FAQ
General
How are radio communications in Bonny Doon structured?
Neighborhood Communication simply means neighbors with handheld radios talking to each other regarding emergencies and hazards when normal communications are unavailable. Having radios as well as practice using them, neighbors can quickly communicate local concerns with each other and pool resources during an emergency.
Ideally, multiple neighbors will be prepared with additional emergency communications gear to interact with the "outside world" during a communications outage. Such gear includes cell-phone boosters, satellite links, emergency radios, and scanners. Using Neighborhood Communication, neighbors who find out what is going on can share what they learn, and neighbors who need to reach responders in the "outside world" have a better chance of doing so.
A small number of neighbors ("hams") may have high-end amateur radio equipment and expertise that can be used to interact with multiple neighborhoods as well as with the "outside world". In an emergency, however, these neighbors may be very busy and may have little availability for Neighborhood Communication.
Each neighborhood has a volunteer coordinator who helps with planning, training, and practice exercises. But, like the hams, there is no guarantee that the volunteer coordinator will be available in an emergency.
The success of Neighborhood Communication depends not on any one person but on a resilient neighborhood, and in turn it makes the neighborhood even more resilient.
Are all the neighborhoods completely separate and on their own?
The neighborhoods are completely separate, but they are not on their own. Coordinators from different neighborhoods meet regularly to support each other and discuss progress, concerns, and best practices. During drills, some group members may be encouraged to seek contacts with nearby neighborhoods.
Is anyone in charge?
No one person is in charge. The most important decisions are made at the neighborhood level. Each neighborhood may choose to operate however it wishes, including choice of radio technology. A loose confederation of neighborhoods, represented by coordinators and amateur radio operators, discusses questions that apply across Bonny Doon, such as frequency/channel selection for maximum compatibility between neighborhoods.
How do I get started?
If you are part of a Santa Cruz County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) "Map Your Neighborhood" program or a National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) "Firewise" neighborhood group, ask your organizer. If you are not aware of being part of an organized neighborhood, contact Dawn Mackey at Dawnmackey411 at gmail dot com.
Nobody near me has organized a group. What do I do?
Please email Dawn Mackey.
My location isn't really in any neighborhood. Should I still participate?
Yes! Some neighborhood boundaries are "fuzzy" and you may be part of one without knowing it. Even if you are not located within a neighborhood, you are likely within radio range of one or more neighborhood coordinators, and one of them may have the availability to "adopt" your location. Or, your willingness to participate may persuade someone nearby to become a coordinator who had been uncertain if their help was needed. Please email Dawn Mackey and she will do her best to connect you with a radio group.
Will Neighborhood Communication let me reach friends and family outside Bonny Doon?
Personal messaging is not Neighborhood Communication's mission.
Will Neighborhood Communication keep me abreast of status during a communications outage?
Providing notices or bulletins is not Neighborhood Communication's mission. You are always welcome to inquire with your neighbors on such topics as road closures, evacuation notices, or hazards; depending on their emergency communications gear they may have answers for you, or may be willing to investigate on your behalf.
Radio Basics
What kind of radio should I get for best compatibility in Bonny Doon?
All neighborhoods other than Smith Grade and Westdale currently use Multi-Use Radio Service (MURS) radios for their neighborhood communications. For MURS radios we have provided purchase links below for the model we have standardized on which has been heavily tested and found to provide good quality for a reasonable price. It provides powerful options for engagement and compatibility with Santa Cruz County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) operations, as well as for minimizing interference from other MURS users.
If you do live in the Smith Grade or Westdale areas, a Family Radio Service (FRS) radio may be more compatible with your neighbors. Please work with your neighborhood coordinator to choose the most appropriate radio.
What MURS radio do I need to purchase?
The recommended MURS radio for Bonny Doon Neighborhood Communication is the BTECH MURS handheld radio manufactured by Baofeng. In order to get started with neighborhood communications the only thing you need to purchase is the radio; however, we are also providing links to accessories that many of our participants have found useful to get more out of their radio. Where possible we have provided links to purchase on Amazon as well as directly from the manufacturer.
BTECH MURS Two-Way Radio - Again, this is the only thing you need to purchase.
Spare Battery - Same capacity that comes with your radio.
