How to Extend WiFi

Using WiFi is more convenient and cheaper than cable network options. However, having a stable connection throughout the house or a big building is usually the challenge with using WiFi due to physical obstacles. Fixing this problem will require you to extend access to WiFi in the different rooms of your house or building.

 

In this article, I will cover some of the reliable methods that you can use to distribute WiFi throughout the different positions of your house or building. Let’s dive in!

 

Why should you consider extending WiFi?

There are a couple of reasons why one may consider extending WiFi to various positions of their home or work premises. Some of the common ones include the following;

• If your WiFi is way slower than a wired connection: We all know a wired connection is way faster than WiFi even when the bandwidth offered for both connections is the same. However, under the same bandwidth conditions, the difference shouldn’t be that significant.
• Many dead spots: If you figure that your WiFi works well in a couple of rooms, but slows down in others, then you should consider extending it to the rooms where it is slow.
• To get WiFi in your backyard: If you are the kind of person who usually uses your backyard for work and other tasks requiring internet, then availing a faster connection there is something you should consider.
• You have a large home: No matter how powerful your router might be, signal strength will significantly affect some rooms if you have a huge house.
• Physical obstructions: One of the major hindrances to your WiFi signal is physical obstacles such as walls. Even if you get the most powerful router, getting a strong signal in the different rooms of your house may not be possible due to the physical walls that interfere with the signals.
• Limited router capacity: If you have a router with a lower transmission power, it will not spread signals evenly throughout the different spots of the home or office. In this case, you will have to extend your WiFi to these dead spots if you want to have a usable signal throughout the home or office.

 

How to boost WiFi signal

We now know the conditions under which extending your WiFi is the best solution to maintain a stable connection throughout your premises. Let us now discuss some of the most reliable ways you can extend your WiFi.

 

1. Change the router position

One of the first things you need to do to extend your WiFi to more spots in your home or office is to ensure your router is in the best possible position. Put your router in a position where the signal is evenly distributed throughout the house. Or at least in a position where you can get relatively good signals in the spots where you usually need to use the internet. Here is how you can optimize your router position to the most optimum position;

• Try the central position: Make sure your router is centrally positioned if you want to get good signals in all rooms. So, look for that room that is central to the rest of the rooms of your house and place your router there.
• Make sure it is off the floor: You should notice an improvement in the signal strength if you put your router in an elevated position. It should be between 2 to 4m off the floor to get the best signal distribution.
• Don’t put it close to metal objects: WiFi signals are usually disrupted more by metals than other materials such as wood, plastic, and glass.

 

2. Add an antenna

Most routers come with inbuilt antennas that are usually not strong enough to send WiFi signals to a bigger radius. That is why adding an external antenna is usually the best solution if you are having issues with signal strength in some positions of your home or office. Antennas are generally of two types; omnidirectional and directional.

 

Most of the built-in routers have omnidirectional routers that distribute the signal in different directions of the house. However, if you need to enhance the signal strength in a specific spot of your home, it is best to use a directional router to send signals to that particular spot.

 

3. Switch to a faster wireless channel

WiFi networks have different channels, and each of these channels offers different speeds based on the number of people using it. If you are using a channel that several other people are using simultaneously, your connection will most likely slow down. There are many network tools that you can use to determine the channels with the best speeds.

 

Use any of those tools depending on your OS to determine which channel to connect to. After selecting the channel, follow these steps to switch to it;

• Log into your router’s browser interface. You will have to connect to your router’s network using ethernet
• Go to your network settings and look for the network channel option
• Most of the time, the network channel is set to auto. Click the dropdown menu and select your desired network channel.
• Restart your router

 

4. Consider using a WiFi extender

If any of the above solutions don’t fix this problem, you should consider using a router extender, also known as a booster. A router extender is a device that gets a signal from your router and rebroadcasts it on a different channel to increase the range of your WiFi network.

 

Place your extender in a position where it can get the best possible signal from the main router and close enough to the dead spots where you can extend the WiFi. Most of the extenders have apps that you can use to help you set it up in the most optimal way.

 

Final thoughts

There are many ways you can boost your WiFi, but the four we have just shared are the most reliable ones. On top of the above methods, you should also ensure your router is always updated for the best results and to strengthen your internet strength