Let’s talk radios. There was a good discussion going on from several of you guys about the distance your vhf will transmit. Someone pretty much hit the nail on the head when they stated you would get about 1nm for every watt your radio transmits. Add in your antenna height above the water, your antenna db and your coaxial connection, the condition of the atmosphere and whether or not we are having any particularly strong sunspots into account and if all of these are in your favor and working favorably, your transmit distance goes up considerably.
Ever been out on the water and hear the Coasties responding to someone in distress or your trying to tell the other boats that your into the fish and its like you’re the only one out there? Don’t feel bad or think your radio is on the fritz. If all these factors I mentioned aren’t taken into account and compensated for then your transmission range and reception range (two different animals) will not change. Some of these factors we can change, some we just have to live with.
Let’s deal with the ones we can change. One of the biggest problems I’ve seen is using the wrong size wiring. Too small a gauge and your radio is not getting the right amount of amps. Too large a gauge and you are losing amps and volts in the wire. Too long a run of wire and your losing volts and amps. Poor wire connections or corrosion in your connections, same thing. So use the right size wire and by all means keep your runs short and heat shrink all your connections. Check them often and change them as soon as you see any sign of corrosion.
There is no substitute for a really good antenna. Yeah you may save a little money now but you will be sorely disappointed in your reception and transmission. And get the highest dB rating you can. An antennas dB rating indicates the apparent increase in transmitting power due to its ability to focus energy. Antennas with high dB ratings are taller than those with low dB ratings. Most of us use an 8’ antenna that has a 6dB rating while a 9dB rating