Frequently Asked Questions

Outgoing Tide app (coming very soon)

The app combines the coastal information anglers commonly check before a trip into a station-based mobile dashboard. The station currently selected in the header controls the tides, weather, water, score, fish, radar, and planning information shown throughout the app. Your Primary Station remains the saved home station while Quick Switch lets you temporarily view another saved station.

How do I complete or restart Initial Setup?

A new installation opens Initial Setup after the Loading screen. Follow the five steps for Stations, Homebase, Alerts, Shake, and Appearance, then choose Go to Homebase. The Stations step opens the same complete Station Picker used elsewhere in the app. To run setup again later, tap the Settings cog in the top-right → About → Restart setup.

How do I change the selected station?

Tap the station name beneath the screen title to open Quick Switch. Choosing a saved station changes the active station and refreshes the loaded screens without replacing your Primary Station. Choose More stations, or tap the Settings cog in the top-right → Stations, to open the complete Station Picker. Search by station name, region, NOAA station ID, or ZIP code, or use your location. Selecting a station in Station Picker makes it the new Primary Station and automatically keeps the former primary available in Quick Switch.

How do ZIP-code and location results work?

A ZIP code is converted to approximate coordinates and matching stations are ordered nearest first. Use my location applies the same nearest-first ordering from the device’s current position. Name, region, and NOAA ID searches continue to use text matching.

How do Primary Station and Quick Switch work?

The anchor marks the protected Primary Station. In Station Picker, check the Quick Switch box beside other stations you want in the header chooser. The Primary Station is always kept in Quick Switch and cannot be unchecked. Expand Quick Switch stations to manage saved stations: swipe a card from right to left to remove one, or use the confirmed Remove All action to remove every Quick Switch station except the primary.

How do I configure Homebase?

Tap the Settings cog in the top-right → Setup → Homebase configuration. You can rename Homebase, enable or disable frames, and use the move controls to set their top-to-bottom order. The preview updates as you make changes. Enabled frames evenly share the fixed Homebase screen.

What can appear on Homebase?

Homebase can combine today’s tides and solunar information, predicted-versus-preliminary water levels, current conditions, Fishing Score, local species guidance, and a lightweight Outgoing Tide Radar preview. Tap a preview or summary when it offers a deeper screen.

How do I change day or night appearance?

Tap the Settings cog in the top-right → Setup → Appearance & accessibility and choose the preferred appearance. The choice is saved. You can also enable or disable Shake to Homebase, which returns directly to Homebase when the device is shaken.

How do I configure alerts and notifications?

Tap the Settings cog in the top-right → Alerts and notifications. The controls cover weather and tide conditions, selected-station NOAA/NWS warning categories shown in the app, and optional emergency, watch, and advisory device notifications. Device notifications require operating-system permission; in-app warnings can still appear without push permission.

How do I download offline tide charts?

Tap the Settings cog in the top-right → Offline Tide Charts. Choose up to 12 stations and a 1, 3, 6, or 12 calendar month range, review the storage estimate, and download. Tide Charts uses a matching download when the device is offline or live NOAA data is unavailable. Individual downloads or the complete cache can be deleted from the same section.

Will an app update keep my settings?

Yes. Version 0.2.22 added update-safe settings writes and a recovery snapshot. If saved preferences are unexpectedly missing during startup after an update, the app restores the latest available recovery copy before opening the saved experience.

How do I refresh the app?

Pull down on a data screen to start one app-wide refresh for the selected station. Outgoing Tide Radar has its own refresh action so map pan and zoom gestures remain available. Live data also refreshes automatically every five minutes, radar availability is checked while its map is visible, and selecting a different station triggers a refresh.

Why does the Loading screen appear every time?

Loading restores saved preferences and contacts the live sources needed for the selected station. It is expected on every launch. If a provider is temporarily unavailable, the app continues into the saved experience and affected panels explain what could not be loaded.