Amazon Link Manufacturer Link (different color options available here!)
Large Capacity Spare Battery - Twice the capacity of the battery that comes with your radio.
AAA Battery Backup - Allows you to power your radio using common AAA batteries.
12V Battery Eliminator - Power your radio in your car.
USB Adapter - Convert your radio's charger to USB.
Speaker Microphone - Allows you to clip your radio to your belt or elsewhere while communicating with ease.
Replacement Antenna - Just in case you break yours, you don't need to buy a new radio!
Improved Antenna* - This might help you get better reception and be better heard should you have issues where you live.
*A quick note on antennas while you're here... The only antenna we recommend neighborhood participants use is the stock antenna that came with your radio. It works rather well for the MURS frequencies we use. We are providing the improved antenna link above due to the terrain in Bonny Doon, which may make MURS communication difficult for some users. This antenna is specifically designed for MURS frequencies and has been proven to work. You may see some folks with larger antennas (some of them quite large) attached to their MURS radios, but as those were not designed for MURS frequencies the incompatibility they introduce is probably negating any improvements that the length of the antenna provides.
Do I need to buy a spare battery or alternate charging equipment?
In emergencies, power may be out for several days. You must be able to recharge or replace batteries in all your emergency equipment, including your radio.
If you do not have a generator or other source of line power, then you will need alternate charging equipment for your radio. Modern alternative power backups often provide USB charging capability, but the BTECH radios need special gear to charge from USB. For the MURS-V1, you need a USB adapter for your charging cradle. For the MURS-V2, you need a cable that mates with the USB-C port on the radio's battery. This gear does not come with the radios and must be purchased separately.
If you expect to be using the radio a great deal and cannot afford recharging downtime, you can also procure one or more spare batteries for the BTECH MURS radio. You still need recharging capability, however, as the power failure may last longer than your spares.
Please be careful when charging equipment using the 12V cigarette lighter in your car. If you charge with the car in accessory mode, it will deplete the car battery and the car may no longer start. If you charge with the car running, it will use up gas that you may need for emergency travel.
Can I use any radio that supports MURS frequencies? What if I already have a different brand or model?
Some other radio brands and models support MURS frequencies. Many of them, however, do so in a way that is less fully featured and/or less compliant with Bonny Doon's needs. There is no guarantee another brand or model will be properly compatible with the community, even if the specifications appear to be similar. Further, if one discovers one's radio is not working as expected and one needs support, it will be harder for neighbors and volunteers to help, since they will be primarily familiar with the MURS-V1.
Can I use a marine VHF radio?
No. The frequencies are incompatible, and in any event it is illegal to use a marine VHF radio for shore-to-shore communication.
Do I need to acquire anything else besides the radio?
No. The radio comes complete with an antenna and a battery charger.
I bought a radio, but the controls are unfamiliar and surprisingly complex.
Many neighborhood coordinators have tools that can program your radio quickly with the the community standard preset assignments and feature configuration. Once your radio is programmed, all you have to do is turn it on, turn up the volume, and when you want to talk, push the talk button.
I'm worried I won't have the range to reach all my neighbors.
With good line-of-sight in open country, the stock handheld radios can manage ranges of one to two miles, sometimes more. Your range will almost surely be adequate to reach everyone in your neighborhood, but elevation, terrain, and being indoors or outdoors can profoundly affect signal strength. Begin by evaluating your radio's performance during exercises. If some of your neighbors are not readable, or they can't read you, try stepping outside! Failing that, seek a little elevation gain, such as going out on a second-story deck. If neither of these steps helps or is practical, talk to your neighborhood coordinator.
Are we using any radio protocols?
MURS being a short-range system, we can afford to be informal in our protocols. Still, establishing good habits will help, especially in an emergency. At minimum:
Be brief and minimize transmit time. Long transmissions keep anyone else from speaking and drain your battery.
When transmitting, pause very briefly after you key your transmitter before you say anything.
When calling, begin by saying the name of the person you want to talk to, then say your own name.
When answering, say your name.
If you keep your transmissions short, it will be obvious to others when each transmission is complete. You need not say "over" at the end of every transmission, but it's OK if you do.
When you believe you have completed your part of a conversation, say one of the following at the end of your last transmission:
"Out" (sometimes people say "clear" instead to emphasize that they have no further need for the channel).
