Do I need Navtex?

tudorsailor

tudorsailor

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At present I sail around Mallorca and am moving to Sardinia. Apart from the 200 mile trip from Mallorca to Sardinia I only do coastal sailing. In Mallorca I can get internet weather forecasts, and the Palma english forecast. I have no idea whether the Italians do an english forecast for Sardinia

Should I get a navtex that I can connect to the computer? What is the navtex weather info like for the western med?

Thanks

Tudorsailor
 
Do you need Navtex ? - probably not but its nice to have. I would however question the reliance on linking one to a computer. We have a "stand alone" Navtex which is very useful and does not rely on any other equipment.

We sail in Brittany so can't comment about reception in the Med. However, like yourself, we get weather reports from marinas or the internet when we can get wifi connection but when we are at sea, my French is not good enough to understand fully the weather forecasts on the radio so it is good to have the Navtex then.

I'm sure others will disagree but it works for us.

Hope this helps.
 
Well you don't need one but the more info you can factor into your pasage planning the better informed it will be. In your position I would use the money for something you'd get more use or pleasure out of...
 
One of the disadvantages of Navtex is that the transmissions arrive on a schedule, hours apart.

One of the advantages of a dedicated Navtex receiver, on the other hand, is that they have a very low current drain. Mine just gets left on all the time. Often, you'll get back to the boat to find a forecast waiting for you.

Generally you'll find that in the Med the Navtex forecasts are less useful than in, say, UK waters, since there are so many localised diurnal and macro weather effects. However, it should pick up that big low due in the Gulf of Lyons, and weather systems generally which might lead to a Mistral or Transmontana.
 
On VHF Channel 68 there is a continuous meteo service provided by Italy. It alternates between Italian and English and is delivered at dictation speed. It is a computer generated 'Metal Mickey' kind of voice but I find it quite easy to understand. It follows a set sequence for the various areas.

If you have internet there is also a very good site based in Toscana that you might find useful:

http://www.lamma.rete.toscana.it/ww3/index.html

Select the area of interest from the box on the right-hand side of the screen, in your case, 'Sardegna'.
 
PuffTheMagicDragon said:
On VHF Channel 68 there is a continuous meteo service provided by Italy. It alternates between Italian and English and is delivered at dictation speed. It is a computer generated 'Metal Mickey' kind of voice but I find it quite easy to understand. It follows a set sequence for the various areas.

.
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Yes, and why can't we have a similar set-up in the UK? (Maybe not in Italian, though).
 
NormanS said:
Yes, and why can't we have a similar set-up in the UK? (Maybe not in Italian, though).
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A very valid question, which I am not in a position to answer as I am not from the UK.

It should be quite easy to set up because the data is being generated anyway, already paid for by your taxes. Transferring the written forecast into audio format is a matter of software. For example, in Italy this is provided for free to blind persons for installation on their computers and mobile phones (i.e., Text messages become audio).
 
The best weather forecast service has to be the Dutch VHF one. Each area of the country by turn with 24 and 72 hour forecasts, all in a set pattern, easy to follow and delivered in a calm authoritative voice. You gotta love those organised Dutchies.
 
There are benefits of linking it in to a computer:
- all the benefits of viewing, sorting and filtering the data on a large screen
- if you are using a PC for navigation in any case, you can save space at the chart table by using one of the NAVTEX engines, so no display is needed (look at www.pcnavtex.com for this)
- if you have an SSB radio, this can receive NAVTEX and software on the C such as Mscan or Bonito will decode and diosplay it (as well as weatherfax etc)
 
The Italian VHF forecasts, both the scheduled and the Channel 68, are comprehensive, reasonably accurate and in Italian followed by English. They cover a wide area, most of the Mediterranean in fact. I first picked it up crossing from Barcelona to Mallorca, so you should be able to make your own assessment before setting off.

The Navtex transmission contains exactly the same words but only covers Italian coastal waters, not all that the VHF does.

The big advantage of the Navtex is that it is always on and will pick up the forecast every time. The VHF one is very long and it is easy to let your attention wander while following first the Italian, then the English. Next thing you know you have missed the area you are waiting for and have to listen all over again. Although, it doesn't take long before you can mostly understand the Italian, so only needing to concentrate for half the length of time. Navtex will also pick up the French forecast, which you may not receive on VHF in Sardinia. I find this the best for giving advance warning of mistrals, sometimes five days ahead, whereas the Italians give only a 48 hr forecast.
 
vyv_cox said:
.......The VHF one is very long and it is easy to let your attention wander while following first the Italian, then the English. Next thing you know you have missed the area you are waiting for and have to listen all over again. Although, it doesn't take long before you can mostly understand the Italian,
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Thanks for this. In Mallorca I have got used to recording the weather transmission on my mobile so I can listen again if I did not understand part of it. I assume I should be able to pick up the French spoken forecast when in northern Sardinia?

Tudorsailor
 
Navtex works; computers on the other hand . . .

Navtex info can be very handy not only for weather - but I would not reccommend connecting it to a computer unless you are tied up and connected to shore power. I use a Furuno dual band set and it just sits there and works, I like it because the text is big and easy to read. Previously I had the NASA unit and found it difficult to read but both use next to no power when compared to a computer, both are built for the marine environment.
 
tudorsailor said:
Thanks for this. In Mallorca I have got used to recording the weather transmission on my mobile so I can listen again if I did not understand part of it. I assume I should be able to pick up the French spoken forecast when in northern Sardinia?

Tudorsailor
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Yes, there is a transmitter on Corsica. Only in French though, whereas the Navtex is in English. I seem to remember that reception was a bit patchy, but as we circumnavigated Sardinia I'm not sure where we couldn't hear the French one.

Agree with Marsupial, switching my Nasa Navtex on and off barely registers on the ammeter, 0.1 A at most. Whereas the computer takes a couple of amps or more.
 
We just have an old NASA display Navtex (on RG when we bought her), which is a little difficult to read due to crappy eyesight as much as anything, but doesn't print and uses virtually no power. You can scroll back for the previous forecast if you want, and we do actually refer to it quite often. The Ch 68 fore casts, as said, are more comprehensive but run on a bit.

So it might be worth shopping around for a an old cheapy, if only for the very low current impact.
 
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