AIS settings ?

[baz]

Subject: AIS settings ?

So I'm new to AIS and have just got my new AIS 300 installed and working.

There are various AIS settings that can be made on the Chart Plotter and one that interests me is the AIS Alarm distance. There are choices for AIS target distances for an alarm. What distance(s) do other people with AIS setup for alarms ? For example... Is 500 feet to little ? Is 2500 feet to much ? I know 2 nm is probably asking for too many alarms to go off, right ?

Thanks for any insights/advise on this. 🙂

 

[CAPTCRUNCH]

I can confirm that too many alarms leads to silencing/ignoring them too casually and possibly missing an important one. So, for me it's a question of context and closing speed. 2500' finds too many targets when I'm passing Annapolis harbor and the Naval Academy docks, but 1 nm might be good out in the Bay near the ship channel. Dismissing alarms without identifying the target is a bad habit to fall into, as I was reminded a few weeks ago when a tug/barge "suddenly" emerged from a lock on the Champlain Canal long after I had decided to silence the alarm because I didn't see anything.

 

[knotflying]

I keep mine at 1nm. And quite frankly when I am traveling in non-critical areas where I can see and avoid, I turn the AIS off completely.

 

[Lenny and Louise]

We usually navigate the Columbia River (including the Willamette R. and Multnomah C.) These waterways are fairly narrow, with a good number of ships, tugs, and yachts tied on both banks and often several merchant vessels anchored or moored mid stream. Our choice is to turn the audible alarm off or just turn on a constant whistle when we start the engine 😀 We do keep an eye on the screen for targets that turn red suddenly or for red contacts that get underway.

 

[baz]

All good advice and info. Thanks very much for responding. 🙂