West Marine VHF255 User manual

Owner’s Manual
Guide d’utilisation
Model / Modèle 12019113
VHF255
A
VHF255
Floating Dual Band
Two-Way Marine Radio
Radio maritime bidirectionnelle
à deux bandes

Making a Distress Call
Speak slowly - clearly - calmly.
For future reference, write your boat’s name & call sign here:
1. Make sure your radio is on.
2. On the radio, press the 16/9-Tri button to switch to Channel 16 (156.8
MHz). (If the corner of the display does not show 16, press the 16/9-
Tri button again until it does.)
3. Press the push to talk button on the microphone and say: “MAYDAY
-- MAYDAY -- MAYDAY.”
4. Say “THIS IS
{name of your boat (three times) and call sign/boat
registration number (once)}.
”
5. Say “MAYDAY
{name or call sign of your boat}. ”
6. Tell where you are: (what navigational aids or landmarks are near, or
read the latitude and longitude from your GPS).
7. State the nature of your distress, (e.g. are you sinking, medical
emergency, man overboard, on re, adrift, etc.)
8. State the type of assistance you need (medical, towing, pumps, etc.).
9. Give number of persons aboard and conditions of any injured
persons.
10. Estimate present seaworthiness of your ship (e.g. how immediate is
the danger due to ooding or re or proximity to shore).
11. Briey describe your ship, giving the ship name (e.g. “Blue Duck is a
32 foot cabin cruiser, white hull, blue deck house”).
12. Say: “I WILL BE LISTENING ON CHANNEL 16.”
13. End message by saying “THIS IS
{name or call sign of your boat} ,
OVER.”
14. Release the push to talk button and listen.
If you do not get an answer after 30 seconds, repeat your call,
beginning at step 3, above.

Faire un appel de détresse
Faire un appel de détresse vocal
Parlez lentement – clairement – calmement.
Pour toute référence ultérieure, transcrivez ci-dessous le nom et l’indicatif
d’appel de votre bateau :
1. Vériez si votre radio est en marche.
2. Appuyez sur la touche 16/9-Tri de la radio an de commuter au canal
16 (156,8 MHz). (Si le canal 16 n’apparaît pas à l’afchage, appuyez de
nouveau sur la touche 16/9-Tri jusqu’à ce qu’il soit afché.)
3. Appuyez sur le bouton de microphone push to talk et dites :“MAYDAY
- MAYDAY – MAYDAY”.
4. Donnez l’identité de votre navire en disant : “ICI {nom de votre bateau
(trois fois) ou indicatif d’appel et le numéro d’identication de votre
bateau (une fois)}”.
5. Dites “MAYDAY {nom ou indicatif d’appel de votre bateau} une fois”.
6. Donnez votre position : (quels sont les points de repère ou aides à la
navigation près de vous ou lisez les coordonnées de longitude et de
latitude apparaissant sur votre dispositif GPS).
7. Révélez la nature de votre détresse (par exemple, nous sommes en
train de couler, urgence médicale, un homme à la mer, un incendie,
nous sommes à la dérive, etc.
8. Révélez la nature de l’assistance désirée (médicale, remorquage,
essence, etc.)
9. Donnez le nombre de personnes à bord et les conditions des blessés, s’il y en a.
10. Donnez la condition de navigabilité actuelle de votre navire, tel que le
degré de l’urgence par rapport à l’inondation, à l’incendie ou à votre
proximité de la côte.
11. Donnez une brève description de votre navire en donnant le nom du
bateau (par exemple, “Blue Duck est un yacht de croisière de 32 pieds,
avec une coque blanche et un roufe bleu.”).
12. Dites : “JE VAIS ÉCOUTER SUR LE CANAL 16”.
13. Terminez le message en disant “ICI {nom ou indicatif d’appel de votre
bateau}, À VOUS”.
14. Relâchez le bouton push to talk du microphone et écoutez.
Si vous n’obtenez pas de réponse après 30 secondes, répétez l’appel
encommençant à l’étape 3 ci-dessus.