"Standing by" (sometimes people say "monitoring") if you will keep the radio close at hand to respond quickly to further contacts.
Radio professionals follow more elaborate protocols. Anyone who wants to learn those protocols is welcome to use them! But these basics are enough for our purposes.
Can you give an example of a radio conversation?
Below is a hypothetical conversation between WALTER and MABEL, where WALTER wants to check that his radio is working and believes MABEL may be standing by her radio. This is an example of how professionals might interact.
WALTER: Mabel, Mabel, this is Walter, MURS one-dash-one. I'd like a radio check.
MABEL: Walter, Mabel. I have you loud and clear. How do you have me?
WALTER: I have you the same. Nothing further. Walter clear.
MABEL: Mabel standing by, MURS one-dash-one.
Walter and Mabel speak quickly and efficiently. They let any listeners know who is talking and when the channel is available for others.
In this example, the parties also announce what channel they are calling on and finished with ("MURS 1 dash 1"). This helps those listening for activity on several channels to know which channel has the conversation. People who monitor multiple radio channels typically go about other tasks while they listen and do not watch their radio display, so it helps them respond efficiently when the channel is identified in the voice conversation.
Can the BTECH MURS-V1 monitor more than one channel at a time?
Yes, the "dual watch" (or "TDR") feature can monitor two channels simultaneously. This is an advanced capability. Enabling it could lead to confusion if you're not up to speed with the radio.
TDR is enabled/disabled using Menu 7. If you do enable this feature, it may also be useful to enable tone-at-end-of-reception ("A/B-BP") for the alternate ('B') channel using Menu 42 and selecting 'B' (or select 'OFF' to disable).
The BTECH MURS-V1 also has a scan feature that can monitor all fifteen presets for activity by cycling rapidly through them, one at a time, checking for signal. This, too, is an advanced capability. You might pick up irrelevant conversations from other neighborhoods or from unrelated MURS users, and it could leave your radio tuned to a different preset when you deactivate it. To activate scan, press and hold the *SCAN key for about two seconds.
What's the battery life of the standard 1800 mAH battery?
Battery life depends on how the radio is used. The more transmitting you do, the faster the battery will deplete. It should last for a few hours of continuous conversational use, or several days in standby.
As emergency equipment, the radio should be recharged once the display shows its battery level at two bars or less; however, once it is recharged, do not leave it charging indefinitely or battery damage may result.
Operations
What channel should I use?
Use the radio preset ("channel") that's been adopted by your neighborhood. This is the preset your neighbors and neighborhood coordinator will use for drills and emergencies. Different neighborhoods use different presets, so it's important to use the correct one for you. Your coordinator can tell you the proper preset, and can help you configure your radio so it defaults to that preset without your having to select it.
If you are asked to change the channel on your radio for some reason, this image should aid you in doing so.
What channels does Bonny Doon use? What is their coverage?
Bonny Doon has adopted all fifteen BTECH MURS-V1 preset ("channel") assignments used by Santa Cruz County CERT. These assignments provide ten presets for general use, and another five presets primarily for monitoring. Each neighborhood has chosen – in consultation with other neighborhoods to limit interference – one of the ten general-use presets.
Once I have my radio and I'm part of a group, what will I do?
Provide the group coordinator with your contact information, so you can receive alerts about practice and exercises.
Ask the group coordinator to verify that your radio is programmed properly and using the correct preset(s).
When group exercises take place, participate and practice!
Keep your radio close to full charge (but don't leave it charging all the time as that could damage the battery).
Am I supposed to listen to the radio all the time? If not, when should I listen?
You won't be expected to have the radio on all the time! But different neighborhoods may have different guidelines. For example, your coordinator might ask neighbors to keep their radios on, including overnight, while red flag warnings or advisories are in effect. Another potential guideline would be to turn the radio on if there are active fires nearby or if a strong earthquake is felt. Most likely the minimum guideline would be to turn the radio on if the power goes out and/or the phones stop working, but this too may vary from group to group. Work with your coordinator to clarify your neighborhood's check-in protocols.
How will this actually help in an emergency? What's an example scenario?
