28 Aug Improve the wifi coverage in your home
BBC MundoTecnología. May 14 2015
Do you have a Wi-Fi network in your house so you can use it in your living room? Your computer runs slow when you want to watch an online show?
Many of us have suffered these problems in a greater or a lower measure and maybe we haven’t taken it as a disgraceful blow of destiny.
Nonetheless, it’s possible to improve the coverage of your home’s network making some small changes and checking if we have made the right choices.
We give you some tips so you can get the most out of your Wi-Fi network.
- Check if you placed the router in the right place.
A few years ago you decided to install in your house a wireless internet network. Perhaps you did not think you had to stop and analyze what is the best place in your home to put the device.
Maybe you would place it in a corner, a bit hidden to prevent breaking the aesthetic harmony of your home.
Obstacles interfere with signal quality.
But the router works with waves, such as radio or your cell phone’s, making any obstacle (curtains, a book) may interfere with their coverage.
It is best to place it in a high place, since the signal expands down and sideways, and ensure there are no objects around.
As the signal is expanded in all directions, it is best to place it in the center of the room.
It is also important that you place it in the room where you’re going to use it the most.
Some devices, such as cordless phones and microwaves, may interfere with the signal, so it is best not to place the router near any of them.
- Change the channel.
It’s possible that, if you are the only privileged neighbor with a wireless network in your building, your signal is good.
But realistically, this is unlikely. Many people have a home internet these days and surely your network is operating on the same channel as that of some of your neighbors.
Doing something simple (choose the channel that is most free) you can greatly improve your Wi-Fi coverage.
If you have a big house, it is likely that the signal does not reach all corners.
There are a variety of applications that let you know which channel you should choose.
One of the most used is Wi-Fi Analyzer for Android, which provides graphs to see which channel is using every router and recommends the best.
To change the channel, you can ask the supplier or use the manual, if the router is owned.
- Protect yourself against thieves.
If, despite this, your network is running slowly, it may be that someone is stealing Wi-Fi.
To find out, you can use any of the programs or applications that exist in the market to tell you what devices are connected to your network at any given time.
If someone is using your network, you must go to the settings of your router to block access and make only they can connect to your Wi-Fi some MAC (media access control), for which there are many tutorials on the Internet.
Another thing you should do is change your password immediately.
As we have mentioned on other occasions in BBC Mundo, it is best to combine letters and numbers and not use passwords that, although easy to remember, are too simple.
- Improve the range of your router.
If you’ve tried all of the above and the problem is not solved, you may not have another choice but to install an extra device, especially if you live in a house with several floors or very thick walls.
The first option is the Wi-Fi repeaters, which are connected to the router via an Ethernet cable and forward the signal to the remote devices.
The downside is that repeaters should always be wired to the router, which can be uncomfortable.
Therefore, another option is to use the so-called PLC devices, which work like a plug.
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