Getting Wi-Fi throughout a large house?

[singaporesoxfan]

So I moved into a big house that was built in the 1930s and thus has a lot of brick construction, which is interfering with both my wifi and cell connections. The Verizon FIOS router that I have doesn't really penetrate into the bedroom - when I go to the bedroom, my devices still think that I have a decent connection, but the connection in truth is intermittent.
 
I've solved this somewhat by placing a powerline adapter in the bedroom, but this requires that I when I move from my living room to my bedroom I have to go into my wi-fi settings and switch to the new network manually. Using WPS to get the adapter to use the same SSID as the router seems to lead to the same problem - my devices don't seem to know that they shold transition to using the powerline adapter.
 
Getting quite frustrated by the need to switch wifi networks continually. Am thinking I should invest in a good wireless router with serious range capabilities - would that work and do people have any specific recommendations for a router? Or any other solutions?

 

[soxhop411]

So I moved into a big house that was built in the 1930s and thus has a lot of brick construction, which is interfering with both my wifi and cell connections. The Verizon FIOS router that I have doesn't really penetrate into the bedroom - when I go to the bedroom, my devices still think that I have a decent connection, but the connection in truth is intermittent.
 
I've solved this somewhat by placing a powerline adapter in the bedroom, but this requires that I when I move from my living room to my bedroom I have to go into my wi-fi settings and switch to the new network manually. Using WPS to get the adapter to use the same SSID as the router seems to lead to the same problem - my devices don't seem to know that they shold transition to using the powerline adapter.
 
Getting quite frustrated by the need to switch wifi networks continually. Am thinking I should invest in a good wireless router with serious range capabilities - would that work and do people have any specific recommendations for a router? Or any other solutions?

Have you tried a wireless repeater?
 
also I believe a powerline adapter needs to be on the same circuit to function correctly 

 

[Omar's Wacky Neighbor]

Cant say (or read) enough good things about the Asus AC68.  It's rock solid, and gets a signal thru walls (read:  bathroom and out to may back yard) that the Fios stock router couldnt come close to doing.  Havent dropped a signal once since I installed it.
 
The supposedly top-of-the-line router (Quantum Gateway?) that Fios is pushing for $199 has spotty reviews.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

Have you tried a wireless repeater?
 
also I believe a powerline adapter needs to be on the same circuit to function correctly 

 
The powerline adapter functions correctly. It's just that I have to manually change which SSID my device is connecting to.
 
I did try a wireless repeater - should have mentioned that. It works when I use it in a different part of the house or when I set it to use a different SSID, but the part of my second floor where my bedroom is seems to be a dead zone - there's no good spot that both gets the signal and repeats it without getting the "my devices say I'm connected but I'm not getting anything" problem,

 

[singaporesoxfan]

Cant say (or read) enough good things about the Asus AC68.  It's rock solid, and gets a signal thru walls (read:  bathroom and out to may back yard) that the Fios stock router couldnt come close to doing.  Havent dropped a signal once since I installed it.
 
The supposedly top-of-the-line router (Quantum Gateway?) that Fios is pushing for $199 has spotty reviews.

 
Thanks - I have the Quantum Gateway because it came free with my new Fios subscription, and it really is spotty. The AC68 I see on Amazon is a 2013 model - does that mean nothing better has come out since?

 

[Omar's Wacky Neighbor]

 
Thanks - I have the Quantum Gateway because it came free with my new Fios subscription, and it really is spotty. The AC68 I see on Amazon is a 2013 model - does that mean nothing better has come out since?

Yes and no:  faster routers have come out, but the adapters you have in your devices will likely not be able to take advantage of the faster speed AND the cost of the newer routers are much more AND none of them are as dependable as the ac68.
 
Newegg runs sales on the ac68 rather oftern, both new and recertified.  Should have you $6-9 bucks in tax right off the bat (unless youre in NJ like I am).

 

[topps148]

If it's just one room, I'd investigate the walls before trying a tech solution.  If the house is 80 years old, it was almost certainly originally lath and plaster.   It's possible that room was plastered using chicken wire(!) or re-done using diamond mesh metal lath.  In either of those cases, the room becomes a Faraday cage.
 
Edit:  Link to WSJ article from 2009:  http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB126221116097210861

 

[AlNipper49]

You could always just get an Airport Extreme and a bunch of AIrport Expresses

 

[canderson]

You could always just get an Airport Extreme and a bunch of AIrport Expresses

This is what we do to get service to our 3rd floor and out to the detached garage.

