Tallahassee is blessed with a large number of repeaters. As a new radio operator or just a new operator in Tallahassee this can be confusing. What repeater should I monitor, where can I find people to talk to.
The Primary Repeater in Tallahassee (TLH-PRI) is the 147.030 repeater, affectionately known as the OH-THREE repeater. This repeater is located in North East Tallahassee and has a huge footprint. With a 50 watt mobile radio in a car it can be reached from the coast and north deep into South Georgia. Many of the nets are held on the 03 repeater and in an emergency this is where everyone gathers.
The Alternate Repeater in Tallahassee (TLH-ALT) is the 146.910 repeater that is generally referred to as the NINE-ONE repeater. It is located just east of downtown Tallahassee. When there is an issue with the 03 repeater, this is the backup. The TARS Thursday night net is held on this repeater
The 442.100 Repeater (SARNET) is the primary repeater in Tallahassee for SARnet. SARnet, the Statewide Amateur Radio network. It is a network of 30+ UHF repeaters covering the Florida. When you transmit on any of them your signal is heard from Key West to Pensacola. Information on SARnet can be found at: http://www.sarnetfl.com
The 444.000 (TMH) and the 444.400 (CRMC) repeaters are located at the 2 hospitals in town. The 146.655 (AE4S) and the 443.950 (A4ES-U) are private repeaters that are open for general use as well.
There are two repeaters outside of Tallahassee that are used for public service events that amateur radio operators help with in the area. 145.170 (RENO) and 147.195 (METCALF) are located in South Georgia. These may not be reachable from all of Tallahassee but are still important ones to have programmed in your radio if participating in public service events is something you will be doing.
All of these repeaters are available for regular amateur use. Exercising the repeaters is a good practice that makes sure they are in good operation during a disaster so feel free to use all of them.
Remember that there are nets and other scheduled and unscheduled events on all of these repeaters. If someone asks you to change frequencies (QSY) to another repeater please be a good neighbor and accommodate their request. There are plenty of other repeaters to choose from and most people won’t ask unless it is important. Remember that emergencies have priority on all repeaters. Observe all of the FCC rules including ID’ing yourself with your callsign every 10 minutes and at the end of your conversation.
A link to a CSV file with the essential frequencies is located here . This can be imported directly into the free CHIRP programming program using the file/import function and then be downloaded into your radio.