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Internet in detached garage/barn

Daves Barn

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Nov 19, 2015
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Hi guys. Hoping you have an easy solution to a problem I have. We have a house with internet and a finished garage/barn across the street (50 yards) that has no internet/cable. The local cable company says if you have a separate meter, you need a separate internet/cable subscription. To me this makes no sense.

The issue is the road is paved so I can't just run a wire across the street. What have you guys done to receive internet in your buildings?
 
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AirJunky

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Is it a private road? You could tunnel under it & run wire for both internet & cable in conduit. I saw the gas company do this under our driveway for their gas lines.

The Ubiquiti wifi setup would be far easier for internet access.
 

Rich+

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Ubiquiti p2p


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ubiquiti came to mind myself. I'm not sure what I would use in this situation, but their products are industrial grade but consumer prices.

For a detached garage a good wireless access point might suffice. Is the building wood, metal, or block? If it is wood, this is probably what I would try:

https://www.ubnt.com/unifi/unifi-ap-ac-pro/ I selected the pro because it is weather rated, but you might also get away with the long range AP also.

You may also want to try a wireless bridge, which should just mimic an ethernet cable between the two antenna: https://www.ubnt.com/airmax/litebeam-m5/

Or lastly try a mesh network: https://unifi-mesh.ubnt.com/

I haven't set up anything beyond a basic network, so you probably will need to do some research. The support and forums Ubiquiti have are pretty good, so you could post your situation there and ask for some advice.
 

ard

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+3 on the Ubiquiti point to point (p2p)

Google Ubiquiti point to point. You will find many helpful threes, even a video or two

You can buy 2 Ubiquiti Nanostation M5 Loco for like $65 each, will be good for 150MBS, over 15km.

Do you have a router in your house, which you can log onto and configure??? Or is that 'we jsut call the cable company'? It will take a LITTLE bit of 'under the hood', but not hard.

GL
 

OneOfEm

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Or one Ubiquiti Nanostation M5 Loco in bridge mode - it acts like a tight beam long range access point (60 degrees vs 360 for typical AP's). I've read that it will do miles if you have line-of-sight, but I have no problem going through an exterior wall then 400'.
 

ard

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Or one Ubiquiti Nanostation M5 Loco in bridge mode - it acts like a tight beam long range access point (60 degrees vs 360 for typical AP's). I've read that it will do miles if you have line-of-sight, but I have no problem going through an exterior wall then 400'.

Wait. Dont you need something to send and something to catch?

Or are you assuming something else in this set up?
 

wyliesdiesels

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:+1: to the Ubnt recommendations.

2 Nano station M5s or Locos IF you have line of sight.

Then plug in a WAP on the remote end.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HXT8KJ4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004EHSV4W/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Or one Ubiquiti Nanostation M5 Loco in bridge mode - it acts like a tight beam long range access point (60 degrees vs 360 for typical AP's). I've read that it will do miles if you have line-of-sight, but I have no problem going through an exterior wall then 400'.

Thats really dependent on the output of the WAP on the other end, how good the antennas are, how strong the signal is, etc.

Most of the ISP provided gateways have crappy wireless output what with built in antennas...

If a truck goes by i bet it would drop the link.

Much better to do a true bridge with direct line of sight.

Wait. Dont you need something to send and something to catch?

Or are you assuming something else in this set up?

No.

One could use a nanostation or other similar radio and connect it to the existing access point. Its no different than using a dedicated bridge AP other than you will probably have signal issues since APs with omni-directional antennas dont have much gain nor do they broadcast the signal very far.
 

ard

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:






No.

One could use a nanostation or other similar radio and connect it to the existing access point. Its no different than using a dedicated bridge AP other than you will probably have signal issues since APs with omni-directional antennas dont have much gain nor do they broadcast the signal very far.

To be accurate, your explanation states there is an existing access point. That's ONE

The Nanostation in the garage is two.

It is possible that people have "internet" in their house and DONT have 'wifit' nor 'access points'. (Aka "there is a box on the cable coming into the house and the computer is plugged into that")



But yes, **IF** the OP already has one transmitter in the home and can pick up a signal in the garage, then he only needs something in the shop....

:thumbup:
 

OneOfEm

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Thats really dependent on the output of the WAP on the other end, how good the antennas are, how strong the signal is, etc.

Most of the ISP provided gateways have crappy wireless output what with built in antennas...

