gov/marine/) or contact the FCC Call Center at
Basic radio guidelines
You should familiarize yourself with the rules on marine radios and be aware of which rules apply to your boat. Complete guidelines for all ship and marine radio types can be found
at the US Coast Guard website under the topic Radio Info for Boaters (the direct link is http://www.navcen.uscg. gov/marcomms/boater.htm). Here are a few guidelines that
affect nearly all boaters.
•If you have a VHF radio on your boat, you must maintain a watch on channel 16 (156.800 MHz) whenever the radio is not being used to communicate. Effective from 2004, if a radio is carried, it must be turned on and set to channel 16 whenever your vessel is underway.
•If you hear a distress call, wait a few minutes to let a shore station or Coast Guard ves- sel respond. If no other station has responded after 5 minutes, you must respond to the distress call.
•Do not make false mayday or distress calls as a prank or to test your radio. (This is essen- tially like making a false
FCC Information
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the condition that this device does not cause harmful interference.
Unauthorized changes or modifications to this equipment may void compliance with the FCC Rules. Any change or modify cation must be approved in writing by West Marine.
Any changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for compli- ance could void the user’s authority to operate this device.
To maintain compliance with FCC RF exposure requirements, the radio must be used with a maximum duty cycle not exceeding 50% in typical
Lead warning
The cords on this product and/or accessories contain lead, a chemical known to the State of California to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm. Wash hands after handling.
West Marine works to reduce lead content in our PVC coated cords in our products and ac- cessories.
Antenna Selection and Installation
Your VHF580 has been designed to accommodate all of the popular marine VHF antennas. However, the selection and the installation of the antenna is the responsibility of the user or installer.
The FCC has determined that excessive radiation poses a health risk to people near radio transmitting antennas. Therefore, the antenna used with this radio should be installed using the following guidelines to ensure a suitable distance between the antenna and persons close by.
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