What do the five main navigation buttons open?

• Tides opens Tide Charts, Solunar, and Predicted vs Preliminary.
• Weather opens Hourly Forecast, 7 Day Forecast, and Water Temperature.
• Homebase returns to the personalized dashboard and selected modules.
• Radar opens the edge-to-edge Outgoing Tide Radar for observed rain, forecast precipitation, and wind.
• Fish opens Fish at Selected Station and General Fish Information.

The Settings cog in the top-right opens Settings, ordered Setup, Stations, Alerts and notifications, Offline Tide Charts, Plan future trips, and About. The Fishing Score button in the shared header explains the current score and its contributing conditions.

What is shown in the Tides tabs?

Tide Charts shows predicted high and low events. Solunar shows station-local major periods around moon overhead and underfoot and minor periods around moonrise and moonset. Predicted vs Preliminary compares NOAA predictions with recent preliminary observations from nearby stations that support both datasets.

What is shown in the Weather tabs?

Hourly Forecast opens at the current hour with recent context, the upcoming outlook, and a pressure trend. 7 Day Forecast summarizes daily model guidance. Water Temperature uses the nearest available NOAA water-temperature station and identifies that source.

What do the wind arrows mean in app version 0.2.24?

The Homebase current-conditions compass and Hourly Forecast arrows point toward where the wind is heading, not where it is coming from. Version 0.2.24 also gives the Homebase compass arrow a thicker shaft, larger arrowhead, stronger contrast, and glow so its travel direction is easier to see.

How does Outgoing Tide Radar work?

The single Radar screen centers an interactive map on the selected station. It combines approximately two hours of observed NOAA/NWS radar history with clearly labeled short-range forecast precipitation when a coherent forecast field is available. Wind controls show an Open-Meteo wind-speed color field and white particles from Now through 12 hours. Playback, layer, legend, timeline, pan, zoom, and refresh controls remain inside the full Radar screen; the Homebase radar frame is a lighter preview that opens it.

What is the difference between the two Fish tabs?

Fish at Selected Station narrows the guide to species relevant near the current station and available water temperature. General Fish Information provides broader identification, jurisdiction, fishing-zone, season, limit, and official-source references. Always verify current rules with the controlling agency before fishing.

What does Plan future trips do?

Tap the Settings cog in the top-right → Plan future trips and choose from the rolling 30-day calendar. Month labels help distinguish dates that cross into the next month. The screen shows whatever forecast, tide, marine, water-temperature, score, and fish-planning information is available for that date and selected station; some weather guidance is unavailable beyond its provider’s shorter forecast range, and confidence generally decreases farther into the future.

Website and data

Where does Outgoing Tide data come from?

Each panel uses an identified official or established source for NOAA tides and preliminary water levels, NOAA/NWS alerts, weather and marine model guidance, radar, wind, station search, and reference material. The complete provider list and limitations are on the Data & Methodology page.

Are tide predictions the same as live water levels?

No. A tide prediction is calculated for a station. A preliminary water level is a recent observation that has not completed NOAA quality control and may change. The Predicted vs Preliminary view labels and compares the two when a station supports both products.

Why is a weather, water, radar, or marine module unavailable?

A station may not report that product, a provider may be delayed, or the network may be unavailable. Check the source label and panel message, refresh once, and try again later. Nearby fallback stations are identified when one is used.

Are fishing regulations guaranteed to be current?

No. Regulations in the app are release-reviewed planning references. Seasons, emergency closures, boundaries, and limits can change between app releases. Follow the official agency link shown with the regulation and verify the controlling rule before fishing.

Support

What should I do if my station is missing?

Use the request link at the bottom of Station Picker, or send the station name, area, and NOAA ID if known through the contact page.

How do I report a problem?

Include the selected station name and ID, the screen and tab, the approximate time, and what you expected to see. Send it through the contact page or email support@outgoingtide.com.