If a truck goes by i bet it would drop the link.

Much better to do a true bridge with direct line of sight.

In bridge mode, the Nano acts like an access point with a limited signal arc. I connect directly to it with my wifi devices - at long range and with great throughput. I haven't yet tested it inside my to-be-completed workshop, and it won't be the longterm plan for the shop anyway as I have CAT6, but I am interested in seeing how it performs with a brick wall and sheet metal between the nano and the end devices.

Again, I've read really good things from people using one like this, but my testing so far has been in 300'+ of open air (with the Nano behind a brick wall).
 

Falcon67

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x19 on Ubiquity. We use several nanos at work to shoot network over long distance to remote locations where we don't have fiber. The traffic includes everything, including phone.

I used a pair of Nanos to shoot our internet 400' down an alley to share our bandwidth. Beam went through some tree fodder and into the front gable of a house, with the target nano INSIDE the house attic. So "line of sight" can be modified somewhat. Link was reliable like a wire.

Also not mentioned - Ubquity setup is typically non-trivial. Their stuff comes out of the box needing configuration with the nanny-type setup wizard you find in other home use devices. Unifi is pretty easy and has good management. We're using Unifi mesh APs to blanket a football field. One AC-MESH threw a signal over chain link, across a college width football field and up in to a glass front press box, recording a -65 dB signal inside the pressbox, measured with a phone.

Note above - sheet metal will significantly weaken the signal, not sure of a figure. In the above notation about Unifi Mesh, when the test AP was hanging inside the "bread truck" (just what you'd think - big steel van) it cut the range by over half. Brick is good for average -10 dB signal loss. If your far target includes sheet steel facade of any sort, I'd suggest mounting a Nano outside.

If you are worried about Nanos being out in the sun and rain, note that we've had some on station for over 4 years. Outdoors, on a pole, up in the air and exposed to sun. They get quite a tan. Also, in the big hail storm back in 2014 that did over $1m damage to our campus, not a single nano took a hit. Right now I have a Rocket on a sector antenna with 4 remotes, closest about .4 mile, farthest .6 mile. If I didn't have a Wiki page on the setup, I'd forget how to log into them. Never an issue.
 
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GNX423

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I went overhead about 200+ ft run from the top of the house eve to the top peak of the barn. Strung cable tight, and then zip tied outdoor rated network cable. So now I have a wired link and added an access point in the barn. So both WIFI and Ethernet. Note sure if you can get something up high enough across the road, but it worked well for me.
 

JCQuick

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I have wifi in the house my shop is 150' in the back yard I do get a signal just not a strong one but I am looking for ways to boost that
 
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Wabash

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Do you have an unlimited data plan for your cell phone? You could hotspot your phone and use it as the access point for internet usage in the garage for your laptop, tablet etc.
Not an ideal solution, but it would work in the interim.
 

JohnnyK81

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It's only 50 yards. A decent router and nic shouldn't have much of a problem.
 

Falcon67

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Mesh wifi in a fancy box. $400. The Ubiquity Nano 2.4g nodes I used were like $59 each on Amazon. And the eero stuff is aimed at inside the house, not extending range. The nodes have to see each other. A mesh network is similar to a group of range extenders, but with a lot more going on in the background.

>It's only 50 yards. A decent router and nic shouldn't have much of a problem.
Maybe. Note that just because your device can "see" the AP doesn't mean it can actually carry on a long and consistent conversation. I see hundreds of "rogue APs" on campus, most are wifi in cars in a parking lot with signal levels so low they won't interfere with normal comm channels. My phone can see the UP-AP-Lite in the shop from my daughter's driveway - about 300' - but it can't hold a connection.
 

elliottw

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https://www.ligowave.com/products/ligodlb-propeller-5 I use these at my job. Set in P2P mode have one on exterior of your house as the access and plug the data cable into your router, mount the other on your shop as the station and put a dummy switch in garage. I use them to stream remote mounted security camera data primarily but have set them up to provide connectivity in shops for network access as well.
 

Tmart86

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Id go with a ubiquiti nano beam AC gen2 or m5-13 slightly more expensive than the nanostation but more of a true point to point product and uses current technology when it comes to interference etc compared to the legacy nanostation
 

larry4406

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Keep it coming.

I am building a detached garage about 100' from house. Excellent line of site. Watching...