 

[HriniakPosterChild]

 
The powerline adapter functions correctly. It's just that I have to manually change which SSID my device is connecting to.
 
I did try a wireless repeater - should have mentioned that. It works when I use it in a different part of the house or when I set it to use a different SSID, but the part of my second floor where my bedroom is seems to be a dead zone - there's no good spot that both gets the signal and repeats it without getting the "my devices say I'm connected but I'm not getting anything" problem,

Can't you use a common SSID.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

Can't you use a common SSID.

 
I tried to use a common SSID, but I get the same issue. I'm guessing that when I walk from my living room to the bedroom, the devices still think they are getting a decent signal from the current router, so they don't try to switch their base station.

 

[HriniakPosterChild]

When I had a similar setup in my old condo, I successfully used a common SSID on the router and the access point (connected to the powerline adapter), but there was zero signal in the living room where I had the extra access point.

 

[crystalline]

So I moved into a big house that was built in the 1930s and thus has a lot of brick construction, which is interfering with both my wifi and cell connections. The Verizon FIOS router that I have doesn't really penetrate into the bedroom - when I go to the bedroom, my devices still think that I have a decent connection, but the connection in truth is intermittent.

 
The comments about possible wire mesh in the walls are probably the right answer.  However, when you have a strong signal but the connection is slow, this is often due to interference.  Could it be that your wifi extender is on the same channel and interfering?  When you say a big house I presume you don't have other people near enough to you to have their wifi interfere with yours.  Appliances could also interfere.  Baby monitor?
http://www.howtogeek.com/126327/how-to-get-a-better-wireless-signal-and-reduce-wireless-network-interference/
 
If you want to buy a wifi extender, I've heard good things about this:
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/09/ubiquiti-revamps-its-enterprise-unifi-gear-and-weve-got-some-to-review/
 
I've used older ubiquiti equipment and it's good if you have the time/knowledge to futz with configuration.  The radios and CPUs on their stuff are usually solid.
 
Edit: if you have a macbook, you can use "Wireless Diagnostics" to debug interference issues from other wifi devices.  Find it with spotlight then ignore the popup window and click Window->Scan.

 

[AlNipper49]

I used an app call InSSIDer to analyze channel contention.  It's the de facto standard.  It might cost a few bucks, but whatever.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

Thanks everyone, this is really helpful. Will do the diagnostics first to figure out the issue then purchase equipment accordingly.

 

[CoRP]

Speaking of routers...
 

TP-LINK TL-WR841N Wireless N300 Home Router, 300Mbps, IP QoS, WPS Button for $18.99
 
 

 

[southshoresoxfan]

So this new house is murdering my wi-fi range and speed.  Currently using a Comcast provided all in one unit.  I know upgrading this is now mandatory now that we are no longer in a small apartment.
 
Would you guys suggest any specific Modem to go with a new router, or does the modem itself not matter all that much? 2 floor older home very well insulated.  Added an extender but its slowing down the connection on thew new floor.
 
Is that router Corp just shared going to give me ideal speeds? We pay for 75mbps and I'm definitely not getting that on a consistent basis.

 

[Couperin47]

Please keep in mind that a router with all the latest high speed bands isn't going to help you if your devices don't support those latest and greatest options. Also, if that latest and greatest option is touted as having say 'up to 75 mbps throughput', in the real world if you are getting half that you are doing very well.

 

[southshoresoxfan]

Yeah im aware of that fact. But it shouldnt take me 20 seconds to download an excel file 25 feet from my router either.

 

[southshoresoxfan]

The devices we run off of it (not all at once) are a Smart TV, 2 IPads and 2 smart phones. At most 3 devices are using the signal at once.

 

[AlNipper49]

If you have any iDevices then the easiest solution is to get an Airport Extreme and then litter the rest of the house with Airport Expreses

 

[southshoresoxfan]

Does it work w non apple devices? Our only apple products are the two ipads and my DJ laptop.

 

[HriniakPosterChild]

If you have any iDevices then the easiest solution is to get an Airport Extreme and then litter the rest of the house with Airport Expreses

I've seen you recommend this before. What magic does Apple have in Airports that makes this good for extending range?

(And our Windows devices work fine with our Airport, but there is a configuration utility app that runs on OS X/iOS.)