Cell phones on the water.

[TennCain]

I go out on my boat by myself a lot and Im thinking of keeping a phone on it for emergencies. I have vhf but theres hardly anyone in the rivers here who also has one. The vhf is good for Florida but there arent many boats where I go here. <br /><br />Ive talked to some folks here and some have told me their phone dont work well on the water. Do you think its just their service or does the water do something to the radio waves?<br /><br />Thanks in advance, Gents.

 

[Seaboo2]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

I think it is the service. I know ocean vessals have a problem (running out of service area)when they go out (**** hard to put a cell tower in the middle of the ocean).<br /><br /> Personally on my boat there is a Vhf, a C.B. (alot of local marinas moniter it) and a cell phone (it's small and doesn't take much room).

 

[neumanns]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

I carry my phone on the lake and find the reception is better than on the road around the lakes. I always attributted it to less interferance trees electrical wires etc. But ultimatly I think it would boil down to cell coverage.

 

[18rabbit]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

It’s not about the water, it is about the line-of-sight (distance and obstructions). FWIW, Japan’s cell system is 2 generations ahead of us. China’s is three; their cell phones work in elevators and tunnels. China’s technology came from us but our cell system is mired in corporate profits.<br /><br />I used to live next-door to a guy that did commercial aviation electronics. I asked him how it was we could set a spaceship down on the dark side of the moon and bring everyone back safely…over 30 years ago!… but today I can’t use my cell phone on a commercial airliner without mucking up their navigation. He said it has nothing to do with onboard electronics. When you use a cell phone on ground, you ‘light-up’ 3 or 4 cells (towers). When you are in the air, you light-up 3 or 4-hundred cells! It’s an issue of the cell system’s resources.

 

[TennCain]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Thanks a lot for the replies, men.<br /><br />The line of site thing makes a lot of sence since its not too flat here--to say the least!!<br /><br />I put an 8 ft. antenna on my vhf and the reception is much improved over the 36 in.. <br /><br />Ill put the phone on the boat and just make sure I break down where there is good coverage. LOL!!!<br /><br />Thanks, guys.<br /><br />Tom

 

[neumanns]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

18rabbit...I had never heard the airline explanation but that sure makes sense. Thanks

 

[18rabbit]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Shakespeare makes marine antennas for cell phone use on boats. Never used one.<br /><br /> http://www.shakespeare-marine.com/antennas/cellant.htm#cellular

 

[kd6nem]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

An properly mounted external cell phone antenna mounted as high as reasonably possible may do wonders for cell phone coverage. Looking at the MSRP from the link 18 Rabbit provided I think I'd keep shopping, those are mighty pricey. But a good antenna is the best radio investment you can make, probably more so than the radio itself. On the other hand, many remote lakes in the mountains are going to be hard without a sat. phone which is quite outrageous for most folks. I like to carry my handheld ham radio which usually give me better coverage than cellular where I tend to go. The CB idea might be good so long as you can find someone on the other end who can hear you over the loud nitwits which seem to love CB also. I know there are some fine folks who do use CB, just that there seems to be an equal number of inconsiderate flakes out there as well. Same can at times be said of 2 meter ham band in some areas. <br />In any case mounting an antenna designed for car use requires care in at least two areas: Must have adequate ground plane if antenna requires it, and connections and parts prone to corrosion should be carefully protected. On cell phone frequencies a ground plane can be improvised a few different ways- a sheet of copper or aluminum foil, an array of horizontal wires of varying lengths, or even a pie tin. All in all a marine antenna may be easier, though not without added cost. But out in the middle of no where with an emergency- there is no substitute for something which can be counted upon to do the job.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

I take my cell out with me, and have no reception problems. <br /><br /> Usually airlines are only concerned with takeoff and landings and the use of electronics. On landing, the plane is following a signal from the ground that is keeping it on what is called a glidepath. The speed and altitude is adjusted to stay on this flight path by the pilot, but a lot of the planes can land on their own. Any use of electronics could, although highly improbable, cause a problem with this system, which would not be good. With takeoff, it is also the potential that the planes avionics could be affected in a way that could cause a crash, as takeoff is the most dangerous part of flight. If a problem developed while at altitude, it could be repaired or a solution could be found. My oldest sister is good friends with a retired 747 pilot, and he had all kinds of fun stories about engine failures, avionics failures, and the passengers never know it. He says there are a lot of problems, but unless the plane is going to crash, they will never tell you. He has made all my flights very fun, needless to say. Ignorance is a good thing in this case...

 

[jee70611]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Hi TennCain, I just noticed you're from Clinton too. Small world isn't it . Do you normally go out on the clinch? I usually go up to Norris and I've taken my phone with me and haven't had any problems. Sprint didn't work well at all for me when I had them, but Verizon hasn't given me any problems on the water. I usually have close to full signal at Norris. My dads cingular doesn't hardly work anywhere either.