I'm not super tech savy so looking for details..
 

johnnyradiant

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I went overhead about 200+ ft run from the top of the house eve to the top peak of the barn. Strung cable tight, and then zip tied outdoor rated network cable. So now I have a wired link and added an access point in the barn. So both WIFI and Ethernet. Note sure if you can get something up high enough across the road, but it worked well for me.

I've done this method at work on private property. My overall run is pushing 400' and my outdoor portion is maybe about 130'.

In my neighbourhood where I live utility lines need to be a min. 18' above road surface.
 

Tmart86

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Keep it coming.

I am building a detached garage about 100' from house. Excellent line of site. Watching...

I'm not super tech savy so looking for details..


Go with a point to point setup or run a fiber optic in a conduit from one. Uilding to another. Both methods remove differences in grounding potential between two buildings and helps reduce lightning stikes.
 

EOC_Jason

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I bought a couple high-gain omni-directional antennas, hooked one to a WAP I had and stuck it in the window with a direct line-of-sight to the other. The second was up on the top side of a metal building, it came with a magnetic base that held it in place for years with no issue. The wire I just ran under the foam that lines the joint between roof & wall down to another WAP. That was about 275' running 2.4GHz (802.11g).
 

russ_h

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Alberta
I'd run an underground Cat6 to your new build, along with telephone & tv cable. That's basically what I did and then extended the wifi inside the shop by adding an additional router. While my TV is via satellite, both Shaw & Telus charge extra for additional dishes. So it's cheaper to have the cable run from the dish. Hardwire internet avoids the wifi signal loss issues & having a telco line to the shop is just for convenience.

Another thing I would consider and I wish I had done was to move my electrical main to the shop and feed the house from there. That way, with my house being older and needing a panel upgrade it would have been infinitely easier to upgrade the house. Which is what I did with the gas.
 

december45

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I have internet service in the house and the shop is 500'+ away, the shop is a metal building the house is stucco.
I use an Apple airport extreme at the house as our wireless router, and a wireless apple airport express in the window of the shop. I have no problem with wireless internet anywhere in the house and anywhere in the shop. Probably the easiest set up I have ever done, it is mostly plug and play, works flawless.
I would guess that any brand would work the same as long as its got 802.11AC.
Ive got apple computers and tablets so we went with apple router, very simple to setup

I was going to run cat6 cable fairly easy dig, but i was to understand at the time cat 6 cable was good for less than 500 feet. The Routers work and very easy, compared to digging and buying and running cable.
 
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raferguson

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When I priced fiber optics, the prices were prohibitive. The various WIFI solutions would be much more cost effective, and also avoid increasing your risk from lightning hits. Fiber optics would only be appealing if you did not have line of sight between your house and garage.

Lightning protection for any equipment outside is a topic in itself. If the equipment is inexpensive, maybe not worth the trouble.

Go with a point to point setup or run a fiber optic in a conduit from one. Uilding to another. Both methods remove differences in grounding potential between two buildings and helps reduce lightning stikes.
 

2Big2Ride

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:+1: to the Ubnt recommendations.

2 Nano station M5s or Locos IF you have line of sight.

Then plug in a WAP on the remote end.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HXT8KJ4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004EHSV4W/?tag=atomicindus08-20
For clarification for the true novice on this subject (me), if I buy two Nano M5 and another wireless access point for the outbuilding, anything extra needed besides a couple of cables to make this setup work from a house with Internet service to a metal building without internet service that is approx. 75' apart?

Just want to make sure everything is gathered to start and finish at one time.
 

DCarr2

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you could rent a concrete saw, and on a sunday night, cut a line across the road, and run an exterior cat5/6 cable in the joint and then fill in the join with tar....

bam done.
 

Tmart86

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When I priced fiber optics, the prices were prohibitive. The various WIFI solutions would be much more cost effective, and also avoid increasing your risk from lightning hits. Fiber optics would only be appealing if you did not have line of sight between your house and garage.

Lightning protection for any equipment outside is a topic in itself. If the equipment is inexpensive, maybe not worth the trouble.

ubiquiti FiberPOE module X2 @$29.00 each
ubiquiti single mode fiber 300' @ $119.00
ubiquiti single mode SFP pair @ $22.00

you just built out a 300' fiber link for around $200 in parts yea its a little more expensive than outdoor rated cat 6 but not that bad
 
OP
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Daves Barn

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Thank you guys. A lot for me to read. Been out of town and couldn't get back to discuss.
 
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