Best way to extend wifi outside?

[m3jappa]

I have recently fitted some gates which are using a Remootio device, I thought this was capable of being powered by ethernet but it isn't. just wifi.

Signal is really low (its maybe 75m away from the router in the house).

Now in time id love to have some great mesh system fitted but for now I just need to increase the signal down there. There is a wired ethernet down there and also a large electrical box which houses the Remootio and can also house whatever it is I need.

I understand a wifi range extender needs to be near the router? making them pointless perhaps.

So what do I need? do I need a wireless access point which could be wired to ethernet?

thank you

[megaphone]

Fit a small wifi access point (AP) in the box, connect it to the router via the ethernet you already have installed. You can set it up with the same WiFi name (SSID) and password to extend your existing network, or a separate dedicated SSID.

Many APs can be powered PoE down the ethernet cable, or locally if there is power available.

Check the specs of the gate control, it may be 2.4Ghz only.

Edited by megaphone on Monday 28th April 08:26

[Griffith4ever]

Connect one of these to your network / router with an ethernet cable, then point it at your gates.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-LINK-CPE210-cpe210-WLA...

You might well find it doesn't even need internet and will repeat the wifi it receives, and beam it over a new wifi network , however it is POE powered so you want to run a cable to it anyhow. Put it on a downpipe outside your house. Super easy to install.

I use a pair of them over 300m, but for 75m, one will easily do it for you.

They aren't even "that" directional - i.e. you don't need to be super accurate with the alignment.

[m3jappa]

Griffith4ever said:

Connect one of these to your network / router with an ethernet cable, then point it at your gates.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-LINK-CPE210-cpe210-WLA...

You might well find it doesn't even need internet and will repeat the wifi it receives, and beam it over a new wifi network , however it is POE powered so you want to run a cable to it anyhow. Put it on a downpipe outside your house. Super easy to install.

I use a pair of them over 300m, but for 75m, one will easily do it for you.

They aren't even "that" directional - i.e. you don't need to be super accurate with the alignment.

That looks simple enough…..I assume just plug into the existing Poe switch for power and Ethernet and then it just repeats the signal? Is that right, just plug and play? (I like that )

And it is 2.4 ghz (the Remootio is anyway).

[Sheets Tabuer]

If you're on sky you can get one of their wifi extender, I have one in my garage and it covers the garden and most of the street.

[worsy]

megaphone said:

Fit a small wifi access point (AP) in the box, connect it to the router via the ethernet you already have installed. You can set it up with the same WiFi name (SSID) and password to extend your existing network, or a separate dedicated SSID.

Many APs can be powered PoE down the ethernet cable, or locally if there is power available.

Check the specs of the gate control, it may be 2.4Ghz only.

Edited by megaphone on Monday 28th April 08:26

Alternatively, for my gate, my solution was to put a 3 pin socket off the feed and run Devolo Magic setup.

[bangerhoarder]

Is Powerline a possibility? Pretty bombproof, other than lightning/surges.

[RizzoTheRat]

You say you already have ethernet out there, so all you need is either a cheap PoE (unless you also have mains power down there) 2.4GHz wifi access point in a waterpoof box, or you can get ones designed for outdoor use like the Unifi Mesh, or Omada EAP110.

The fact you mention an existing PoE switch suggest you already have a named brand wifi setup, so whoever makes that probably does similar devices.

[m3jappa]

Yes already got Ethernet down there off a Poe switch.

Am I right in thinking this will do the job?

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/5585575

As it’s away from the house down at the gate should I have any concern for security or does something like this just effectively extend the range of the WiFi?

I am sorry about the basic questions. I am technologically impotent

[worsy]

m3jappa said:

Yes already got Ethernet down there off a Poe switch.

Am I right in thinking this will do the job?

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/5585575

As it’s away from the house down at the gate should I have any concern for security or does something like this just effectively extend the range of the WiFi?

I am sorry about the basic questions. I am technologically impotent

Yup does the job. It will have it's own security set up so you can have the same or different ssid to the house.

[megaphone]

m3jappa said:

Yes already got Ethernet down there off a Poe switch.

Am I right in thinking this will do the job?

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/5585575

As it’s away from the house down at the gate should I have any concern for security or does something like this just effectively extend the range of the WiFi?

I am sorry about the basic questions. I am technologically impotent

Thats not what you want, that is a powerline for sending the ethernet over the mains. You need a Wifi Access point, use your installed ethernet cable, you can PoE it off the existing switch you say you have.

[RizzoTheRat]

Something like this, but quite a few similar options for <£50

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cudy-Outdoor-Lightning-pr...