 

[18rabbit]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Jasonj – as it was explained to me, the take off and landing allow the cell phone to access the greatest number of cells. At altitude the cells are beyond the range of the phone/pager so it doesn’t matter. On the ground is not an issue. As I recall, the pre-flight announcement says it is an FCC requirement, not an FAA one. I do not know but I would guess that you would need something significant to affect the onboard electronics, given there is 200-300+ lives at stake.<br /><br />My understanding is that the approach signal from the ground is actually a microwave grid (GHz) and well beyond the cell phone’s frequency (MHz). I heard that it is not unusual for trans-atlantic flts to loose an engine in-flight.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Yeah, I am quite confident that carry on electronics has little to no effect on avionics, but they still make us turn off the walkmans, laptops, and all that. I don't think it is the actual cell signal they worry about, I think it is the small microwave radiation that is emitted by the phones and other electronics. Heck, the atmosphere itself is loaded with microwave garbage, so who knows. I am not sure what bandwidth the transponders run on, I'll have to ask my boss, he has a pilots license. Obviously turning off the stuff is a precaution, but I have no problem with complying. I am addicted to living. I know that in hospitals they discourage cell use in certain wards due to potential to affect certain machines. I wouldn't mind if cell phones never existed, but they have their uses on occasion....

 

[sandollar1978]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

My cell phone works great in CA Oceans Morro Bay.<br />My service is from AT&T my phone is a Nokia 3560.

 

[TennCain]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Hey Jee !!!<br /><br />I do go on the Clinch, especially when the stripe run in the spring.<br />I like the launch under the Clinton bridge.<br />I also fish Watts Bar and go to Norris sometimes. (Id hate to admit I fish Norris because then Id have to either lie or admit how poorly I do there. That is one tough lake!!)<br />I fish Apalachicola Bay and the rivers that empty into it in Florida for a week in the spring and fall.<br />Im glad to hear you have no problem on Norris with your cell because thats where the fellows were who told me they had problems. <br />I read your profile and see you are a student. I will assume you went to Clinton High School. Did you know a mean teacher there named Mrs. Toney?<br />Shes my daughter.<br />Are you going to the get-together SBN is organizing this fall?<br /><br />Tom

 

[ahein]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Hey TennCain,<br />I fish offshore between Block Island and Montauk (20 miles or more out)and I call my wife on my cellphone all the time. I usually call her to tell her that I'm staying out a little longer because the fish are biting so well . So far I've not had a problem with either transmitting or reception. As a matter of fact, I used the cellphone to call a buddy on the water when I couldn't raise him with my VHF. I think it's just a matter of the service and location of the cell towers. Good luck.

 

[jee70611]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Tenn,<br /><br />I'm actually a student at Roane State in Oak Ridge right now and planning to transfer to UT in the Fall. I went to Anderson County for my last year in High School. We moved up here from Lake Charles, LA. My family was from here originally so we just decided to move back. When we first moved up here, we lived in Lake City for a few months and then moved to Clinton. My sister goes to Clinton now so I'll ask her if she knows your daughter. I used to use the ramp under the bridge when I had my other boat. Now I mainly just go to Norris. We mostly kneeboard and tube. As far as fishing at Norris I know what you mean. I've heard that it's bad because they introduced some other breed of fish that eats all the rest, but I'm not sure. I'm planning on going to the get-together if I can get off work. Even if it's just to stop by for a few minutes. I've never really been a big fisherman, but I've thought about getting into it. I just don't have the patience. Don't get me wrong, I like to fish, but only if I'm catching something.<br /><br />James

 

[ndemge]

Re: Cell phones on the water.

Used to work selling cell-phones....<br /><br />If you want one just for emergency use, get on ebay and buy an old bag phone. (same as installed "car phone", but in a nice package)<br /><br />These phones have 3 watt output, where handhelds only have .6 watts of power. This along with an external antena you should be good to go. <br /><br />Now, you do not have to activate this phone with any carrier. ALL cell phones can call 911 for free, and the call must be connected. Here in MO, *55 is direct to Highway patrol dispatch.<br /><br />If you get an old phone, dial 611, this will connect you to customer service for whatever system the phone is setup for, they connect this call for free so if you wanted to sign up for service, you can. This 611 test will let you know if your phone works, and you can go out in the middle of where you can't get regular service and test the thing to see if in an emergency, this will work for you, or if you need to find another alternative.<br /><br />Maybe join a local ham club that has a repeater setup so you can make phone calls from your radio.<br /><br />lots of options out there... don't go get that satelite phone quite yet.