Internet access in detached garage?

[slackdaddy1]

I have a detached (wood framed) garage on my property I would like to have internet access in, BUT it has to be the same network as my house. (NAS backup)
My house has a Comcast modem/router bridge mode toan ASUS router that is supplying my devices in the house with WiFi and hardwired Ethernet.

Details:
Home cable modem/router is in the basement.

Garage is on it's own electric meter,, both house and garage are fed power from a transformer in are front yard.

Closest corner of the house to closest corner of the garage is 100', but would be very difficult to get cable from basement to that corner of the house.

Running a buried cable from the basement router to the garage would be rougly 210'

I want to mount a small roku tv in the garage, and place a second NAS drive as "off site" back up for my home computer.

Any thoughts?

 

[The Cobbler]

Ethernet cable is good for up to about 330' and In my opinion, more reliable than wireless

 

[SD929]

Agree with Cobbler, Ethernet is the easiest however make sure you account for all the routing within the house. If you get to close, you can run a pre-terminated fiber and get two inexpensive switches with SFP/SFP+ termination.

Lastly I had good success with Ubiquiti WiFI bridges at my last place where isn't possible to trench between the two buildings. Performance was good as long as there was no foliage / obstructions. They generally were overpowered enough that rain and snow didn't didn't impact anything (Seattle area). Kinda pricey though.

 

[Slednut]

Fiber connections are pretty cheap these days. There are kits for media converters and multi mode and single mode fiber..

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08LDJ44XF/?tag=atomicindus08-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BC12Z7YF/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[slackdaddy1]

Agree with Cobbler, Ethernet is the easiest however make sure you account for all the routing within the house. If you get to close, you can run a pre-terminated fiber and get two inexpensive switches with SFP/SFP+ termination.

Lastly I had good success with Ubiquiti WiFI bridges at my last place where isn't possible to trench between the two buildings. Performance was good as long as there was no foliage / obstructions. They generally were overpowered enough that rain and snow didn't didn't impact anything (Seattle area). Kinda pricey though.

A wireless bridge would be perfect, But! I would love to also a wifi access point built into the Wireless bridge,,
This would give me Ethernet in the detached garage AND solve the weak wifi in the yard.
I realy want a "One unit does both" solution.

Trenching to the garage is not going to work logistically

 

[jblnut]

Agree with Cobbler, Ethernet is the easiest however make sure you account for all the routing within the house. If you get to close, you can run a pre-terminated fiber and get two inexpensive switches with SFP/SFP+ termination.

Lastly I had good success with Ubiquiti WiFI bridges at my last place where isn't possible to trench between the two buildings. Performance was good as long as there was no foliage / obstructions. They generally were overpowered enough that rain and snow didn't didn't impact anything (Seattle area). Kinda pricey though.

$59 each for a NanoStation Loco M2 is very inexpensive for what it does

A wireless bridge would be perfect, But! I would love to also a wifi access point built into the Wireless bridge,,
This would give me Ethernet in the detached garage AND solve the weak wifi in the yard.
I realy want a "One unit does both" solution.

Trenching to the garage is not going to work logistically

You can setup a NanoSation as an AP and have other devices connect to it. I am typing this at the end of a NanoStation link right now.

 

[slackdaddy1]

$59 each for a NanoStation Loco M2 is very inexpensive for what it does


You can setup a NanoSation as an AP and have other devices connect to it. I am typing this at the end of a NanoStation link right now.

I just did some quick reading on the nanostation,, appears it can not be an AP and a wireless bridge at the same time?

I have found a way to run an Ethernet cable to the 2nd floor storage room on the front of the house,, this is a direct line of sight to the garage. I am looking for "1 device" to act as a Wireless bridge to the garage and an access point so we have wifi on the carport and front yard. What I don't want is a Bridge, and a AP, and a switch to split the cable, and a power strip with 3 wall warts plugged into it.

I feel like I am missing something obvious here ??

 

[jblnut]

I just did some quick reading on the nanostation,, appears it can not be an AP and a wireless bridge at the same time?

I have found a way to run an Ethernet cable to the 2nd floor storage room on the front of the house,, this is a direct line of sight to the garage. I am looking for "1 device" to act as a Wireless bridge to the garage and an access point so we have wifi on the carport and front yard. What I don't want is a Bridge, and a AP, and a switch to split the cable, and a power strip with 3 wall warts plugged into it.