Assuming you have mains power in the box for the gate you wouldn't necessarily need POE which gives a few more options as PoE us usually on the more expensive models

[Griffith4ever]

m3jappa said:

Yes already got Ethernet down there off a Poe switch.

Am I right in thinking this will do the job?

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/5585575

As it’s away from the house down at the gate should I have any concern for security or does something like this just effectively extend the range of the WiFi?

I am sorry about the basic questions. I am technologically impotent

You want the thing that I or Rizzo linked.

And yes, you can use your existing POE, assuming its the standard 24v (I think) system. My CPE came with a POE injector which I use as I don't have a POE switch.

LAN -> Cable into mains powered injector -> Cable to CPE

Its that easy.

I have the TP Link I linked(!) and its been outside in all weather for at least 6 or 7 years.

[skeeterm5]

Griffith4ever said:

You want the thing that I or Rizzo linked.

And yes, you can use your existing POE, assuming its the standard 24v (I think) system. My CPE came with a POE injector which I use as I don't have a POE switch.

LAN -> Cable into mains powered injector -> Cable to CPE

Its that easy.

I have the TP Link I linked(!) and its been outside in all weather for at least 6 or 7 years.

Can I ask a couple of questions?

Can it be plugged into an extender rather than the main router?

How crucial is line of sight? My main router is in one corner or the house and I would want to use it to get WiFi to a barn which is on the opposite side of the house and lower down.

[RizzoTheRat]

If I'm understanding you correctly, I think you mean a wifi bridge. Your router plugs in to one wifi node via ethernet, your end device plugs in to another one, and the connection in the middle is done over wifi. This is pretty standard on any mesh setup like the TP-Link Deco or netgear orbi, but obviously they need to have ethernet ports, I'm not sure what the mesh nodes BT and other ISPs provide.
For longer distances you can get dedicated wifi bridges that have a directional antenna so can cover much longer ranges.
Depending on distances, you could potentially use a mesh setup with one by your router, one the other side of the house, and one in the barn. However you're going to lose speed on each of the wifi links. If you can put one in, a cable will always beat wifi. Powerline is another potential option, but I've never managed particular good speeds with it. You can get mesh systems with powerline built in as an additional method of communication though.

Edited by RizzoTheRat on Tuesday 29th April 08:20

[osterbo]

m3jappa said:

Yes already got Ethernet down there off a Poe switch.

Am I right in thinking this will do the job?

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/5585575

As it’s away from the house down at the gate should I have any concern for security or does something like this just effectively extend the range of the WiFi?

I am sorry about the basic questions. I am technologically impotent

What is the WiFi in your house? Is it a single router in one place? What model?

Based on what you've said so far, you don't need to extend your WiFi. What you want is to create a separate wifi for the gate. So buy the most basic wireless access point, something like this:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/TP-Link-Wireless-Controll...

[Griffith4ever]

skeeterm5 said:

Can I ask a couple of questions?

Can it be plugged into an extender rather than the main router?

How crucial is line of sight? My main router is in one corner or the house and I would want to use it to get WiFi to a barn which is on the opposite side of the house and lower down.

As long as it gets internet at a speed you are happy with , then it makes no odds what its source of LAN is . You'll have to use the POE injector, after the extender, of course. It's just a wireless access point, albeit long range. Seriously, don't just buy an access point as posted above, buy a CPE - they are designed for outside, but more crucially, they are much much more powerful and designed for the job. Whilst a regular AP might work, a CPE WILL work, and they cost the same.

Just be aware of ONE thing. I've had routers on the other end of powerline extenders before, and whilst all the devices worked (badly) - the router at the other end was invisible to pings and network mapping. You had to know its IP to access it. It was odd, but thats powerline adapters for you.

LOS - no - mine goes through many trees. Buildings? - no - you are going to struggle, but foliage (BIG oak trees) doesn't stop it working.

This is what mine goes through: (the container end CPE is on a pole about 20ft off the ground- well below tree height - but high enough to stop theives getting at it)

Edited by Griffith4ever on Tuesday 29th April 11:23

[m3jappa]

All sorted now and from this I understand a tiny bit more than I did.

I went to my local computer shop and had a chat and came away with a ubiquiti u7 lite.

So now down at the gate even in an enclosed box it’s still getting 70mb download speed.

Remootio app working much better.

Just need a couple for the house now.

Currently using the old bt whole home to extend the WiFi but it’s not great, quite old now tbh.

Thanks for all the help. One day I’ll understand all this

[sgrimshaw]

m3jappa said:

So what do I need? do I need a wireless access point which could be wired to ethernet?

thank you

£20 on Amazon ... used one of these for years, been faultless:



https://www.tp-link.com/uk/home-networking/wifi-ro...