Say Goodbye to Dead Spots and Hello to Mesh Wi-Fi
11 comments
For today’s connected homeowner, those Wi-Fi dead spots with a weak or nonexistent signal are truly a pain. To get the internet everywhere in your home, you may need special equipment and a little troubleshooting.
Help is on the way. By doing some investigating, then installing a mesh Wi-Fi system yourself, you can overcome those dead spots and stay connected to your favorite websites, streaming and applications.
What causes dead spots on a Wi-Fi network?
Every house is different, so do some sleuthing to find out the cause inside your home. Long distances and physical barriers such as drywall, concrete, appliances and furniture could be the culprit.
Physical barriers
Wi-Fi signals are airborne, and a clear line of sight between your device and the router is sometimes necessary for the best possible connection. Anything standing in the way—like thick walls—may be preventing you from having the best internet access.
Distance
Distance also contributes to dead spots. Wi-Fi signals grow weaker the farther they travel from the router to your device. A router in your home office at one end of your house may not reach every room, making it harder to connect to the network or limiting your signal. Reaching your garage or a backyard home office is also harder the farther away they are from your home’s router. Keep in mind, the slower your Wi-Fi speed, the farther it will travel. So while 5 GHz (gigahertz) is a faster band on your router, it’s coverage will be more limited. (See below for switching your router settings.)
How to fix Wi-Fi dead spots
Whatever the cause, fixing the problem means changing something about your network or adjusting your router. One of these will probably work.
- Check your router – Since it’s fairly simple to check your router, it should always be your first step if you find dead spots. Make sure it’s on, plugged in and working properly. Reboot it. Test your Wi-Fi in a few places in your house.
- Switch your router settings – The frequency bands your Wi-Fi might use are 2.4GHz and 5GHz. If your router is set on 5GHz now, make the switch to 2GHz. It might be a slower path, but it’s probably a more reliable path. See if that helps. To change it, and learn more about channels, check here.
- Change your router location – Moving your router closer to where you use the internet most may be all you need to get online again. Try placing your router in a central location or perhaps closer to your home office.
- Replace your router’s antenna – A bent, unextended or outdated antenna may cause your router to fall short. You may be able to upgrade your antenna– just detach it and shop online for a new one to use.
- Extend your Wi-Fi network – Using a Wi-Fi extender or home Wi-Fi booster, you can amplify your Wi-Fi signal and increase its reach. These devices work with your router to expand your existing signal and aren’t a replacement for your router. Note that while the extender can help, the newly covered area may have a different Wi-Fi password, and you’ll have to make sure you’ve put the passwords into your devices.
- Connect a powerline adapter – Through your home’s electrical wiring, powerline adapters transmit signals through an ethernet connection, providing an alternative that helps your network overcome physical and distance limitations. These systems can be a great solution if you have a single device, such as your work-from-home laptop, that needs coverage in a Wi-Fi dead spot where you’ve set up your home office.
- Commit to a mesh system – By bringing your main router together with mesh routers, you’ll have better coverage with a single password. Mesh Wi-Fi provides multiple access points and therefore provides an ideal way to extend and optimize your internet signal in your home.
Invest in the best mesh Wi-Fi system to eliminate dead spots
Mesh is the easiest way to eliminate dead spots. Mesh extends your Wi-Fi signal by using satellite routers to broadcast the signal created by your main router. The Wi-Fi mesh network blankets your home with a responsive Wi-Fi connection that knows where the internet traffic is and can adjust accordingly. As a result, you get a better Wi-Fi experience. Keep in mind, a mesh system doesn’t provide the fastest speed and can, in some cases, significantly reduce your Wi-Fi speed—but you will have Wi-Fi.
Use a Wi-Fi dead spot finder to know where to place mesh satellites
Walking through your home and guessing at dead spots isn’t too efficient. Many internet service providers (ISPs) will check your home network for any dead zones when they install or service your network, then recommend the best solution. Ask your ISP if they provide this service.
There are also a few apps to find dead spots on your own. Wi-Fi SweetSpots is an iOS app that helps you find the fastest and slowest Wi-Fi spots in your home. Using this app, you can plan your router and mesh satellite placements and decide where to set up your devices. NetSpot is available for Mac or Windows, creating a heatmap showing your Wi-Fi strength throughout your house using a color-coded map.
Can Frontier fiber gig speeds give life to dead Wi-Fi?
Mesh networks are the simplest DIY solution for Wi-Fi coverage, even if they do take a bite out of your Wi-Fi speed. The best way to ensure you’ll have the fastest speed possible is to start with a Frontier® fiber connection. The speeds to your home come fast as a gig (and getting faster). Ready to see when you can bring fiber home? Check to see when it will be available at your address.
Product features may have changed and are subject to change.
Always loosing wi fi connection all times day and night.
I have the same issues I’m always getting charged for going over data usage, dropped calls it’s gotten so bad over the last year! don’t remember having this issue when it was Verizon FiOS or maybe I don’t understand how this al works? Forgive me if I’m not understanding because I’ve never been told.