I feel like I am missing something obvious here ??

Setup the NanoStation as a WiFi Access point. Power the other NanoStation up and select the wireless network being broadcast by the first one. Type in your password and Bobs your uncle. You now have a powerful WiFi access point and a wireless bridge.

I know it works. I have a half dozen of them around my property setup that way and I’ve set up hundreds of these things over the years. They are powerful devices once you figure out how to bend them to your will. Is it “proper”, no but it works.

I’ll log into one of them and take some screenshots of the setup pages sometime soon and send them over.

You must buy a NanoStation M2 to make this work easily. The newer ones are not as friendly to setup.

 

[slackdaddy1]

Setup the NanoStation as a WiFi Access point. Power the other NanoStation up and select the wireless network being broadcast by the first one. Type in your password and Bobs your uncle. You now have a powerful WiFi access point and a wireless bridge.

I know it works. I have a half dozen of them around my property setup that way and I’ve set up hundreds of these things over the years. They are powerful devices once you figure out how to bend them to your will. Is it “proper”, no but it works.

I’ll log into one of them and take some screenshots of the setup pages sometime soon and send them over.

You must buy a NanoStation M2 to make this work easily. The newer ones are not as friendly to setup.

Shazammm,
You make it sound easy,,
Looks like this will work for what I need

 

[ScaldedDog]

You could plug the bridge nodes into a switch in your garage, and have an AP inside another one, or more, on the outside pointed at your yard.

My 5yo Nanobeam has a 2nd POE port I use to run a camera. If the newer ones do, too, you could run an AP off the 2nd port.

Lots of ways to skin this...

Mark

 

[alex2929]

Ubiquiti

 

[firebirdparts]

We’ve had 100 threads on this. For real distance if seems like ubiquiti is king. ,
My shop is pretty close and I was able to pull it in with a mesh system. I think various brands all have their fans.

 

[Metal-Marc]

Ethernet cable is good for up to about 330' and In my opinion, more reliable than wireless

That is correct indoor. In between buildings, ethernet is no bueno. It's been discussed a lot here.

Here's what I'm using between my house and my garage. Works great, easy to setup and not that expensive. There's even a wooden shed in between the house and the garage and that's not a problem.

 

[PoorUB]

Over the years I have bought 2-3 different wireless solutions for internet in a detached shop. After a few years they become obsolete and need to be replaced again. A few years ago I gave up and spaded in a direct bury Cat6 cable and hung an access point in the garage. Best internet I have had.

Personally, I would bury cable, or conduit and pull cable.

 

[Metal-Marc]

Personally, I would bury optic cable, or conduit and pull optic cable.

Fixed.

 

[Hooked]

Just pick one of the wireless options, they're all pretty easy. The one I have to the workshop now is Eero mesh, we stream TV and daughter uses it for work out there when she's visiting.

edit: neglected to mention the shop is approx. 175' from the house.

 

[regguy1]

My shop is about 50' from the house, I'm using a TPL Mesh router. What are my best options for extending the Wi-Fi to the garage? (sometimes I get a low Wi-Fi signal when using my phone in the garage)

 

[reader2580]

We use the $99 Ubiquiti Nanobeams at work for cameras in our parking lots. They were installed in 2018 or 2019 and still going strong. We are looking at another pair of them to replace a fiber to our mechanic shop.

I don’t know why they have to be constantly replaced.

 

[ScaldedDog]

We use the $99 Ubiquiti Nanobeams at work for cameras in our parking lots. They were installed in 2018 or 2019 and still going strong. We are looking at another pair of them to replace a fiber to our mechanic shop.

I don’t know why they have to be constantly replaced.

Same for my two, installed in 2020. Other than one of them having a tan from the CO sun, they work like new.

Mark

 

[dcg9381]

Running a buried cable from the basement router to the garage would be rougly 210'

Totally in range for modern 23 gauge cat5e or cat6a. If you get storms (lightening) you don't want copper, you want fiber.
You just need an "extender" down there. I'd run the wire or optic down to that point... Hell, you can do POE (power over ethernet) and not even have to connect it to power. A billion ways to do it.

As mentioned above, you can do point-to-point wireless, but it's a little harder to setup.

Ubquiti is my go-to, but you need to have "above average" understanding to set it up.

 

[jblnut]

Distance isn’t an issue for PtP stuff when it is aimed properly and the fresnel zones are all clear.

