NETGEAR is aware of a growing number of phone and online scams. To learn how to stay safe click here.
Forum Discussion
Range Extender Help
Hey All,
Looking for suggestions to extend the range of my Orbi RBR40 and 2 RBW30 Satellites. I currently have a detached workshop from my home that is about 100 ft away from where my RBR40 is located. I have a satellite installed there now but the Wi-Fi is spotty at best. Looking for something to add to my current configuration to boost the signal so I can get better Wi-Fi in this building. Thanks in advance for your advice!
Joe
2 Replies
Alas, I see nothing. 100 ft. is too far. And, the RBW30 lacks the feature essential to most solutions: an ethernet jack.
The #1 solution is always "run an outdoor rated ethernet cable". Provides full speed, no interference.
If that is impractical (as it often is), purchase a substitute for an ethernet cable, such as a pair of Ubiquity Nanostation M:
https://www.ui.com/airmax/nanostationm/
I have never installed this myself, and have no idea if it is better than, worse than, or "a good buy" compared to similar products. Amazon has them from at least a half dozen brands at various prices. I, personally, would prefer a "known brand" than one of the "no name" brands, but that's just me. Whoever they are, they probably have reverse engineered a product that they have been manufacturing for an established company for years. Who knows?
Alas, no ethernet jack means this solution cannot be used. So, I would pair a "radio-as-ethernet" lin with an inexpensive 2.4G/5G access point (from any brand) and assign it the same SSID and password as the Orbi. Take the RBW30 back to the main house and plug it in somewhere.
What material is the workshop walls made of? As well as the home walls?
Most devices work decently within a a standard wood/sheetrock home because wood sheetrock doesn't block a ton of signals. but then you try to get external to the home and you have things like foil lined insulation and different types of siding that block signals quite well.
One of the biggest blockers of wifi is metal siding, tin, brick, concrete. If you've got those, or a lot of wifi interference, your best best is to run a underground ethernet wire, potentially powerline/moca adapter, or even a point to point system to get coverage out there.
