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This should be a simple quest in 2019 but alas it seems to be a bit of a challenge. I want to get Wifi in my garage so I can Zwift this winter. No rush. Ideally I'd use this on my old iPad (which I could convert for garage-only use). It's one of the very old ones with a 30pin cable.
The problem is that my garage is away from my house - probably only 30m away but evidently there are too many walls in the way and the wifi doesn't work. My router is placed inside my house as close to the garage as possible (and anyway I can't move it easily). I also don't get any 4G phone signal in there, although if I step 1m outside I get wifi and 4G. Perhaps importantly, the garage gets mains electricity from the house. I don't have anywhere 'in between' the house and the garage that I could put a wifi repeater.
I'm looking for innovative solutions to this rather irritating problem. I have wondered about buying a better router - I'm using the one that came with my broadband (NowTV) which is fine for us inside the house but clearly may not have the range of a more expensive router. I doubt that a new router will solve all my problems because my garage seems to be a complete wifi / 4G dead zone.
Perhaps a wifi extender with an aerial that I can run outside somehow?
I could get an internet over power thingy (I think) and then another router (or some sort of iPad ethernet adaptor?) in the garage. Seems convoluted?
Any other suggestions?
Run some Cat5 in conduit to another bit of WiFi hardware in the garage?
If you have mains electricity from the house to the garage, how about a power line adapter with WiFi, I had an almost identical problem, now using a netgear unit bought from Amazon for around £40, it works perfectly and as an added bonus the whole family can now all get full strength WiFi in our whole 80ft long garden.
Homeplugs - one with an Ethernet port that pugs into your router, the other with built-in WiFi goes in your garage.
I use the Devlo kit from the link below and it works really well.
If you have mains electricity from the house to the garage, how about a power line adapter with WiFi, I had an almost identical problem, now using a netgear unit bought from Amazon for around £40, it works perfectly and as an added bonus the whole family can now all get full strength WiFi in our whole 80ft long garden.
This is exactly what I did to get wifi in the garage. Works a treat!
My mistake, the one I use is this: TP-Link TL-WPA4220KIT
My mistake, the one I use is this: TP-Link TL-WPA4220KIT
Oooh that seems to be exactly what I need. Perhaps this isn't as complicated as I thought. Anything better than that? If not I'll get it ordered. Thanks!
I have exactly same problem as you. Detached garage just out of reach of WiFi signal. Unfortunately, my garage is on its own circuit, so I went for the Cat5 option 😂 Some external grade stuff off eBay, I basically plug it into the ethernet port of the router and traipse it thru and out of the kitchen window to the laptop in the garage. Reet ol' PitA...but I do get a great hardwired 100mbs connection...
^ Would be much less a continual PITA to do it once and do it right 😉
Similar situation but our garage is 100m away(old house with daft zig zag arrangements, definitely not humblebrag) and in a separate breaker board, so Powerline didn't work. I had to dig a trench and sink some Cat5 in conduit.
where are you? I have a Wifi Powerline set that I'm not using at the moment. Would be happy to lend it for testing/loan/keeps. NE England.
Powerline works fine and will do the trick. However I can't help feeling its a bit of a Heath Robinson fix. So much effort is taken to create Cat 5 and Cat 6 cable...its all shielded, covered by all sorts of standards and strict rules and regulations all designed to improve the quality of the signal, reduce losses and protect from external interference sources...then powerline just chucks the signal over a bit of 20 year old twin and earth going through countless junction boxes fixed by screws with questionable and varied quality of workmanship when originally installed.
But yes despite all that, powerline appears to work. I've got one powerline circuit in my home as a temporary measure until I can route some cat 5 around the place, but i'd always be inclined to look for a Cat 5 or WiFi solution.
I've just upgraded my Wifi router to one of these new Mesh ones and it's in a whole other league than the previous setup and now get banging wifi all around the home, into the garden and my integrated garage. No dead spots or anything.
My experience of powerline plugs is that they do work, but rather slowly. If all the OP is using it for is Zwift though, I can't see that being much of an issue.
Expensive but ubiquiti make a number of wifi Mesh products that will get wifi to your garage. Cat5 is more effort but probably a decent amount cheaper.
I got a TP link set up, and mine is over 60 linear meters of cable.
a bit of a Heath Robinson fix
Agreed, but good enough is good enough.
I've used powerline in the past and was ok ish - recently starting using google mesh - have to say its superb if a little pricey
I wish I'd run a conduit out to my shed or at least some way of easily getting Cat5/6 cable in. Had to retro-fit it -- strung cable out of house and into shed under the slate work. Works fine but always think of what might have ben done better..
Hard wired my garage and fitted a router. This covers the garage and garden.
Did this with 2 ubiquiti nano stations creating a network bridge, with the one in the garage connected to a TP link access point, works well and v reliably
I initially read: Wife in my garage....
Thought you had major problems for a moment.
Get an old router from someone who's upgraded. Run a Cat5e cable from one of your current router's spare ports into the garage and plug the cable into the other router (garage end) using the same port number.
Go into settings on your current router and note down the SSID and DNS settings making sure auto DHCP connection is on (it should default to this).
Then go to the garage router and connect a laptop or PC via a Cat5e directly to the router and go to the admin settings.
Replicate the main house router in terms of SSID name and DNS settings and then save.
It should act as an extension now to the other router.
Factory reset the garage router settings before you start this.
I use this setup in my attic and it works fine.
... or spend thirty quid on a wireless access point.
I've got a couple of BT Vision powerline adapters so could I use these to get wifi in my shed at 20m from the house?
The shed is powered by a new armoured cable as part of the rewire we did when we moved in..
some sort of iPad ethernet adaptor
Not sure such a thing exists with 30 pin; Apple have just approved Ethernet to Lightning.
Best bet would be a cheap access point if you can get Ethernet cabling to the garage.
I use the same TP Link adapter - got a CCTV and a destop plugged into the ethernet sockets on the TP Link powerline adapter in the garage. Recently upgraded to BT Mesh system, so I just switched off the wifi, but still use the two ethernet sockets. The laptop when using Zwift just connects via the Mesh now.