I have a pair of NanoStation M2’s running a 5.3 mile link and a pair of AF-5U’s running at close to 30 miles. The NanoStations have been running for close to 10yrs now and the AirFibers have been running for close to 5yrs with very minimal issues.

I have a NanoBeam link running from my place to my parents place 2.3 miles away and then to our grain bin site another 4 miles away so I can monitor the grain dryer from home without paying for their expensive modem.

This stuff is very powerful an 50-175’ across a yard is honestly harder than going a long distance. The gain on the antennas can/should be turned down to nothing so they aren’t yelling at each other. When they seem like they’re going through walls and trees and obstacles it’s mostly just the signal bouncing around enough that it finds a home. You can point a pair of NanoStations completely away from each other when they’re 50’ apart and have a great connection.

 

[reader2580]

The distances our Nanobeams are traveling are maybe 300 feet, if that. We didn’t really even bother to align them all that well as the dashboard showed good performance.

Now, over a much longer distance alignment is critical.

 

[hans109h]

As much as I love radio waves my first choice would be a run of fiber. Second a run of twisted copper.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Before you buy anything, have you gone out to the garage with a laptop or something to see if you can pick up the existing wifi? I have a Comcast router as well, and I've found I can get a pretty decent signal from it in my garage with no modifications.

 

[dcg9381]

Another idea is to "start" with a simple directional antenna (ubiquti has good ones). 100' clear sight, especially for 2.4 Ghz with a directional is not that far. Structures do attenuate, but wood structures attenuate a lot less than steel sheeting.

 

[slackdaddy1]

Totally in range for modern 23 gauge cat5e or cat6a. If you get storms (lightening) you don't want copper, you want fiber.
You just need an "extender" down there. I'd run the wire or optic down to that point... Hell, you can do POE (power over ethernet) and not even have to connect it to power. A billion ways to do it.

As mentioned above, you can do point-to-point wireless, but it's a little harder to setup.

Ubquiti is my go-to, but you need to have "above average" understanding to set it up.

We do get storms,, Does a buried copper line attract lightning ?

 

[u3b3rg33k]

We do get storms,, Does a buried copper line attract lightning ?

short distances aren't serious concerns for induced currents. but i would grab a gigE surge arrestor and put one on each side of UTP cat 5e/6. (ubiquiti has cheap ones).

i've seen lightning strike a metal surveyors flag. it was a puddle of slag with a metal stick remaining in the dirt.

i would NOT want shielded cable to serve as a potential current path between two separate buildings. UTP is isolated by the devices.

 

[Lumpy102]

I went with a buried 1" conduit and cat6 cable out to my workshop at 200+ ft, used an access point and an 8 port POE switch. It works positively, without question, all the time. Would absolutely do it again. If at some point I feel I need fibre I can pull it down the conduit.

 

[BrandonV]

We do get storms,, Does a buried copper line attract lightning ?

It won't directly attract lightning, but a strike nearby can create a significant voltage gradient across the ground surface. This can cause unintended voltage & current through connected cables and damage attached equipment.

To protect them, use fiber optic cable or invest in high-quality surge arresters (typically $100+ each)

 

[u3b3rg33k]

It won't directly attract lightning, but a strike nearby can create a significant voltage gradient across the ground surface. This can cause unintended voltage & current through connected cables and damage attached equipment.

To protect them, use fiber optic cable or invest in high-quality surge arresters (typically $100+ each)

I'm an advocate for these:

Ethernet Surge Protector - Ubiquiti Store

ESD protection for outdoor high-speed networks.

store.ui.com

$12.50ea. gigE rated.

 

[dcg9381]

We do get storms,, Does a buried copper line attract lightning ?

It doesn't attract anything, but a "nearby" strike produces a fairly huge EM field. Long wires + EM field = current produced.
We had a strike across the street, enough current was produced to cause charring at the CAT5 plugs.. Fried a few things.

 

[slackdaddy1]

Before you buy anything, have you gone out to the garage with a laptop or something to see if you can pick up the existing wifi? I have a Comcast router as well, and I've found I can get a pretty decent signal from it in my garage with no modifications.

I actually loose "Useable" Wifi once I walk out of the house,,
I D/Led a wifi meter app, I can still see it about 50' from the house.
Putting an exterior AP on the front of the house may be enough,, I shall see