Need help w/ Lowrance EP-10 Fuel Flow Sensor

[GaryM]

I bought a 2001 Parker 23SE last summer that came with a Lowrance LCX-111C-HD sonar/GPS. The previous owner installed a Lowrance EP-10 fuel flow sensor and EP-15 fluid level sensor, but he was never able to get them to operate correctly (he was very upfront and honest about it when I bought the boat). Both sensors show up on the GPS, but always showed “0.00”. I read manuals, downloaded datasheets and addnedums from Lowrance, read the Lowrance FAQ and searched here and on THT and I found a lot wrong with the setup. However, the sensors still do not work; the fuel flow in particular reads either “0.00 gph “or “866 gph” (that’s a lot of fuel). Here’s what I’ve done so far:

1) The NMEA 2000 network was wrong. Instead of plugging the EP-10 into the backbone it was installed at the end of one “T”s with a 60 ohm terminator at the other end of the “T”. I added another “T” which I plugged the EP-10 into and put 120 ohm terminators on each end of the backbone (thanks BOE!).

2) I updated the software to the latest version available on the Lowrance website (I believe v2.1.0)

3) I disconnected the EP-10 sending unit and cleaned it as best I could with compressed air.

4) I read the EP-10 needs to be mounted vertically, but it was installed horizontally, so I corrected that.

5) I went through the setup on the GPS and found it wasn’t quite right (it was set to the left engine and the left fuel tank, but I have single engine and single tank so I set to the center tank and engine as the directions state).

6) Finally, I calibrated the EP-10 as directions state by adding fuel and entering that amount into the GPS.

If anyone has any ideas of what to try next I would greatly appreciate hearing them. I believe the calibration coefficient for the fuel flow is either 14.xxx or 13.xxx, but the boat is covered in snow here in NC so it’s a little difficult to check right now.

BTW - I did post this exact message to The Hull Truth as well.

Thanks in advance,
Gary

 

[Parker23]

i also installed that unit, and it never worked right. Now i have a lowrance guage that is just for show on my dash for the last 3 yrs.

 

[GaryM]

i also installed that unit, and it never worked right. Now i have a lowrance guage that is just for show on my dash for the last 3 yrs.

Parker23, were you able to use the same sensor and connect it to the new guage or did you buy a whole new setup? Also, which gauge did you buy?

Thanks

 

[Brent]

I dont know and dont have this system but did you check communication port or NEMA setup? Maybe it is comm problem

 

[GaryM]

It certainly does sound like a comm problem. The NEMA setup mirrors what the Lowrance manuals shows and the comm port on the GPS sees the sensors and reports "OK", so I believe I'm good there. Thanks.

 

[Brent]

out of curiosity, how do you calibrate the fuel flow sensor?

 

[GaryM]

According to the directions that came with the unit you:

- Fill the tank (requires adding a minimum of 5 gallons)
- Go to the Fuel Mgmt menu in the GPS and select "Fill Tank"
- Enter the gallons added
- After this the system asks if you want to re-calibrate the device, so click "Yes"

My guess is that doing this the system compares how much it thinks it burned to how much you tell it it burned and it makes an adjustment. However, if it thought it was burning 0 gallons and I told it it burned 20 that may screw it up making it show 866 gph like I'm seeing. For that reason I reset the calibration coefficient back to the factory value, which ended up being the same number and I'm still getting 0 gph or 866 gph.

 

[Brent]

Did you remove the 60 ohm terminator?

 

[GaryM]

Yes, there was only one 60 ohm on one end of the backbone. I removed it and put a 120 ohm terminator on each end instead.

 

[Brent]

is there a hard reset button?

 

[GaryM]

No, there's not much to it. The sensor goes in line with the fuel line and the other end gets plugged into the NEMA 2000 backplane. No buttons to speak of.

Oh yeah, The sensor needs to be located after the fuel filter so it does not get clogged with debris and that's where it's always been.

 

[Brent]

ok thanks
Does the 111 unit have a hard reset or equivalent like a PC hard reset so it will scan attached devices and re-acquire them

 

[GaryM]

Ahhh, that makes more sense. I did not find a reset for the NMEA connections, but there is a system reset for the entire unit. The manual says it returns everything to the factory settings without erasing waypoints. I don't know if it erases the sensors, but it's definitely worth a try. Maybe I'll disconnect the sensors, reset the unit and add the sensors back in.

I'll let you know how it goes. We do have a few inches of snow on the ground and it's supposed to get down to 10 degrees F tonight, so it may be a little while until I can do this.

Thanks,
Gary

 

[Brent]

good luck
You can also remove both devices and power up
If it works then
attach one device and power off and check it
if this works then add second device the repeat the process

 

[GaryM]

I finally had some time to work on my fuel management problem. I think I made some progress, but I’m not there yet. I removed both my EP-10 fuel flow sensor and the EP-15 fuel level meter and from both the network backbone and from the LCX-111 and then added back only the fuel flow sensor. Next, I disconnected the power feed from the LCX-111 to the backbone and added the Lowrance power inserter cable straight from the fuse panel to the backbone (using the recommended 5 Amp fuse). What I’m seeing now is that my fuel flow is 0 gph until I get to about 3800 rpm and above. Once I get up to this speed the fuel flow starts to register, but it’s very low – about 0.4 gph at 38000 rpm and 1.2 gph at 4000 rpm. So it seems to be registering change in flow, but the accuracy is way off.

I did notice the K-coefficient in the LCX-111 is set to 0 and I thought it used to be at 13.xxx. I can not change it manually and resetting to the default keeps it at 0. Does anybody else have an LCX-111 with an EP-10 and can you tell me what your K-coefficient is set at (found under Network Setup/Fuel Mgmt)? Next time I add fuel I’m going to calibrate the unit and see if that changes the coefficient, but with travels, weddings and my anniversary it probably won’t happen for another two weeks. If anybody had a similar problem I’d love to hear how you fixed it.

Thanks,
Gary

 

[Brent]

I dont have one
but is the fuel flowing correctly through the EP10?
maybe it is reversed??

 

[GaryM]

Good thought Salbrent. There is an arrow on the sensor and I've double checked it more than a few times. The sensor is installed between the motor and fuel/water seperator, about a foot away from the seperator and definitely pointing away from the seperator, towards the motor.

Thanks

 

[Brent]

ok last idea
Is the EP 10 mounted vertical?

 

[GaryM]

Another good thought. The sensor was horizontal when I bought the boat, so putting it vertical was one of the first things I tried.

 

[Brent]

PITA :lol: