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15 Proven Ways to Boost Your Home WiFi Signals

Posted on by in Hardware

When the whole world is getting online, a dropping wireless signal can be a real pain. Having a limited network range at home can prove to be harmful and disturbing for your work. Here are some ideas that can help you boost your home Wi-Fi signals easily.

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1. Keep your router firmware updated

Technology is continuously changing and improving on a regular basis. This is why it is imperative to keep your router updated such that it remains aware of all the amendments coming in. For most routers, the update process can be carried out right from the administration interface. An updated device gives you a stronger performance for a longer range.

2. Router placement

One of the most important factors impacting your WiFi signal is the placement of the router. The optimum wireless coverage can be achieved by placing it near open spaces where it can communicate with the incoming signal, away from walls or other obstructions. The router antenna can also be oriented in a direction such that it promotes the most efficient performance.

3. Give preference to an external antenna

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Some routers come built with internal antennae. In such a situation, it is best to have an external antenna separately attached that brings in the best results. These products can be directional, that is the antenna sends the signals in one particular direction only or it can also be omnidirectional such that it can spread out the signal in all directions. The former tends to be a better option by pointing the antenna in the weak spot for signals.

4. Range extender

Even the best wireless router with rechargeable battery can transmit the signal only up to a certain distance. If you have a large room and you want the signal to remain strong throughout, you might want to consider a range extender that looks similar to a router but works in a way such that it simply broadcasts the signal around.

5. Access points

Access points can work as a good alternative to range extenders. If your aim is to reach out to multiple floors or a large building with the same router, the access points can prove to be handy. These work in collaboration with one another to create a network. Within this network, the signal gets strengthened from one access point to another.

6. Router reboot

Sometimes, all it takes for your router is a reboot in order to give more reliable performances and services. What you can do is simply reboot the device once a day such that it stays in good shape. The conventional old outlet timer can work to your advantage in this regard. In this manner, you will not have to restart your router multiple times a day.

7. The best wireless channel

If there are multiple routers, the signals might interfere with one another and as a result, the strength of the signal degrades. This is prevalent in the case of neighbors using the same wireless channel. The solution is that you would want your router to follow a channel that provides as less interference as possible! Using a Wi-Fi Analyser can help solve the problem here.

8. Interference from other devices

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It need not necessarily be a wireless router that can interfere with the signals at your place. Sometimes other appliances like a cordless phone, microwave, and the likes can bring in similar effects. For this, it is best to place the router from such devices or to make use of a dual band router that does not encourage these signal interferences.

9. Keeping tabs over the bandwidth-consuming applications

Some applications online can consume or occupy more bandwidth than the others. This might include rigorous download procedures, video chatting, or even online gaming. But the trick here is to ensure that the most important applications are credited with the bandwidth they deserve. For this purpose, we could use the Quality of Service (QoS) to prioritize the bandwidth.

10. Frequency

Before trying any other tricks to boost your home Wi-Fi signal, it is necessary that you configure the device well. If you are using a dual band router, you will be requiring a frequency of 5 Hz as compared to the 2.4 Hz for a single band counterpart. The former is more convenient to use since not too much interference can be found in that frequency.

11. Keeping your connection secure from hackers

Even though you have a number of layers of protection for your router, the hackers can still make their way through to the connection. If you are still running on the security algorithm of WEP, it is best to switch to WPA or WPA2 to bring in the best results.

12. Put a limit on the number of devices in use of the connection

This is one of the most common issues while using a router- more the number of devices, lower is the signal strength. It is advised to put a cap on the number of devices allowed for the connection by making a device access list of MAC addresses that would include the devices of your family or the people at home.

13. Beer cans for improving wireless signals

beer-can-improve-wifi-signals

As surprising as it might sound, beer cans can be of use for boosting your Wi-Fi signal. All you have to do is put it through the antennae. These help majorly in spreading and extending the signal in all directions. Tin foil can also be used in place of beer cans.

14. Wireless amplifier

Sometimes, a wireless amplifier can also help you do the work. This is cheaper than some of the other options like range extenders since the amplifiers work towards only increasing the strength and not the range.

15. Router replacement

It is the human mentality to stick with the same piece of hardware until it is absolutely broken. However, even if the router looks good physically, a piece of obsolete hardware can really dampen the strength of your Wi-Fi signal. Thus, it is best to replace the router after a few years in order to get the strongest signals.

Author: Wanda Greaves

Wanda Greaves is the co-founder of BatteryChargersExpert.com – a website that helps people to find, use and do anything with their batteries, chargers or related electricity devices.

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