802.11g distance?

Question

hello,
I live in a 50 story building. i am on the 40th floor and have a outdoor deck. the pool is on the 3rd floor. also outside. below my deck. if i put my router on my deck, can i pick it up, 40 floors below? i have a D-Link DWL-923 802.11g Router/Notebook .

thx

Answer 1

Most go 100 meters. A standard story is 5 meters. 20 stories is the spec therefore. However, keep in mind that radio frequencies behave differently in different situations, so that number could be a little more or a little less.

Answer 2

Yes, this is completely possible and reasonable with the right equipment. What you want is called a "patch" antenna. It pretty much has a 180-degree radiation pattern out one side of the antenna but not the ohther. You could also look into a "yagi" antenna which is even more directional and will give more of a "spot beam" from 40 stories up whereas the patch will be much more spread out from that height. You can get either for outdoor use and you'll be able to mount it to your deck/railing and point it straight down. This is how it's done in many tall buildings and skyscrapers in the elevator shafts, so you don't lose your signal when roaming between floors. You'll just need to make sure your patch or yagi antenna has the right length of cable and the right kind of connector, like an SMA or an RP-TNC to connect to your wireless router.

Also note, if you decide to just do some trial and error and use your existing antennas just to try it, be sure to stick them out over the edge of your deck so there is clear line of site to the pool area. And make sure you point them straight out horizontally, not up/down, ley them flat because this will maximize the radiation pattern in the up/down direction. If you can get a signal at the pool, then make a friend on the 20th floor, go out on their deck, and try it there as well...

If you get it working, make sure to turn on security, at least WEP for minimal protection and preferably WPA. Otherwise many neighbors will be sitting out on their decks surfing the web on your dime.

Answer 3

It depends / probably not without substantial geek modifications. 400ft line-of-site is not impossible with 802.11, but since you're in high-density housing area, I would expect a great deal of interference from other networks.

That said, with a highly directional antenna aimed right at the pool deck, you might be able to pull it off. You could purchase one of those and plug it into your D-Link router, or you could go all-out and build your own. (See link below for an example of a directional antenna built out of a surplus satellite dish. I suspect ti would handle the distance!)

Other things worth considering:
- How is the wireless reception on your laptop? It can vary substantially by design. (E.g., plastic-framed Apple iBooks offered much better wireless range than aluminum-clad Powerbooks, although that problem has been addressed now.)
- It might be much easier to bribe a neighbor on the 4th floor to let you use his network.
- If you know can load the Japanese firmware for your router (and laptop wireless adapter) you could potentially enable channel 14. This is outside the band given to 802.11 in the U.S., so you're not supposed to use it. But of course that means that no other home networking gear is on it.

Answer 4

Probably Not. You are better to get one of those 108mbps routers that have extended distance. Unfortunately, those routers only work with their own brand of wireless cards. I know that when a 802.11g router was on the 2nd floor and I was in the basement, I got really poor signals.

Answer 5

Indoor distance on a 802.11g is about 100 meters, due to the likelihood of interference from the structure and cordless phones, microwaves, etc. However, the outdoor distance is normally rated at 300 meters.

Answer 6

There is no way that will work 40 floors down. Distance at a max is 300 ft. plus the potential for interference from other devices along the way is probable.

Answer 7

with a direct line of sight it might be possible.. hang it over the railing of your balcony... very carefully..
the estimates figure in objects like walls or flooring..
it just might be possible... that and the signal may also bounce off of other buildings on the way (if they are close enough) and this would enhance connection strength.
But 400 feet is about the limit given perfect circumstances..
your connection will probably be horrible.. but it just might work :)

Answer 8

I doubt it because there are probably other people's decks in between. However if you do have line-of-sight, then you can use a directional antenna to accomplish this.

Answer 9

according to the manuels you can go upto 100 feet.... i'm not sure about 40 floors but hey the best way to find out is to give it a shot..... worst comes to worse it doesn't work.....

Answer 10

i agree there is no way u can do it.

otherwise you can put a repeater every 2 storey untill your pool level :) you must get your neighbours to agree to it though :)