Our apologies for your service experience, Ruby. From what you’ve described, it sounds like you’re having issues with your Wi-Fi connection. Unfortunately, Wi-Fi technology is susceptible to interference from other wireless signals and this can impact performance and cause fluctuations. This is a limitation of the technology in general. When you encounter this, wireless extenders would be something that can be used to alleviate the problem. Check out our WiFi EveryWare program at https://bit.ly/31aw3GG which goes into this more and reach out to us if you need additional assistance. You can send us a message on Twitter at https://fybr.to/3Ax6Zr0 or a private message on Facebook by going to https://fybr.to/3AAkEOb Thank you for your feedback. Sue
Yes, my wifi fails often particularly most often in using through my smart Tv while watching youtube. Why this seems to be where I’ve the only trouble is beyond me. It often will simply freeze then I cannot do anything but to unplug my Tv in order to rid it and start over. I have spectrum, to get customer service help is impossible they will only suggest to upgrade. 🙁
Hi Brian, this definitely sounds like something that a Wi-Fi mesh could help with, but that would best be coupled with some of our symmetrical 500/500 or Gig fiber! Even though your service is with our competitor for now, the Wi-Fi technology is the same, so one thing worth trying is to reboot your access point / router and see if that gives you a period of greater stability. When the router is restarted, it performs a survey of the Wi-Fi signals in range to decide which channel is best. Unfortunately, the answer to that can change over time and tomorrow the best channel may no longer be the same one it’s set to now. A quick restart will usually remedy that. Give it a try and let us know! ^Michael
We pay a fortune every month for our Frontier Internet and TV Service etc. and for the last 6 months it has gotten worse and worse. They have sent us new routers but the signal strength has not improved …. so we spent $$ for new cell phones too and still have the same “weak” results 🤢🤢🤢🤢🤢
SAME HERE!!! It is getting old when the internet connections drops for a few seconds constantly. This wasn’t a big deal with just browsing but I am playing an MMo and it is horrible to be dropped so often!
Hi Elane, sorry for the late reply! This definitely sounds like something a mesh could help with assuming we’re only talking about signal strength and coverage in your home. I’m a gamer, too, and another thing you may want to consider is a wired connection to your gaming computer. We have multiple in our home and they’re all wired for a faster, lower latency and interference proof connection to guarantee a performance edge. Wireless is great for mobility, but if a device is stationary and the need for mobility is diminished, a physical connection is the clear winner. Combined with a mesh, it’s win-win! 🙂 ^Michael
Hi, I’m hard-wired to my router, but Wi-Fi is really bad with my son’s room, which is about 8 feet away from the router, and a wall. It’s a room, but there’s something in the desk or walls that seem to block Wi-Fi signal, because he sometimes only gets 100mbps or less and we have 500/500 mbps. I know 100 down is plenty, but that’s not the point. For the router being that close, this should not be happening.
We just switched from Spectrum and I have to sayz no matter where you were with Spectrum cable 200/12, you’d get 235 mbps down Everytime consistently with any device getting 235 down. I wish Frontier would do that! I’m using 5G as well, tried 2.4G as well.
Hi Kevin,
There’s a lot to cover here but I’ll do my best. You mention that there must be something in the desk or walls that seems to be blocking or reducing the Wi-Fi Signal strength, that it’s really bad, but also 100 is plenty. You’re probably right about something blocking or interfering with the signal. I also agree that for many things 100mb/s is plenty, and I would disagree that it’s really bad. Even with a mesh in my home and 500/500, I can find areas that test as low as 50mb/s due to interference. As long as it’s stable and low latency, 100mb/s would deliver a superior gaming experience or stream 4 simultaneous 4k UHD streams.
You may benefit from a mesh system like the ones discussed in this article. I use one with 3 access points in my home, but even then, I can find some areas where my signal strength and bandwidth are weaker, so another thing to consider is placement. Not only of the router, but the devices receiving a signal.
The last thing you mention is that you’re using 5G, I think you mean ghz, so 5ghz and 2.4ghz Modern routers support both of these bands, if you’re seeing these separately, I would recommend changing that by logging in to the router and enabling the Total Control Wireless option, as Arris calls it. The correct name for this is band steering and unless you have some very old 2.4ghz only devices that you’re using, band steering is a better way to go. 5ghz is a shorter wavelength, which allows for greater data rates, however being a shorter wave it’s not as good at getting through walls. It’s also unable to travel as far. 2.4ghz is slower, but gets through walls better and is more forgiving at distances. Band steering will allow your modern Wi-Fi devices to work with the router and decide which connection is better at that moment. That can change based on distance from the router, walls or appliances between you and the router, or outside sources of interference like other wireless devices emitting signals.
Without a doubt the best possible Wi-Fi experience in home is going to come from a mesh system, there’s a reason why there are so many great competing mesh products available at retail! One thing to remember though, most mesh systems are only compatible within the same brand, so if you start with a 2 AP system and want to add a 3rd, it needs to be from the same brand.
Hope all this info helps, great questions! If you have more don’t hesitate to ask!
Michael
Hi Jack,
I’m sorry you’re having signal strength issues in your home. Signal strength concerns are exactly what the mesh network systems mentioned in this article are designed to help with. All the time I hear the stories of the Wi-Fi was great, then got worse. The one router was replaced and nothing changed. I’ve been through it, too. There is a reason why these solutions failed to improve the situation. The router probably wasn’t the issue to begin with. More than likely a changing radio frequency environment in the vicinity of your router is to blame – ie, interference. This could be coming from other electronics or devices within the home or from networks / devices outside that your neighbors use, including their own mesh networks. Installing a smart mesh network with multiple access points in your own home is the best way to increase coverage and bandwidth and also combat any outside interference. There are many great solutions available at retail and we also have a current promotion with a bandwidth upgrade to our Gig service that includes a 2 access point Eero mesh if that interests you. You can reach out to us on our Facebook (m.me/FrontierCorp) page or by phone if you’re interested to learn more!
Michael