Getting Broadband Throughout The House

Username03725

JJ_Egan said:

Ethernet cable where possible first .

This works well, if you have the practical nature to DIY otherwise it's expensive. Once you have ethernet wall plates in a room you can add switches, access points & whatever you like.

Grey_Critic

We bought a wi-fi booster. interesting point is if we leave doors open the signal is mush better.

Ibrahim5

Username03725 said:

JJ_Egan said:

Ethernet cable where possible first .

This works well, if you have the practical nature to DIY otherwise it's expensive. Once you have ethernet wall plates in a room you can add switches, access points & whatever you like.

With the powerline adapters you can get double and triple ethernet outlets so it's actually neater than a network switch.

Ibrahim5

powerful_Rogue said:

Tenda - Cheap and very very good. Highly recommend.

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/tenda-nova-mw3-whole-home-wi-fi-kit-4-pack-ps3399-at-box-3861513

That's really cheap. I doubt many people will need 4 in the UK. I don't think that having more is necessarily better. Just enough to cover the area. You have a spare or two though in case of failure.

[Deleted User]

Grey_Critic said:

We bought a wi-fi booster. interesting point is if we leave doors open the signal is mush better.

Glad you made that point, I'm constantly reminding people that wifi doesn't like passing through solid objects - and that includes all solid objects, including your sofa, TV cabinet, radiator etc and anything made of glass, plastic, wood, brick, metal etc.

I have friends that are surprised that my wifi reaches about 25 metres down the garden and they complain about how they can't even get a good signal in their back bedroom. I know why, I've seen their wifi router on the floor, in the corner, underneath the TV cabinet or generally just boxed inside or behind some furniture.

Simply positioning the main wifi router high up (about head height) and away from solid objects in the centre of the house can make a massive difference. Thinking about the line of sight between the device and wifi router and what solid objects it passes through can help in deciding the position.

Just moving the wifi router a few feet in one direction can totally change the reception in another room - especially where the signal is passing through a wall at a shallow angle and therefore going through more solid object than it would directly.

Making proper use of the 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz bands appropriately can help to prevent interference between devices, keeping the 5Ghz band for the devices requiring higher bandwidth and dumping all the slow and smart devices on the 2.4 Ghz band. And choosing channels correctly that don't interfere with the neighbours all helps.

A big improvement to wifi can be gained for free with a bit of thought and patience.

I don't use mesh, just one good quality wifi router with big external antennae and that covers the whole house and a long garden without needing any extra devices. I'm not against mesh, just optimise what you have first because mesh itself still relies on the main wifi router unless you are wiring them up with ethernet.

debitcardmayhem

[Deleted User] said:

I don't use mesh, just one good quality wifi router with big external antennae and that covers the whole house and a long garden without needing any extra devices. I'm not against mesh, just optimise what you have first because mesh itself still relies on the main wifi router unless you are wiring them up with ethernet.

No it relies on your Modem for connection to the internet , my useless ISP Router/Modem has pants wifi, so it sits there just a a modem i.e. bridge mode. Oh and some mesh routers have VDSL modems built in too.

[Deleted User]

debitcardmayhem said:

[Deleted User] said:

I don't use mesh, just one good quality wifi router with big external antennae and that covers the whole house and a long garden without needing any extra devices. I'm not against mesh, just optimise what you have first because mesh itself still relies on the main wifi router unless you are wiring them up with ethernet.

No it relies on your Modem for connection to the internet , my useless ISP Router/Modem has pants wifi, so it sits there just a a modem i.e. bridge mode. Oh and some mesh routers have VDSL modems built in too.

Sorry, worded badly, what I meant was the satellite mesh nodes each rely on the wifi from the main router node - unless they are wired. I was thinking about my own setup where I'd add mesh nodes to my existing mesh compatible router.

Getting the position right of the primary node is equally as important as positioning an existing wifi router if the satellite nodes are going to get a good signal.

Most people will just plonk the primary node in the same position as their existing wifi router so it is good to think about relocating it.

Thanks for helping me clarify.

Ibrahim5

Everyone talks about connecting mesh nodes with ethernet which is optimum but I found you can connect them with the powerline network which isn't often mentioned. As the nodes can communicate so quickly over the powerline it doesn't matter where the primary node is so I have it next to the router.

JJ_Egan

Username03725 said:

JJ_Egan said:

Ethernet cable where possible first .

This works well, if you have the practical nature to DIY otherwise it's expensive. Once you have ethernet wall plates in a room you can add switches, access points & whatever you like.

Practical ?? mine is run between skirting board and carpet and on skirting board via cable clips .So its practical and cheap .