Internet access has become one of the most important things for homes and business premises. However, problems with stable and strong WiFi coverage are common in new buildings.
Imagine a situation where you are facing WiFi dead zones, low WiFi signals, inability to watch content online, or inability to quickly access pages online yet to pay your Internet Service Provider (ISP) on time. This would be frustrating.
Fortunately, you do not have to worry about this since there are measures you can take to make sure that your building, whether new or old, has strong WiFi coverage.
Here are some of the things you can do;
Use a WiFi Coverage Mapper
Using a Wifi coverage mapper allows you to create maps that show you the strength of your WiFi in different areas of your building. These maps are known as heat maps and can update automatically at set intervals to show changing connectivity.
The best WiFi coverage mappers allow you to map your WiFi controllers and then create a color-coded map for your visibility. This way, you can see coverage visibility throughout your building. They use connected devices and access point signal strengths.
All you need to do is to drop access points at different locations in your building. The WiFi coverage mapper will then use them to retrieve signal information. They use the access point signal strengths and the estimated coverage to create heat maps. Using these heat maps, you can get strong wifi coverage in areas where it is poor.
Use the 5GHz Band on Your Router
Most modern routers are either tri-band or dual-band. If you are using one of these routers, then make sure that you are connected to the 5GHz band. Most people use the 2.4GHz instead of the 5GHz band without knowing, something that can slow down their WiFi coverage.
Even though some devices such as smart speakers and doorbells can work well with the 2.4GHz band, other devices including television sets, tablets, laptops, and smartphones cannot. You, therefore, need the 5GHz band to achieve strong WiFi for your devices.
Through the WiFi settings of your devices, you can easily identify the Wi-Fi band that you are using. Allow the devices to choose the frequency that works best for them. This way, you will have strong WiFi coverage in your new building.
Check Your Router Positioning
If you have the right internet speeds, then the issue could be caused by poor positioning of your router. It is important to note that WiFi coverage can be affected by things such as solid materials like large water volumes, metal appliances, and brick walls.
This means that your network connection is one of the essentials to consider before you even start your construction project.
You, therefore, need to ensure that your router is placed in a central place in your building. The location needs to be open with open air. This provides the router with the best way to send signals to every corner of your building.
When shopping for a router, make sure that the one you settle for comes with enough strength to send signals to your entire building. This means that you should be guided by the size of your building.
Check For WiFi Freeloaders
Getting strong WiFi coverage might be affected by having many devices or users connected to your network and using it at the same time. In addition, you might have intruders or even neighbors using your network especially if you do not have a strong password.
This slows down your internet and might affect connectivity in some areas of your building. Using the administrator control panel or the mobile app of your router, you can see all the devices connected to your WiFi.
If you see any devices that you cannot identify, then change your password immediately. Always make sure that you are using a strong password. You can look at some password best practices to ensure that you are ahead of hackers and WiFi freeloaders.
Run an Internet Speed Test
Different reasons might lead to poor internet coverage in your building. Among the first few things you need to do to solve the issue is to run an internet speed test. This will allow you to get the speeds that your router gets before even converting them to a wireless signal.
There are different websites you can use to test the speed of your internet. If you realize that you have 5 Mbps or less, then you need to consult your Internet Service Provider. Most ISPs provide 20 Mbps, but this depends on the plan that you are paying for.
If you find that you are getting the right speeds but still have poor WiFi coverage in your building, then it could mean that the problem is caused by something else. You can look at solving it through any of the other solutions in this article.
Different problems can affect WiFi coverage in your building. Similarly, there are different measures you can take to improve WiFi coverage. The ones discussed above are the most basic and can solve most problems and help you get strong WiFi coverage in your new building.