Table of Contents
Faire un appel de détresse vocal iii
Introduction..............................E-1
Features ................................... E-1
Getting Started.........................E-3
What’s Included........................ E-3
Parts of the VHF255................. E-4
Front view..................................E-4
Back view..................................E-4
Charger .....................................E-6
Using the Menus....................... E-6
Using Your Radio (General
Operation) ............................ E-6
Changing the Volume ...............E-6
Setting the Squelch Level .........E-7
Changing the Channel ..............E-7
Contrast.....................................E-8
Lamp adjust...............................E-8
Turning the Key Beep
On and Off ............................E-9
Using the external
speaker/mic jack ..................E-9
How It Works..........................E-10
Normal mode operation...........E-11
Normal mode with
Weather Alert Watch ...........E-12
Normal mode with Triple
Watch or Dual Watch ..........E-12
Normal mode with
Quad Watch ........................E-13
Scan mode operation ............. E-13
Using the radio in
scan mode .........................E-14
Scan mode with Weather
Alert Watch..........................E-14
Scan mode with Triple
Watch or Dual Watch ..........E-15
Both Weather Alert and Triple/
Dual Watch in scan mode ...E-15
Weather mode........................ E-15
Using the radio in
weather mode .....................E-16
Weather mode with
Weather Alert Watch ...........E-16
Weather mode with Triple
Watch or Dual Watch ..........E-16
Using the Marine VHF
Band.....................................E-17
Making a Transmission........... E-19
Boosting the transmission
power ..................................E-19
Setting the UIC Channel
Mode .................................. E-20
Using the Strobe SOS Light ... E-20
Using the FRS/GMRS Band ..E-21
GMRS License ....................... E-21
FRS/GMRS Band Features ... E-21
Reading the FRS/GMRS
band screen........................ E-22
FRS/GMRS band
menu options ......................E-22
Setting CTCSS/DCS
privacy codes......................E-22
Setting Up the Hardware.......E-25
Installing the Battery............... E-25
Making a Distress
Call ..............(inside front cover)

Using the Alkaline Battery
Case................................... E-25
Mounting the Charger............. E-27
Charging the Battery............... E-27
Important notes on
charging the battery............ E-28
Attaching the Belt Clip ............ E-28
Maintenance and
Troubleshooting..................E-30
Common Questions................ E-30
Specications ........................E-32
Regulations and Safety
Warnings..............................E-43
Three Year Limited
Warranty Statement............E-46

E-1
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Introduction
Features
Your radio provides the following key features:
Submersible design
Complies with oating JIS8/IPX8 water-resistant
standards, which means the radio can be submerged in
1.5 meters of water for 30 minutes without damage.
The radio will only meet this rating if fully assembled
and all rubber seals and sealing plugs are well
maintained and correctly tted. This means that the
speaker microphone is attached or the sealing plug is
tted, and the battery pack (or case) and antenna are
attached and securely fastened.
After your radio is submerged in water, you might
notice that the sound is distorted. This is because
there is still water remaining in and around the speaker
and microphone. Just shake the radio to clear excess
water, and the sound will return to normal.
If your radio is exposed to salt water, clean it
thoroughly with fresh water.
The charging equipment is not waterproof.
Memory scan mode
Lets you save channels to memory and monitor them in
quick succession.

E-2 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Transmitter power level select
Lets you boost the transmitter power from 1 Watt to 2.5 or
5 Watts for added transmission distance.
Battery level icons and low battery alert
Dual, Triple and Quad Watch operation
These different watch modes let you monitor up to two
Coast Guard Distress/Hailing channels and one weather
channel along with one regular marine channel.
All marine VHF channels for the U.S., Canada, and
international waters
FRS/GMRS radio modes
Lets you use your radio to keep in touch with other
members of your party on shore or on another craft close
by.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Weather Channel watch
Sounds a warning tone when a hazard alert is issued.

E-3
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Getting Started
What’s Included
Charging Cradle
12012589
Screws for
Charging Cradle
AC-DC Charging
Adapter
12012571
Lithium Ion Battery
12012555
VHF255 Radio
with Antenna
DC Charging
Adapter
12012563
Alkaline Battery Tray
(batteries not included)
12303038
Wrist Strap
12012548
Belt Clip
7830458
If any pieces are missing or damaged, contact West
Marine (see back cover for contact information).

E-4 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Parts of the VHF255
Front view
Back view
Volume-power knob
(Turn clockwise to
increase volume.)
16/9 - TRI
(16/9-triple
watch button )
WX - ALERT
(weather alert)
button
SCAN - MEM
(scan-memory)
button
BAND - 1/2.5/5W
button
Full dot matrix display
MENU
button
ENTER-LOCK
button
Microphone
Strobe
SOS light
Squelch knob
(Turn clockwise to
decrease channel noise.)
Channel up
button
Channel down
button
Push to talk
button
Wrist strap
anchor
Speaker Microphone
port and sealing cap
Antenna
Belt clipBatteryBattery charging
contacts
Battery
latch

