How to get rid of WiFi Black Spots in your home
The best place to put your BeeBu WiFi Extender
In our increasingly connected world, a strong and reliable WiFi signal is essential for everything from streaming your favourite box set, gaming or working from home – even your fridge and washing machine might now be connected! However, in the UK many of us still struggle with home broadband speeds and WiFi black spots. BeeBu is a challenger brand to the big home broadband providers like BT, Virgin Media and EE, we believe that ultra fast broadband should be available to everyone and should be cost effective. What’s more, with our BeeBu Hub Extender, we can get rid of many of your home’s black spots (areas in your home where the signal is weak or non-existent).
If you’re struggling with black spots or inconsistent connectivity, then keep reading and we’ll try and demystify connection black spots in your home.
What are WiFi Black Spots
WiFi black spots can occur for several reasons:
1. Distance from the Router: The further you or your device is from your WiFi router, the weaker the signal will be.
2. Obstructions: Walls, furniture, and appliances can interfere with the signal, especially if they are made of dense materials like brick, concrete or metal.
3. Interference from Other Devices: Other electronic devices, such as microwaves and cordless phones, can cause interference disrupting your WiFi signal.
4. Outdated Equipment: Older routers or home hubs may not provide the same coverage and speed as newer models – ours for example is WiFi 6!
5. Too Advanced Technology: Many devices are not yet ready for WiFi 7 including some of the biggest household brands, so choosing the latest and greatest, might not be right just yet!
How to Identify WiFi Black Spots in your home
Before you can eliminate WiFi black spots, you need to find where they are. Here’s how:
1. Walk Around Your Home: Take note of areas where the signal drops significantly or where your devices struggle to connect.
2. Check for Obstructions: Identify any physical barriers that could be blocking the signal in the locations of the black spots. If you live in a home with more than two levels or solid block walls, then chances are a standard router will struggle to connect lots of devices consistently.
3. Use a WiFi Analyzer App: If you’re super techie, or you’ve had ongoing issues, your broadband provider might have sent and engineer to visit or requested you to download a WiFi analyser app on your smartphone to help visualize the strength of your WiFi signal throughout your home.
Eliminating WiFi Black Spots with the BeeBu Hub & Extender
1. Optimal Placement of the BeeBu Hub (also known as a router) and your WiFi Extender
Once you’ve identified the black spots in your home, it’s time to strategically place your BeeBu extender for maximum effect. Here are some tips:
– Midway Between the Hub / Router and the Black Spot: Position the extender about halfway between your router and the area with poor coverage. This allows the extender to capture the existing signal and amplify it into the black spot.
– Location, Location, Location: Place the extender on a high shelf or surface to minimize interference and maximize coverage. The higher the device, the better the line of sight to the router and the area you want to cover.
– Avoid Obstructions: Keep the extender away from walls, metal objects like radiators, and other electronics that could interfere with the signal. Ideally, it should have a clear line of sight to both the router and the area you want to cover. Appliances such as microwaves are often bad news too, so make sure your hub and extender are both away from things like this.
2. Adjusting Settings for Optimal Performance
Once you’ve placed your BeeBu Reach extender, you can enhance its performance by:
– Using the Same SSID: When setting up the extender, consider using the same SSID (network name) as your primary router. This allows for seamless transitions between the router and extender as you move around your home.
– Firmware Updates: Ensure that your BeeBu hub and extender is running the latest firmware. Updates can improve performance and security. Make sure you switch off routers and extenders from time to time. Often settings are updated by your ISP (internet service provider) and these will update when you perform a reboot. We advise you switch off for around 15 minutes and then switch back on for our Hub and Extender to fully reboot.
What if that doesn’t help?
When you’ve tried simple tips such as switch off and checking physical barriers, if you are still having issues then its time dig a little deeper and at this if your not a technical whiz, its time to call your provider and check your Network Config and settings:
– Network Configuration: Your ISP will guide you through the network settings on your extender and further optimize performance, but they will always walk you through the basics first as chances are that will be enough to sort our your black spot and connectivity challenges.
Additional Tips for WiFi Optimization
– Upgrade Your Router: If your router is outdated, then maybe it’s time to consider upgrading to a newer model with better coverage and speed. If your router is more than 3-5 years old, then speak with your ISP / home broadband provider to see if this might help. With more recent models, they can often reset your settings and force a firmware update on reboot before you need to go to the full extent of replacing your router.
– Use Additional Extenders: If you have a larger home or multiple black spots, you may need more than one extender to achieve complete coverage.
– Regularly Test Your Speed: Use speed test applications to monitor your internet speed in different areas after making adjustments, ensuring that your efforts are effective. Remember, that WiFi speeds in your home will be per device and less than if you directly connected that device via a cable to your home router. If you have lots of devices connected to your internet, then WiFi will also be lower per device.
– Remove old devices from your network. There may be old devices connected to your home internet or more devices than you realize! If you have kids in the house too, you might find your WiFi speeds drop when they have friends visiting – chances are they’ve shared your WiFi – just make sure you regularly do a little bit of WiFi connection housekeeping.
Eliminating WiFi black spots in your home can be quite simple and don’t forget if you are a BeeBu customer we will help you every step of the way to find your perfect WiFi set up. If you’re not super technical, understanding the causes of weak signals, strategically placing your BeeBu Reach extender, and making necessary adjustments, you can enjoy uninterrupted connectivity throughout your living space. With a little time and effort, you’ll be well on your way to a seamless online experience in every corner of your home.
To discover more about BeeBu’s ultrafast full-fibre broadband and determine availability in your postcode area, check your postcode here.
We hope you have found this useful. If you have suggestions for future topics, please feel free to email our team marketing@beebu.co.uk. We’re here to help – happy surfing!