Ham Radio vs CB for disaster communication

[caliburn]

Depending on the disaster, you will need electricity for both...

If there's no electricity from the outlets, I got a small solar charger it should work ok charging batteries for a handheld. Might take a while to charge but still doable.

 

[bbbass]

No magic electrons needed for two tin cans and a very very long string.

Ever see the sound powered comms on a ship of or sub???

 

[jordanmills]

Why not do all three?
I've got my HAM license and I talk on repeaters and DMR
There is a linked repeater network that runs from Albany up thru DFW and into Oklahoma thats handy to use
Me and my son can talk with him being in Ft Worth and me being out near Abilene

The inexpensive Baeofangs can talk on the GMRS frequencies and HAM 2M/440 bands.

Choose a band that others are likely to be on after a disaster
I'm not sure who even talks on CB anymore besides off roaders and a few old school truckers

Linked through the internet. Which isn't going to be doing too well if lots of infrastructure dies.

 

[jordanmills]

It is technically illegal To do FRS on a handheld like a yaesu..
But in a disaster nobody would care

In a disaster, where the communication is related to preservation of life or property, all rules except not intentionally interfering with other communications are explicitly suspended. The problem is that you need to know your gear and practice with it before the emergency so you know how to use it in a pinch. But generally as long as you're not being a total jackass and blocking other people, nobody will notice or care if you break part 97 or part 15 and use a non-part-approved device for GMRS or FRS.

 

[jordanmills]

I have a little of both. Anyone around Houston feel like getting together and practicing?

 

[no2gates]

CB and GMRS are great for local comms, but for long distance, nothing will compare to a HF ham radio rig,
With my 2m ham radio, and a repeater, I can reach about 75 miles, but with my HF rig, I have communicated with every continent except Antarctica.

 

[vmax]

Linked through the internet. Which isn't going to be doing too well if lots of infrastructure dies.

The NCTC repeaters are connected through RF
Although they do have an Echolink node that is online most of the time that is separate from the repeater connections

Not sure how many have green power though

Simplex will be the only sure way if there is no grid power

NCTC has a simplex net every week on Friday evenings to test the reach and relay abilities to get signals into Net Control
It's a good way to practice and test equipment and relay abilities

 

[jordanmills]

The NCTC repeaters are connected through RF
Although they do have an Echolink node that is online most of the time that is separate from the repeater connections

Not sure how many have green power though

Simplex will be the only sure way if there is no grid power

NCTC has a simplex net every week on Friday evenings to test the reach and relay abilities to get signals into Net Control
It's a good way to practice and test equipment and relay abilities

That is great. Most repeater systems I've seen/used just connect to each other over the internet though. NCTC is too far for me to each though.

 

[SURVIVOR619]

I have a little of both. Anyone around Houston feel like getting together and practicing?

Wish I was closer and I'd holler, literally and figuratively haha. I just purchased a GMRS radio for me and my buddy got one too but we're total noobs. Reading a lot, taking notes, enjoying Notarubicon's videos (and some others) and will be getting my GMRS license so I can practice with my buddy.

We're both keeping these in our get home bags, which are faraday bags and include a solar charger/battery, JIC.

 

[lonestardiver]

Keep the batteries exercised otherwise you may find them dead when you need them. Be sure and have alternate power cables to run off your vehicle if needed.

If running in your vehicle, use an external antenna. A good UHF mag mount will do wonders. The ability to have a small directional antenna at your house will improve range during SHTF situations. They are not hard to build and will work with a cheap TV antenna rotator.

Get used to listening and working weak signals. Otherwise when things go bad you likely wont hear anything to respond to.

For CB, I’d ensure you have a SSB (Single Side Band) CB radio. You have more options and SSB allows for 12 watts instead of just 5 watts for AM.

Use proper length antennas where possible.

 

[jordanmills]

Wish I was closer and I'd holler, literally and figuratively haha. I just purchased a GMRS radio for me and my buddy got one too but we're total noobs. Reading a lot, taking notes, enjoying Notarubicon's videos (and some others) and will be getting my GMRS license so I can practice with my buddy.

We're both keeping these in our get home bags, which are faraday bags and include a solar charger/battery, JIC.

How close are you? You can reach pretty far (legally!) if you're resourceful.

 

[lonestardiver]

How close are you? You can reach pretty far (legally!) if you're resourceful.

Altitude and line of sight make a huge difference on distance unless tropospheric ducting or conditions are in play( interject common CB term of skip here). This is from reflection of the radio signal between two points from the ionosphere. It varies based on the time of day and the interaction of the sun. Due to this, depending on the time of day, different HF bands are more usable.

Certain amateur radio bands such as 6m are not as frequently open, but when they are you can talk all over the US or even farther on minimal transmit power.

 

[SURVIVOR619]

How close are you? You can reach pretty far (legally!) if you're resourceful.

I live southwest of Fort Worth. Once I get my wits about repeaters, perhaps there's an opportunity to chat. Would be cool!

 

[popper]

In a disaster where normal communication means are disabled, doubt that any radio will be of use. Uprising? Doubt I would give my location or desire to talk to somebody. Natural event, anybody around to help? Atomic blast - forget about it.

 

[caliburn]

In a disaster where normal communication means are disabled, doubt that any radio will be of use. Uprising? Doubt I would give my location or desire to talk to somebody. Natural event, anybody around to help? Atomic blast - forget about it.

Well, in disasters, I wouldn't worry about communications to mark myself as safe. I'd be more interested in getting emergency services to me or my neighborhood. And a lot of ham radio operators are either part of ARES or MARS, so they cooperate with disaster communication. I would guess that CB or even GMRS or FRS could do something similar.

And while cell towers might be out, no internet, no telephone, but ham radio repeaters might still be running because many have a generator backup and usually could be fixed faster than a cell tower.

Other issues you stated like uprising or nuclear, aka mad-max stuff, I really wouldn't know. but it would be nice to be able to hear someone give us the heads up if cartels amassed an army and are headed into town or to warn people that the red coats are coming, even if it gave away my position.

I'll be able to buy a new battery for my radio in July, so I'll be back on air soon and see what we can do communication wise.

 

[lonestardiver]

Different counties have different programs for ham radio operators to integrate and provide communications.

Tarrant County and Dallas County for example have a RACES program. Radio Amateur Civil Emergancy Service. We train for disaster. Communications and are storm spotters for the National Weather Service. Spotters, not chasers. We provide the ground truth as to what storms are doing and what the storm clouds are doing. Things they can't see on radar. They correlate what we see with radar data to get warnings out.

We had a big part with the Columbia shuttle recovery. I'll type that out later.



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[SURVIVOR619]

Hey @lonestardiver, is RACES only for ham operators?

 

[lonestardiver]

Hey @lonestardiver, is RACES only for ham operators?

Yes

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[lonestardiver]

I pick up CB from both coasts and Mexico... I'm not going to say whether and how far I reach out, but my doublet is a pretty good antenna.

The biggest problem I see with CB is that too many people on it are just loud mouths and idiots; something you rarely encounter on ham bands.

Unless you are on 80m and 160m.

Many of the other bands have nets, some ragchew on a scheduled basis, then there are the DX chasers especially if there is a band opening to a country you haven't worked before.

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[lonestardiver]

Even ARES groups require you to be a licensed ham.

A technicians license is easy to obtain after passing a test.

You'll learn a lot more about repeaters and radio operation not to mention some basic theory with the opportunities to dig deeper if you want.

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