Wifi issues - full timer - Help appreciated

[jch2122]

So, I'm going to be living full time in an RV parked outside of my parents house for a few months, and I need to solve this wifi issue because it's driving me crazy. We are parked outside of the house on the opposite side of where the only wired connection is at, so we're about 80-100 feet away from the router that I set up. A wifi app that I have says we're getting about a 50% connection to that router, and the speeds/connection wasn't good at all so we bought an extender. We placed it right under the window on the side of the house we're parked at, so we're only about 15-20 feet away. Everything is in line of site, so even though it's long distances there aren't but one or two walls it's all going through. The connection from the router to the extender is showing 93%, and our connection while in the rv to the extender is about 90%, so we're getting good connections. The issue is that the connection is constantly dropping out, and when it is connected it's extremely laggy. We run the speeds and sometimes it's less than 2mbps, regardless of us getting a great connection. There's no way to run a wired connection to the camper conveniently. We've tried powerline extenders but the power we have running to the camper through the electrical box on the house doesn't seem to carry the connection and we can't get it to work. I've tried every available wifi channel. I've tried tin foil with the antenna to direct the signal. I've tried 5ghz and 2.4ghz. I've tried everything I can think of. We have the amazon firestick and the way it works is it connects to our wifi and somehow sets up a wifi connection from the remote to the stick using the same channel, so I thought that might be causing interference, but we connected that to 5ghz while we connected to 2.4ghz since that'd put it on different channels but it doesn't work any better. It's frustrating to the point where I'm ready to give up, but with the work I do I need internet access. Has anyone ever been in a similar situation and found a good solution? I'm willing to put money into it, but I don't know where to go. I've called the internet company and they said they could run a wire to the camper but they'd have to charge me another monthly fee for having another wired connection, which is crazy. Thanks in advance for any assistance.

[jcpainter]

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Read all about it Here.

If you are in a good Verizon area, this would be worth serious consideration.

[delwhjr]

TheBearAK wrote:
I've pretty much given up on Linksys/Cisco home routers. I've been a network manager pretty much since the early days (token ring, RS-232, etc). I used to like the Linksys routers, but then started having lots of power supply issues with them. Then once Cisco stepped in and started putting their name on the Linksys, the quality seemed to drop.

For a long time I was pretty anti-DLINK because we went through a bunch of the DLINK hubs and routers that would just have a port go dead, but that seems to be a non-issue now. My current favorite for bang-for-the-buck is the Belkin routers. The AC1600 is what I've been buying for customers and have not had a single issue with any of them (more than 80 of them). And the range is really amazing considering these do not have external antennas. They are highly regarded in the gamer and hackers world because the CPU inside them is one of the fastest in a home router.


That said, it still would be good to connect via ethernet to the router you have and make sure there are no issues with the ISP. 100' CAT 5e or CAT6 ethernet cables are not that expensive.

A definite 2nd on the Belkin. Great little unit. Another to check out is ASUS. They make some pretty hefty items.

[delwhjr]

jcpainter wrote:

rhochnadel wrote:
I was told by AT&T they discontinued the mobley, would not hook it up any longer.

Whomever you spoke to was misinformed.

That is right. The problem right now is keeping them in stock. The website shows in stock then out of stock regularly. ABC warehouse and Best Buy are also good places to check. If not in stock today, check again tomorrow. It is that popular.
The connected car plan is only $20 month unlimited but you sometimes have to tell the ATT person about it as some seem to not know.
With an AC adapter it works well in house and other locations.

[TheBearAK]

I've pretty much given up on Linksys/Cisco home routers. I've been a network manager pretty much since the early days (token ring, RS-232, etc). I used to like the Linksys routers, but then started having lots of power supply issues with them. Then once Cisco stepped in and started putting their name on the Linksys, the quality seemed to drop.

For a long time I was pretty anti-DLINK because we went through a bunch of the DLINK hubs and routers that would just have a port go dead, but that seems to be a non-issue now. My current favorite for bang-for-the-buck is the Belkin routers. The AC1600 is what I've been buying for customers and have not had a single issue with any of them (more than 80 of them). And the range is really amazing considering these do not have external antennas. They are highly regarded in the gamer and hackers world because the CPU inside them is one of the fastest in a home router.


That said, it still would be good to connect via ethernet to the router you have and make sure there are no issues with the ISP. 100' CAT 5e or CAT6 ethernet cables are not that expensive.

