I'm trying to get wireless reception to my detached garage. I have a cable modem with a Cisco Valet Plus router (I understood it was one of the longest range routers available) in my family room which sets near the wall between the family room and a attached garage. The wall is two deep block for the first story and then brick on the outside second story. The wall in the family room is also primarily brick due to a fireplace. The attached garage is 28' long and then the detached garage that I'm trying to reach is 35' away. I tried a Netgear range extender in the attached garage but it didn't work. The house is 2 story brick with a steel garage door on the end of the attached garage facing the detached garage which is vinyl siding. Any ideas on extending the wireless to this other garage? All the masonry blocking the signal?
Wireless help
- Thread starter copo69
- Start date
Lippyp
Well-known member
We have an old house (1903) and all the internal walls bar the two bathroom walls are brick (and ****** hard brick at that) and our wireless reception ***** around the house, thats with a netgear router with a bigger than standard antenna. It really doesn't like solid walls especially not 100 year old overbaked red bricks (many's the masonry drill tip thats burnt off trying to drill into them) The best solution will be to cable it up.
DZL JIM
Well-known member
Change location of the extender?
Locate near a window, or possibly in the attic so it only has to shoot through shingles.
??
I have one set-up to get wireless in my house from my detached shop, and it works really well, though I don't have any masonry obstacles.
Locate near a window, or possibly in the attic so it only has to shoot through shingles.
??
I have one set-up to get wireless in my house from my detached shop, and it works really well, though I don't have any masonry obstacles.
NitroPress
Well-known member
One of the things to remember about wifi is that the signals are "linear" - they are highly directional, and the exact configuration of walls between the router and the computer matter. If you have a standard frame wall that's exactly perpendicular to both, you have a 5-inch barrier to the signal. If the router and computer are at a 45 degree angle across the wall... you have a nearly seven-inch wall in the way (visualize the angle). Two wifi elements ten feet apart along two sides of a wall have a VERY thick wall in the way. So every wall at an angle in between the two is much thicker than its nominal thickness, and adding to the signal loss. You've got highly blocking walls as well.
You may have to go to an external antenna. Put the router as close to the wall facing the garage as possible, then route a cable out to an external pole or focused antenna, which you can find online at a reasonable price. That should get the signal to your garage with sufficient strength. Oh, you should be using 802.11n, too - MUCH stronger than b or g.
Me, I hate the vagaries of wireless and run cable whenever I can. If you want a reliable, trouble-free connection, consider running a DB cable across instead.
You may have to go to an external antenna. Put the router as close to the wall facing the garage as possible, then route a cable out to an external pole or focused antenna, which you can find online at a reasonable price. That should get the signal to your garage with sufficient strength. Oh, you should be using 802.11n, too - MUCH stronger than b or g.
Me, I hate the vagaries of wireless and run cable whenever I can. If you want a reliable, trouble-free connection, consider running a DB cable across instead.
kvanderploeg
Member
A few suggestions here:
1. Return the Netgear extender and get your money back.
2. Try changing the direction, tilt, and angle of the existing wireless router.
3. The router you have does not have an option for external antennas, so no real help there. You could return that router for a model that does still have external antennas and buy a directional antenna for it. Something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833127243
4. Run a cable from your existing router to the far end of the attached garage, as close as possible to the detached garage. Attach an access point. Something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833704052
5. Keep the antennas as high as possible and try changing the direction/angle of the antennas as well.
Wireless is a fickle beast. I manage a network for a school district and we have ~850 access points over 32 sites.
Kent
1. Return the Netgear extender and get your money back.
2. Try changing the direction, tilt, and angle of the existing wireless router.
3. The router you have does not have an option for external antennas, so no real help there. You could return that router for a model that does still have external antennas and buy a directional antenna for it. Something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833127243
4. Run a cable from your existing router to the far end of the attached garage, as close as possible to the detached garage. Attach an access point. Something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833704052
5. Keep the antennas as high as possible and try changing the direction/angle of the antennas as well.
Wireless is a fickle beast. I manage a network for a school district and we have ~850 access points over 32 sites.
Kent
It is hard to "see" what you are saying with out a drawing. But it sounds like you are have a wireless router in your living room that is burning threw a brick wall in to your 1st garage. That garage is 28' long and there is another brick wall before it gets to your 2nd garage? I don't see that working at all.
Does your 2nd floor have a window that can see the 2nd garage? You may have to run an ethernet cable to your 1st garage. Then put a second AP at the wall closet to your 2nd garage. If that doesn't work you'll have to mount a patch antenna on the outside of your 1st garage running the antenna cables threw the wall to the AP.
