lost_in_translation
Newbie
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2017
- Messages
- 2
Hi Everyone. I am "newb" in the Ham world and I apologize in advance if the questions have been answered in the past or is outright impossible to answer. Please bear with my long scenario.
I live in Southern California (Orange County), and due to recent natural disasters occurring in the east coast and around the world, I realized that in case of an earthquake occurring in the afternoon, I will be unable to communicate with my wife (likely at work) and children (likely at school or home) when I am at work if the cell phone towers are damaged as a result of the quake or if there is too much traffic signals for the cell tower to handle. For this type of situation, I would like to be able to communicate with my wife and my children and vice versa.
We are prepared to take the technical license exam in order to be able to communicate at 2m and 70cm. Also, the communication will be via simplex communication, in case any repeaters around my vicinity are not working.
Now for the questions.
1. If I purchase three 5 watt HT ham radios with after market antennas, would I be able to communicate with my wife (4 miles north of me) and children (5 miles southeast of me) via simplex communication? The elevation is around 100-200 feet above sea level between us and populated with buildings.
2. Will my wife be able to communicate with my children (8 miles apart), via simplex communication. Same terrain.
3. Would purchasing three 10 watt HT ham radios with after market antennas make a difference?
4. If any of the above is possible, which 5 or 10 watt HT ham radios with after market antennas should I purchase. Please note that I will be only using the equipment for the above scenario, so my budget is less than $200.
5. If it is impossible for any HT ham radios to have an actual range of 5-8 miles in an urban city, such as mine, are there any other alternatives? Mobile ham? At the end of the day, I would like to be able to reach my family after an earthquake to make sure they are alright.
I appreciate your help.
I live in Southern California (Orange County), and due to recent natural disasters occurring in the east coast and around the world, I realized that in case of an earthquake occurring in the afternoon, I will be unable to communicate with my wife (likely at work) and children (likely at school or home) when I am at work if the cell phone towers are damaged as a result of the quake or if there is too much traffic signals for the cell tower to handle. For this type of situation, I would like to be able to communicate with my wife and my children and vice versa.
We are prepared to take the technical license exam in order to be able to communicate at 2m and 70cm. Also, the communication will be via simplex communication, in case any repeaters around my vicinity are not working.
Now for the questions.
1. If I purchase three 5 watt HT ham radios with after market antennas, would I be able to communicate with my wife (4 miles north of me) and children (5 miles southeast of me) via simplex communication? The elevation is around 100-200 feet above sea level between us and populated with buildings.
2. Will my wife be able to communicate with my children (8 miles apart), via simplex communication. Same terrain.
3. Would purchasing three 10 watt HT ham radios with after market antennas make a difference?
4. If any of the above is possible, which 5 or 10 watt HT ham radios with after market antennas should I purchase. Please note that I will be only using the equipment for the above scenario, so my budget is less than $200.
5. If it is impossible for any HT ham radios to have an actual range of 5-8 miles in an urban city, such as mine, are there any other alternatives? Mobile ham? At the end of the day, I would like to be able to reach my family after an earthquake to make sure they are alright.
I appreciate your help.