines that intersect the trim gauge to show you where normal/medium trim is)?

Thanks!!
Chicagomax

Welcome. Nice boat. Our last boat had Faria depth gage, and you could set the alarm on it. I don't know on our current boat as our lake is so deep and the coutour lines on our Garmin map are so good that I've never tried to set the gage.

Nice boat, same colors as my R5!
Many depth gauges do have a shallow water alarm you can set, you'll have to do some investigating on your specific type. Regarding your second question, I think you are asking "What is the minimum depth I need to operate?". For most stern drive boats it's 36"/3ft with the drive in the full down position. I generally start paying close attention when I am in 5ft or less - you never know if a stump or something could be there and that 5ft is now 2ft! A couple of pointers regarding running in shallow water.

1. If you are unsure of the depth, trim the drive up a little and go slow until you figure the dept out.
2. If you are running on plane and see you are all of a sudden in shallow water - better to try and steer into deeper water vs just suddenly slowing down. A boat on plane is drawing less water -- slow down suddenly and you likely will hit bottom.
3. Likewise, if you are going slow in shallow water when you speed up the stern will sink down some, get into deeper water before taking off.
4. If you do hit bottom, take the boat out of gear, stop and assess things - many times people panic and try to power off making things worse.

.
So glad you found us Chicagomax.

Great classic color combo. Thanks for the pic. Looks sharp.

Same advice as above.

And welcome aboard mate!

.

Plan B: find a deeper lake. LOL

Thanks so much all for the replies and tips- incredibly helpful(well maybe except the deeper lake comment LOL)! I just can’t believe we have these quite large lakes in the chain of lakes, and when we’re cruising around most of the time it’s 6 feet or less- unbelievable! To the comment about deeper lake, my wife and I have talked about taking on Lake Michigan, so perhaps that’s a future adventure for us. Anyway, thanks again for the tips and glad to be a part of the cobalt family!

I've been on the custom 1 time and that was enough for me. Not a huge fan. You just have to get used to the lake. I honestly wouldn't even look at the Guage. All you will be is worried about when your going to hit and that takes the fun out of it. Set the alarm at 4 ft. But know where that depth is coming from. The bottom of the boat or the water line. It makes a huge difference. I boat in shallow water all the time but I got a chance to know the water pretty good. And yes it's dirty water I can't see the bottom at 3ft. I get more paranoid at 10ft if I can see bottom to be honest.
Be careful taking that little boat out on Michigan.