If the phones are working, call 911 to report any emergency before you do anything else! Once you have done that, or if the phones are not working, you can alert your coordinator and neighborhood to an emergency situation at your location; for example, if there are wires down in front of your house, or you need assistance with a serious injury. You can also listen to see if anyone else in your neighborhood needs help.
Can my family and neighbors and I use the radio informally, outside of drills and emergencies?
Yes! That's what radios are for, and the more familiarity and comfort you have with the radio the better. However, please remember that radio bandwidth is a public and limited resource. This means not only that you could interfere with others trying to use the channel, but also that any listening friends and strangers within 1-2 miles, maybe more, will hear everything you say. For these reasons, children should not be allowed to operate the radio without close supervision. However, it may be valuable to teach children to call for help on the radio, provided they've already tried the phones.
Radio Technology
What exactly is MURS?
MURS stands for the Multi-Use Radio Service, established in the fall of 2000 by the US Federal Communications Commission to cover a communications band with five unique frequencies between 151.8 and 154.6 MHz. These frequencies were formerly dedicated to industrial/business service, but with the creation of MURS they became available for unlicensed personal use as well.
Why MURS and not FRS?
The Family Radio Service (FRS) is also a fine choice for this application, and some neighborhoods have chosen to use FRS rather than MURS. MURS has longer range than FRS and was thought to be more generally appropriate, given that some Bonny Doon neighborhoods are larger or include significant terrain. Please note that FRS and MURS radios are completely incompatible with each other; one must choose one or the other.
Why MURS and not CB?
The Citizen's Band Radio Service (CBRS or CB) uses much lower radio frequencies than MURS or FRS, and, as a result, supports significantly longer ranges. CB was thought to be too public and too prone to interference for use by local neighborhoods to communicate short distances.
Why MURS and not GMRS?
The General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) requires operators to be licensed. It was thought this barrier would dramatically reduce the number of neighbors interested in participating.
Is a "channel" a MURS frequency? But there are only five MURS frequencies, so there are only five MURS channels?
There are indeed only five MURS frequencies. Unfortunately, in radio applications the word "channel" can mean different things. Specifically, it can mean both a device selector setting and a unique communication band.
For commercial broadcasts, there is no problem, as these are one and the same. When you tune your TV to a given channel (device selector setting) it shows you the associated broadcast (unique communication band).
This is not necessarily true, however, for modern personal and business radios. As with their commercial cousins, these radios provide multiple selector settings that manufacturers call "channels". But critically, these "channels" are user-configurable with many options besides frequency that can differ from one "channel" to the next. In fact, it is possible that all available "channels" on a given radio may be configured to use the exact same frequency! Because of this confusion, it is sometimes better to call user-configurable radio selectors "presets" instead of "channels", despite manufacturer nomenclature.
With the terminology clarified, we can say the BTECH MURS-V1 supports 15 presets that offer the five MURS frequencies combined with a variety of different squelch tones or squelch codes.
I know something about radio, what exactly are the "channel" assignments?
The Santa Cruz County CERT preset ("channel") assignments for the BTECH MURS-V1 are grouped into three "banks". Each "bank" comprises all five MURS frequencies combined with a squelch tone/code setup specific to that bank. These preset assignments are automatically loaded into the radio when it is programmed for Bonny Doon operations.
There should be no need to enter these configurations manually. The information is presented in case there is an emergency and all one has available is an unprogrammed radio.
MURS frequency assignments:
MURS 1: 151.820 MHz
MURS 2: 151.880 MHz
MURS 3: 151.940 MHz
MURS 4: 154.570 MHz (known as "Blue Dot" before MURS)
MURS 5: 154.600 MHz (known as "Green Dot" before MURS)
Squelch tone/code assignments:
Bank 1 presets (1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4, and 1-5) send and require the 94.8-Hz squelch tone (CTCSS, aka "Private Line" or PL).
Bank 2 presets (2-1, 2-2, 2-3, 2-4, and 2-5) send and require the D073N squelch code (DCS).
Bank 3 presets (3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 3-4, and 3-5) send, but do not require, the 94.8-Hz squelch tone used by Bank 1.
Because Bank 3 presets require no squelch tone or code, they are appropriate for monitoring a given MURS frequency for all traffic, but they are not suitable for intra-neighborhood use.