[coolmom42]

1) connect to the router with Ethernet cable, and go to speedtest.com and check the speed directly at the router. That may be the problem. You may need a service upgrade.

2) update the firmware on the router.

3) if those don't work, get a new router.

4) run a cable directly from your router around the house. Yes, you can get CAT5 cable that long. Find a local electronics shop to make up the ends for you. Use some Command brand hooks to secure the cable for temporary use, or tuck it under some trim. Just keep it up out of the way of lawnmowers and weedeaters.

[Crabbypatty]

What do you have in your rv, that will enhance the wifi signal from the outside? The Camper is a tin can that essentially stops radio waves from coming in and out, whether its wifi or cell phone it doesnt discriminate. I placed on my roof a marine grade wifi antenna, with a Hawkings amplifier connected to a Smart Repeater, It pulls in the signal and provides wifi inside. Google Hawkings Wifi and Smart Repeater. This will set you up. We just outer beach camped and connected to the parks wifi hundreds of feet away and streamed Netflix.

[jcpainter]

rhochnadel wrote:
I was told by AT&T they discontinued the mobley, would not hook it up any longer.

Whomever you spoke to was misinformed.

[happycamper002]

Duplicate post.

[happycamper002]

I know how frustrating it is with slow or dropping internet connection. After reading and re-reading your initial post, I noticed that you did not mention what speed (Mbps) your parents had signed in for.

With your system being included (now) in the existing data-receiving set up,you are essentially starving of data that your devices need to operate satisfactorily.

You said that you are using an Amazon Firestick. Watching movies through your web connection can really tax your system horribly...hence the drop outs.

You also said that you are willing to spend some money to improve performance. The first thing to check is if your existing broadband modem is capable of handling higher data delivery. Do some research from the plethora of modems in the market before calling your provider for an increase in data delivery.

No increase of performance can be achieved by adding extenders or increasing signal strength if your connection is slow.

Think of it as pumping water with a high output pump when in fact the supplied water at the intake cannot keep up with the liquid being drawn.

[Gulfcoast]

Mobley:

[rhochnadel]

I was told by AT&T they discontinued the mobley, would not hook it up any longer.

[MrWizard]

often
the router supplied from the internet provider can be replaced with a better one from, Frys, New Egg, or Amazon etc..

could be lousy service from the ISP

do any of the PC's yours or moms
have an ether net lan port
try connecting directly to isp modem for test purposes and see how good or bad the service is

[jcpainter]

jch2122 wrote:

jcpainter wrote:
What do you have in your RV to help with this?

Are you by chance in a good AT&T area? If so, you can get an unlimited Mobley for $20 a month.

I've never heard of that. Thanks for the info.

It's really a super bargain. AT&T is often out of stock and most store employees are unfamiliar with it. Mobley This version only allows 5 connections, but there is one being sold on Amazon that allows 10 connections. Mobley with 10 connections

You will also need the ODBC to AC adapter cable to use it in a "regular" AC connection.

[jch2122]

TheBearAK wrote:
First, which WiFi router do you have? Newer duel bands have a longer range.

A lot of different factors can go into why you're getting drops.

- How many other WiFi networks are visible in your spot? If more than just you own, make sure the channels are different from your neighbors. Modern routers should do this automatically, but neighbors might not have them and they can overlap and cause issues.

- Microwaves can interfere, specially in the 2.4 Ghz range. 2.4 Ghz is also widely used and other devices like land-line telephones (wireless kind) can interfere.

- Metal boxes, such as a motorhome can shield signals.


As for range extenders, I've never really had much luck with them. I've gotten them to work, but they were often slow and added a lot of lag.

naturist has a point, if you can just run a long ethernet cable around the house, that would be the best way of extending the network. Even if you just ran the ethernet cable from one side to the other and connected the extender. WiFi extenders usually have an ethernet port so you can use them as an Access Point.

It's a dual band ac 1200 linksys router. I've had the router set on auto, but I also tried manually changing to other channels. There are only 1 or 2 other wifi's in range, and they are both on different channels than I'm on now. I thought it could be the range extender but someone living in the house that only connects to the router says they have issues like mine as well, so it seems to be with both the router and extender. I might have to do what you said with running the cable to the extender. It's about 60 feet and right in the middle of everything, but I'm sure I can make it work.