How can I extend the range of a Wireless Router (802.11g)?

Question

I have the router installed in my basement as the whole house is wired with Cat 5 cable and all the drops are in the basement.
Is it possible to add a gateway? new antenna? or some other device to extend the range to cover deadspots I have?
OR should I use a wired router in the basement and use a wireless access point at one of the central locations on the first or second floor of my home?

Answer 1

There are some extra powerful antennas available. Not knowing how much you need to extend and what interferences there are, I do not know if one would give you the range you need.

Probably better to go with an access point or a repeater. You place one of either in the middle of the house where it has a good signal and it should amplify that signal to the rest of the house.

If you do boost the signal either way, make sure you have the WEP key or other security set up. You don't want somebody piggybacking on the signal and then doing something illegal that could get you in trouble.

Answer 2

I'm guessing that u have problems with the interference in the second floor not counting the basement, right? You could try to wire the basement computer(s) to the router and put the router on the first floor not counting the basement.The reception upstairs should come out better because the basemenet has a lot of pipes and supprt rails/collumns, and some of them are lead, so wireless would have a tough time going through. Hope this helped.

Answer 3

You can get a wireless access point that acts as a relay tower for your existing network. And you can put them throughout the house to increase the levels of signal in the parts of the house that don't get signal at all right now. Or you could get an external antenna to hook up to your wirless router that will give the wireless router an increased range (make sure your wireless router supports this first)

Answer 4

Wireless g range can be extended by several methods.
1.) Increase the antenna power (gain) of the Access Point (transmitter) - may not be possible with Ap's with built in antennas
2.) Increase antenna paower (gain) of the laptop or receiving device (is not possible with most built in units)
3.) Install a 3rd device called a repeater (or range extender) that will "stretch" your coverage to the desired area. this unit will have to be installed within range of the parent AP and your laptop (or device) with transmit signals to the repeater which, in turn , will relay the signals to the parent AP.

Answer 5

Link-sys sells long range antennas at Walmart, that are supposed to double the range!!! $50 or so!

My solution, as a Linux/BSD-Unix-MAC/DOS based OS, geek...

The Link-sys WRT54G wifi router prior to rev 5 of the firmware, is running a version of Linux with a "hacker hole", so that we can go in and raise the broadcast power form the small signal (only 38ua!) from the factory, up to the 80ua signal which is the threshold at which additional cooling is needed, (with added fans, the signal can be boosted up to a maximum of 240Ua!)!!

The WRT54G S is a bit better, than the stock Rev -5 and newer, units, running a 'closed source' Linux kernel, but, not very much! And it costs so much more!

Get more info at the http://google.com/linux search for linksys wrt54g router.

Answer 6

Hub in the basement to a wireless router somewhere in the middle. That is the cheapest way to accomplish the same thing you could spend a lot on....

Answer 7

Yep, get the WAP out of the basement and upstairs into a centrally located room.

Answer 8

you can get a wireless extender from linksys, or just by a access point and put that at the furthest point

Answer 9

For free: I think its called a "windsail" antennae. Google it.

Answer 10

go for a higher configration router