Best Ways to Install an Outdoor WiFi Antenna
Several things can slow down or stop radio waves. First, the antenna need to be set up and tuned to get a better signal from a long distance away.
Antennas installed outside should have a clear line of sight. This means that trees and buildings can’t be in the way. When putting up point-to-point or point-to-multipoint antennas with a long-range, ensure nothing is in their line of sight. If you can’t get rid of the obstacles, you can always put them higher so the signal can go over them.
WiFi Antenna Alignment
For a long-range network to work, the antennas need to be aimed at each other. For instance, a point-to-point network needs each building to have a directional antenna. If two antennas are facing each other but one was put up higher than the other, they won’t be able to communicate to each other.
WiFi Antenna Orientation
Make sure that your antenna points toward the base station. A base station is the source of a wireless signal. It can be an antenna that sends the signal in one direction or in all directions.
As we’ve already said, most WiFi antennas are vertically polarized. This means that for a network to work, vertically polarized outdoor antennas should be lined up vertically with each other. If a directional antenna is facing horizontally and the base antenna is facing up, the antennas won’t be able to talk to each other.
Know how much you really need to gain
When the signal travels a long distance, you will need antennas with a higher gain. On the other hand, a high-gain antenna is not always the best way to improve the signal in your backyard. A high-gain outdoor antenna could spread the signal too far, making it stronger, farther away, and weaker in your backyard.
Use the shortest cable that can work
Wireless signals can be lost through cables, so use the shortest cable length possible to keep as much of the signal as possible. If you need a longer cable, don’t wrap it or coil it around anything.
Best Ways to Install an Indoor WiFi Antenna
Indoor antennas work best when their signal isn’t blocked by things like walls, metal, doors, floors, and furniture. The antennas must be put in the best place possible to reduce interference and get the best signal strength and range. In an ideal situation, the antennas should be put in the middle, where they won’t be blocked by anything.
Your signal can also be changed by how your router’s omnidirectional antennas are set up. A former Apple WiFi engineer says that your wireless signal is not at its best when the antennas on your router are pointing straight up. If one antenna is straight up and the other is flat on the ground, you may get better speeds and coverage. So, the router can talk to both types of linear polarities.