Here is what I would do to test. If you have a window in he 2nd story put the ap in the window. It doesn't have to be plugged in to the internet to send out the signal. Next plug the AP up in the 1st garage closet to the 2nd garage. Download this program for your laptop. http://www.metageek.net/products/inssider/ do this before moving your wireless router and test in the 2nd garage to see what your signal is.
inssider will show you how strong you are seeing the AP. The lower the number the better. It displays in negative values so the closer to 0 the stronger it is. -75 is the limit for good service but it should work up to low -80s. You really want to see -65 for good performance. Also remember wireless is a two way street. Just because you have a strong AP it doesn't matter because a weak client can't talk back to it. Cell phones have pretty crappy wifi.
With the inssider you can do a basic site survey. Run those couple of test and report back to us. I would test your current setup also to see how much the walls are killing the signal.
Robert C
New member
Steevo
Well-known member
This is what I was going to suggest. If you can't cable the detached garage, and if the same main electrical panel feeds both the house and the detached garage, then one of these power line transmitters will work.
Both units should be on the same leg of the power panel, so you might have to figure that out.
theoldwizard1
Well-known member
Google is your friend. Lots of info on cheap antennas.
Ethernet over power is a good option.
Ethernet over power is a good option.
HOTFR8
Banned
If your garage is metal you have what is called a Faraday Cage.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faraday_cage
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faraday_cage
cashishift
Well-known member
Apple Airport
NitroPress
Well-known member
= overpriced, elitist version of everyone else's product, and works no better in the OP's situation.
I have had similar problems. Trust me, a wireless solution is not going to be reliable for any decent periods of time. It will always piss you off. Take my word on this, and see about running a wire to your garage. Run a couple, you never know when you will mess one up, and will be glad you ran a spare.
The location in the garage should be by an outlet. Why? Well because from there, you can put in a wireless switch, and if you really want, you can run more wires from there, inside the garage.
No matter how you slice it though, a wired connection will be 10000000000000% more reliable.
The location in the garage should be by an outlet. Why? Well because from there, you can put in a wireless switch, and if you really want, you can run more wires from there, inside the garage.
No matter how you slice it though, a wired connection will be 10000000000000% more reliable.
NitroPress
Well-known member
Concur on both counts. Bite the bullet and run a trenched wire between the buildings... and while you're at it, run three completely separate Cat-6 cables - it costs next to nothing and you WILL find uses for them. Especially if you're going to try and stream video or access other high-bandwidth material, and specially-specially if you want to never have to stop and f*ck with the connection in the middle of something.
D KRAGER
Well-known member
I have high gain antennas on the router in the house, then in the garage I have an access point with a yagi antenna facing out the garage window towards the house. Works good, but there are a number of different network settings that you have to change and configure.
If you're not good with network stuff and don't want to reboot routers after power failures, then take the time and bury the wire. Remember though 300' is max for a cable run.
If you're not good with network stuff and don't want to reboot routers after power failures, then take the time and bury the wire. Remember though 300' is max for a cable run.
I have heard good things about Hawkins range extenders.
They apparently blow the other non commercial stuff out of the water, but I have not tested one. I specialize in commercial IT infrastructure, so have more experience in the commercial space.
I might get one for my house to test it out though, as my garage is detached and my wireless signal ***** in there.
They apparently blow the other non commercial stuff out of the water, but I have not tested one. I specialize in commercial IT infrastructure, so have more experience in the commercial space.
I might get one for my house to test it out though, as my garage is detached and my wireless signal ***** in there.
ddawg16
Well-known member
Well.....my mother-in-law loves me.....she has FIOS....but the router was upstairs in their house at the front....but you could not get any reception downstairs in the back...much less in the back yard...
Tonight I installed a Netgear wireless extender....my MIL is downstairs with her laptap....happy as can be....full strength.....guess I earned a few more browny points....
Tonight I installed a Netgear wireless extender....my MIL is downstairs with her laptap....happy as can be....full strength.....guess I earned a few more browny points....
uconn9
Well-known member
I heard on the radio this afternoon an interview where a guy was highly recommending a cantenna. He claimed it would extend the range by 10x. Seems kind of optimistic to me, but might be worth a shot.
Here's the link to a pre-made version:
http://www.cantenna.com/
OR, here's a do-it-yourself version with a Pringles can (as mentioned above):
http://www.oreillynet.com/etel/blog/2001/07/antenna_on_the_cheap_er_chip.html
Good luck.
Here's the link to a pre-made version:
http://www.cantenna.com/
OR, here's a do-it-yourself version with a Pringles can (as mentioned above):
http://www.oreillynet.com/etel/blog/2001/07/antenna_on_the_cheap_er_chip.html
Good luck.