How to increase the WIFI signal in the house (flat)

[professor]

It is not perfectly clear to me what you exactly did but if I interpret correctly you have one AP 5ghz and one AP 2.4Ghz? The issue with that is you increase average distance to the AP.

If so then you’ll actually get better coverage if you made both APs do both 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz. Make 5Ghz different SSID to 2.4Ghz. Use the same 5Ghz password on both APs, and use the same 2.4Ghz password on both APs.

Place the two APs at distance from each other roughly dividing your area into 1/4ths. e.g if property 20ft wide then place at ft 5 and 15.

Then add password for only 5Ghz to all 5Ghz devices. I wish there was a way to say pick 5Ghz unless its too weak but I not found a way.

What this does is shorten the average distance to an AP. As your device will pick the nearest. Signal strength degrades to square of distance so in the above example you’re never more than 5ft from an AP, with average 2.5ft, vs if you placed AP together central your average is 5ft, so 1/4th the signal strength.

Make both APs on both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz all auto so they’ll pick the least overlapping of each other and your neighbours.

There is no advantage of turning Wifi off on router, if you enabled it then you’d place the APs at little nearer the edge of property. Then auto channel would have each pick of the 3 non-overlapping.

[paulstevenewing]

Hey @professor
They are funny little devices and look after themselves.
There is a 5 and 2.4 setting, just on/off for the pair.
So both will do whatever it sees fit depending on what devices are closer, 5, 2.4 or a mix.
But if they see a 5ghz compatible device its allows it to connect as that. If enough 5ghz devices are closer to one access point and the other 2.4ghz devices will happily run off the other it seems to push all 5ghz devices to one access point and all 2.4ghz devices to the other.
So tonight we have a busy house so the main access point is communicating with 2.4 and 5ghz devices under the same SSID and password and also seamlessly roaming between the two if I wander around the house.

So this is my main access point tonight,

The iPad is connected to the access point on 5ghz with other devices working on 2.4 but I didn’t have to select 5ghz on my iPad, the access points look after that.

I not sure if that complicates thing more, answers your question or not

But what I do know is I now get more stable WiFi and better speeds and they were simple for my little brain to configure.

[Nhi]

Using repeaters was a solution.

What is a repeater?

And the names of the router get far out

LMAO!!! Love the names of the networks. Thanks for the chuckle.

[Nhi]

Ok, a bit off topic but does anyone use VPN? Pros & Cons? Which do you use? I’ve tried Ghost? I keep seeing the ad for FastestVPN though. Thanks for any replies.

[professor]

A repeater picks up the Wifi signal on the transmitting frequency and rebroadcasts it on a different frequency.

As radio strength drops to the square of distance, a repeater improves the signal at furthest corners, so now your distance was halved (to the repeater instead to router) so your signal is 4 times stronger.

The reason why I said Ethernet or Powerline is better is a repeater cannot overcome the fact that at the repeater it is slower than an Ethernet at that same location.

Pros/cons, repeater is mostly buy and forget, Ethernet is faster but you have wires.

You can make a repeater out of an old router so can be made free.

[professor]

So that has the challenge it cannot overcome if a device for whatever reason prefers 2.4Ghz. But you’re using mesh APs to do similar, probably at a slightly higher cost because the method I described can use any old routers you have from different vendors.

[Element321]

We will be doing a similar setup with our internet provider. Living out in the country there isn’t cabled internet. We are so far out that you can’t get any form of DSL. Our options are either Satellite or a point-to-point radio system. We have to purchase a 50 ft HAM radio tower with a 10 foot stinger tip to mount the receiver and they will point the system to the tower that’s about a mile or so a way. The installer said they have a range of 7 miles but ours was ideal because with the tower we have a clear line of site and nothing should be built or grow into the line of site.

I’m wondering if the Powerline with WiFi option would be a good option for me. I’m running power to three of the outbuildings on the property and they are slightly out of range about a 100 feet from the house and another 25 feet to the router I believe. Mainly I want to run wireless security cameras and have access to internet when I’m working inside the buildings.

[professor]

Probably for you use a highly direction transmitter+receive Wifi antenna on 5Ghz (line of sight? outdoors) to the outbuilding.

Powerline is 200-300M so 4 times max than your needs. They need to be on the same ring.

Ethernet is even better, and you route it along with power cable in same system of tube underground or overhead and Ethernet is 100M so about 2.5x above your needs.

Ethernet, you can use a dumb powered hub, not a router, and connect the cables so you dont run 3 long cables but possibly some shorter ones which connect in one of the buildings. Hubs basically pick up and retransmit.

If you go with Ethernet you will get the same speed in the other buildings as if you were next to the router.

I also assume you’ll be running a downloading server for files to hide a slower network and then the Ethernet will make it perform well, you also can do things like record satellite TV on a DVR and watch it via Slingplayer anywhere.

[Nhi]

A repeater picks up the Wifi signal on the transmitting frequency and rebroadcasts it on a different frequency.

So is that what they call an extender? I see wifi extender ads all the time. Thanks for the explanation.

[Chiquinho]

Regarding your VPN question.
You should open a new thread.
We will give any explanations.
Enjoy the day!

[professor]

Extenders are brute force method as it makes your situation better, but worse for others and if your neighbours use they make it worse for you and so you get an arms race of escalating spectrum consumption. So if you had good Wifi speeds today, but then your neighbour bought an extender then your Wifi will suffer in the future. Or if you bought an extender and improved your situation, worsened for your neighbour, who then respond by getting their own extender then you end up worse, possibly worse than never buying an extender.

In crowded areas a more civil and intelligent method is to use wired to cover longer distances and then 5Ghz to cover in a small area. 5Ghz does not go as far distance indoors so your signal tends to keep more into your property, and so will impinge your neighbour less and they impinge you less.

In non-square properties, so elongated, using wires to go between the quartile ends of the property and 5Ghz Access Points nearer the ends will then give you good coverage and if everyone did it we’d all be the happier.

It’s a bit like “no smoking” buildings where people just smoke by the doorways where the wind blows it into the foyer, you’re trying to serve yourself in a way which is worse for others.

[Chiquinho]

Perfect statement!
Very interesting to read and I learned a lot!
And I think not only me!

THANK YOU indeed.

[Alex_Honnor]

Mesh WiFi system maybe cat five to