E-5
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Knob Turn clockwise to... Turn counter-clockwise to...
Squelch Raise the squelch level
to reduce channel noise.
Lower the squelch level to
hear weaker signals.
Volume-
Power
Turn on the radio or
increase the volume.
Decrease the volume or turn
off the radio.
Button Press to... Press and hold to...
Push to
talk NA Transmit on a channel
Channel
up
Move up one channel at
a time.
Move quickly up the
channels.
16/9 - TRI
(Red)
1st press: Go to channel
16.
2nd press: Go to channel 9.
3rd press: Go back to the
starting channel.
Turn Triple Watch on
and off.
MENU Access the radio menus. NA
ENTER -
LOCK
– Select menu items.
– Return to normal marine
VHF screen while marine
channel list is displayed.
Lock the keys; press and
hold again to unlock.
WX -
ALERT
Listen to the weather
channels or return to the
last channel of the previous
radio band.
Turn Weather Alert Watch
on and off.
SCAN -
MEM Enter or exit SCAN mode. Store the current working
channel into memory.
BAND -
1/2.5/5W
Switch the band between
VHF and FRS/GMRS.
Change the transmit
power (see page E-11).

E-6 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Button Press to... Press and hold to...
Channel
down
Move down one channel at
a time.
Move quickly down the
channels.
Charger
Using the Menus
Here are some general hints on operating the VHF255
menu screens.
The current item is highlighted in reversed out text.
Use Channel up to move up a line in the menu.
Use Channel down to move down a line in the menu.
Press ENTER - LOCK to choose the selected item.
Select
Exit to close the menu
Using Your Radio (General Operation)
Changing the Volume
To increase the speaker volume, turn the Volume-Power
knob clockwise; turn it counter-clockwise to decrease the
volume.
Charging
contacts
CHARGE LED
Screw holes
for mounting
Power jack
Charging
latches

E-7
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Setting the
Squelch Level
The squelch feature
reduces static on
the speaker by
ltering out any
background
channel noise. At
the lowest squelch
level, the speaker
plays all signals,
including any channel noise. Setting the squelch level
higher lters out noise and lets only actual radio
transmissions through.
While listening to a channel, adjust the SQUELCH knob
until the noise is ltered and you can hear only the
transmission. If you switch to a channel with a lot of noise
or a weak trans-mission, you may need to readjust the
squelch level again.
#Setting the squelch level too high may prevent you from
hearing weaker transmissions. If you are having difculty
hearing a transmission, try setting the squelch level lower.
Changing the Channel
Press Channel up and Channel down briey to scroll through
the channels one channel at a time. Press and hold
Channel up or Channel down to quickly scroll through the
channels.
Weak signals
No
Squelch
Medium
Squelch
High
Squelch
Strong signals
Noise

E-8 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Contrast
The display has 10 levels of contrast for each LCD
display format: light letters on a dark background or dark
letters on a light background. Scrolling from 1 to zero
switches the contrast. To adjust the contrast:
1) Press the MENU button and select Contrast/RVS.
2) Use Channel up and Channel down to change the contrast
to your desired level.
3) Press ENTER to set the new contrast level and exit the
menu.
Lamp adjust
The LCD and keypad light up whenever you press a key
on the radio; the backlight stays on for 5 seconds and
then turns off automatically. You can change the amount
of time the LCD and keypad backlight stays on.
1) Press the MENU button and choose Lamp Adjust.
2) Choose how you want the backlight to operate:
Always On makes the backlight stay on.
Always Off makes the backlight never come on
Timer makes the backlight stay on for a set amount
of time after you press a key.

Color lets you select green or orange background.
3) If you select Timer, the radio prompts you to choose
the amount of time you want the backlight to stay
on. Choose from
5 seconds , 10 seconds (default), 30
Seconds
, 1 Minute , or 5 Minutes .
4) Press ENTER to save the new setting.

E-9
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Turning the Key Beep On and Off
Key beep is the tone that sounds when you press a key
or a button. You can turn this tone on and off by using the
Key Beep menu.
1. From the
Main menu, select Key Beep ; press ENTER -
LOCK to display the
Key Beep screen.
2. Select
ON or OFF and press ENTER - LOCK. The radio
returns to the Marine Main menu.
3. Press MENU to return to the main screen.
Using the external speaker/mic jack
You can connect an optional external speaker-mic (SM81
- part number 12012597) to this watertight jack. Unscrew
the cap, which is held by the rubber cap-keeper to
prevent loss. Insert the special gasketed plug and screw
down the shell, which prevents water from entering the
jack.
For details, consult your West Marine dealer or contact West
Marin directly (see back cover for contact information).

E-10 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
How It Works
Your radio has three main operation modes: normal,
scan, and weather.
Mode What it does Use it when you
want to...
To turn it
on/off
Normal
Monitors a single marine
channel and lets you
talk on that channel.
Monitor a channel or
talk to another radio.
(default
mode)
Scan
Monitors all the
channels you save into
memory.
Check a small group
of regularly-used
channels for trafc.
Press SCAN
- MEM.
Weather Monitors the selected
NOAA weather channel.
Hear the current or
forecasted weather.
Press WX-
ALERT.
In addition to the three operation modes, your radio
provides four different watch modes which you can
activate during any operation mode. In the watch modes,
the radio briey checks for activity on a specic channel,
then returns to its previous operation.
Watch mode What it does To turn it on/off
Weather Alert
Watch
Checks the last-used weather
channel for hazard alerts
every 7 seconds.
Press and hold WX-
ALERT for 2 seconds.
Dual Watch Checks channel 16 for
activity every 2 seconds.
Press and hold SCAN -
MEM for 2 seconds.
Triple Watch Checks channels 16 and 9
for activity every 2 seconds.
Press and hold BAND -
16/9-TRI for 2 seconds.

E-11
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Watch mode What it does To turn it on/off
Quad Watch
Checks channels 16 and 9
for activity every 2 seconds,
and checks the last-used
weather channel every 7
seconds.
Turn on Triple Watch,
then turn on Weather
Alert Watch.
#Private boats must monitor channel 16 whenever they are
underway. Water-going vessels should have either Triple
Watch or Dual Watch on at all times.
Normal mode operation
To transmit, remove the radio from the charger, then
press and hold Push to talk. Release the button when
you are nished talking.
For the best sound quality, hold the microphone about
two inches from your mouth while you’re talking.
Press Channel up to move up one channel at a time.
Press and hold the button to scroll quickly up the
channels.
Press Channel down to move down one channel at a
time. Press and hold the button to scroll quickly down
the channels.
To change the transmit power, press BAND - 1/2.5/5W.
The transmit power switches to the next transmit power
each time you press this button.

E-12 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Normal mode with Weather Alert Watch
If you activate
Weather Alert
Watch while
operating in
normal mode, the radio checks the
most recently used weather channel
every seven seconds. If it detects a
weather or other hazard alert, it will
switch to that weather channel. (If
you are actively transmitting, the
radio waits until you nish your
transmission before checking the weather channel.)
Normal mode with Triple Watch or Dual Watch
If you activate Triple Watch while operating in normal
mode, the radio checks channels 16 and 9 every two
seconds; with Dual Watch turned on, the radio only
checks channel 16. The radio will not check channels 16
or 9 while you are actively transmitting; it waits until your
transmission is nished and then checks the channels.
wx
Every 7 seconds,
the radio checks
the last-used
weather channel.
WX Alert
Watch on
Monitoring Channel 25
09 16 09 16 09 16
Every 2 seconds, the radio
checks channels 9 & 16.
Triple Watch on
Monitoring Channel 25

E-13
West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Normal mode with Quad Watch
You can activate Weather Alert Watch and Triple Watch at
the same time
to monitor four
channels at
once (Quad
Watch). The
radio performs
the Triple Watch
and Weather
Alert Watch
checks at their
scheduled time.
Scan mode operation
You can save channels into memory and then use scan
mode to monitor those channels from lowest to highest. If
the radio detects a signal on a channel, it stays on that
channel as long as the signal is received; when the signal
stops, the radio continues scanning.
wx
Every 7 seconds,
the radio checks
the last-used
weather channel.
WX Alert
Watch on
09 16 09 16 09 16
Every 2 seconds, the radio
checks channels 9 & 16.
Triple Watch on
Monitoring Channel 25
11
1008 1312 14 17
15
The radio scans about
5 channels in 0.5 seconds.
When it detects a signal, the radio stays
on the channel until you press the
Channel up button or the signal stops. Resume
scan

E-14 West Marine VHF255 Radio Owner’s Manual
Using the radio in scan mode
To activate scan mode, press SCAN - MEM.
You must have at least two channels in memory to start
a scan.
You cannot transmit while in scan mode.
To save a channel into memory, select the channel,
then press and hold SCAN-MEM.
MEMORY displays
whenever you tune to that channel.
To remove a channel from memory, set the radio to
that channel, then press and hold SCAN-MEM again.
MEMORY no longer displays.
When the radio stays on a channel, press SCAN - MEM
to leave that channel and resume scanning.
To stop scanning, press the SCAN - MEM button again;
the radio remains on the last scanned channel.
Scan mode with Weather Alert Watch
If you activate Weather Alert Watch while in scan mode,
the radio checks the most recently-used weather channel
every seven seconds, then continues scanning the next
channel in memory:
Every 7 seconds, the radio
checks the last-used
weather channel, then
scans the next channel. wx
WX Alert
Watch on
Memory Channel Scan
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