WiFi in the shop

[Dean Coss]

I have a 30’x40’ insulated metal building for my shop that I put up this past year in the backyard. My shop is probably 100’ or so from my house where my WiFi router is. I just spent about $60 on a Linksys range extender that didnt do any good, so I’m returning it. Without having to dig a trench and run Ethernet cable and listen to the wife carry on for the next month why the yard looks like hell, I would like to hear from someone with a similar setup and how they were able to run their signal wirelessly and not tear up the yard to get WiFi in their shop.

[Yathin Krishnappa]

I have a mesh network (e.g., Orbi and Eero) setup in my house. The distance between the router and the furthest point is more than 100' but I do have satellites in-between to deal with the walls. It could probably work for your case if there's fairly open space between the house and the shop.

[Lee Schierer]

I have a 30’x40’ insulated metal building for my shop that I put up this past year in the backyard.

Your best bet is probably going to be an out door mounted directional receiving antenna to get the signal into your shop. Metal buildings tend to eliminate RF signals. I bet you have weak cell signal inside the building as well.

There is a wifi signal strength app for your phone that will let you see if the signal from the house is getting that far. You may also need an exterior transmitting antenna.

It should be cheaper than running cable with less yard work.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Do a search on you tube for "cantennas.) Build one, add a dongle and a second wireless router in the shop. That was my plan, until I relocated router to window on second floor. You will need some soldering skills.

[Paul F Franklin]

Consider a wifi bridge repeater system, like this one: https://www.solidsignal.com/pview.as...SABEgIjK_D_BwE

One end mounts outside your house and connects to your internet router. The other end mounts outside your shop and provides an internet signal that you can then connect to another wifi router in the shop.
The systems are a bit pricey, but provide an excellent solution as long as you have line of site between the two locations. And the signal between the two stations is encrypted so you are protected against most snooping.....

This type of system avoids the problem caused by your metal building since the antennas are both outside your structures.

[glenn bradley]

A couple of short-haul wireless bridges will get you there. We use these at work when fiber optic vaults get disturbed or relocated due to construction. Amazon carries Ubiquity which are not expensive and quite rugged. We have two hops back to back in the SoCal desert that have been running for years.

[John K Jordan]

Dean,

My shop is 250' from the house. The method I used gives a powerful signal and was inexpensive (for me). I ran an underground ethernet cable in conduit and connected a second WiFi router in the shop. It was cheap for me since I dug put the conduit and cable in at the same time I dug the trench. The only cost was the second router, underground Cat-5 cable, and the 1" conduit.

The ethernet cable connects the two routers The second WiFi router is configured with the same SSID and works as an extension of the same network.

JKJ

[Paul Lawrence]

Dean, break down and run the wire! All of these "repeater" devices will increase latency in your network. Wire will likely decrease latency.

Use the WIFI / router inside of your building, but extend the network to your shop via wire. Be sure the shop router is on a different fixed channel. My routers have two operating frequencies.

There isn't really any need to dig a "trench" across your yard. Use a square-end shovel to make room for a 1" electrical conduit. Then run at least two CAT6 cables and a pulling rope. (You'll thank me some day. )

[Curt Harms]

Is your shop powered from a panel in the house or a separate panel? If powered from the house, maybe try a power line networking setup. Some reading:

https://computer.howstuffworks.com/power-network.htm

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/powerl...ogy-explained/

You could run a wifi access point (or old wifi router) if you want wifi in the shop, maybe some sort of microcell if you need better cell phone reception.

I use MoCA in the house, not really a fan of WiFi where it's not needed. If you had coax running from the house to shop, you could use MoCA. If you want to run a new cable maybe run both, CAT 6 and coax.

[David Prochniak]

I had the same situation as you but my shop is about 300 feet from the house and my main router; I ended up using a Ubiquiti Loco M2 installed on the outside of my shop to act as a wireless bridge. I then ran an ethernet cable in to my shop and connected it to an old wireless router I had laying around and configured to broadcast a different network name (SSID). So far I have had 0 issues with this set up other than when a mouse chewed through my ethernet cable due to poor routing of the cable. The Ubiquiti hardware is available on Amazon for $50 and there are quite a few youtube videos and tutorials showing how to set the system up in the configuration you'll need.

[Robert Engel]

Dean, break down and run the wire! All of these "repeater" devices will increase latency in your network. Wire will likely decrease latency.

Use the WIFI / router inside of your building, but extend the network to your shop via wire. Be sure the shop router is on a different fixed channel. My routers have two operating frequencies.

There isn't really any need to dig a "trench" across your yard. Use a square-end shovel to make room for a 1" electrical conduit. Then run at least two CAT6 cables and a pulling rope. (You'll thank me some day. )

Totally agree!! That's what I did good for several years until an electric storm this summer fired the router and modem.......

My BIL is a network engineer he recommended against running copper network cable between buildings. Better to use fiberoptic.

We ended up running Cat6 with surge protectors on both ends.

I tried a repeater with horrible results.

[Jim Becker]

I also have a wired Ethernet connection to my shop building and use a mesh network node in the shop for both wired and wireless Internet access. (actually provides phone, too, as we are in a dead spot for cellular signal strength and our iPhones all support voice over WiFI with our carrier) I tried to do it wirelessly at first, but the combination of building materials in our home and my shop just didn't provide reliable service. (I have to have wired Ethernet to the three mesh nodes in the house for the same reason by full disclosure) The Ethernet is an outdoor rated cable that I installed in typical black plastic water line in a shallow trench, but the cable is also rated for direct burial...so a simple slitter could be used to burry it between two structures.

If it's not in the cards to run a cable (100m/300' max, BTW, on copper Ethernet), then directional outdoor antennas are about the only way to do what you need to do.

[Tim M Tuttle]

Your best bet is probably going to be an out door mounted directional receiving antenna to get the signal into your shop. Metal buildings tend to eliminate RF signals. I bet you have weak cell signal inside the building as well.

There is a wifi signal strength app for your phone that will let you see if the signal from the house is getting that far. You may also need an exterior transmitting antenna.

It should be cheaper than running cable with less yard work.

This is the way to go.

[Dave Cav]

I fought with various range extenders for over ten years and two different shops. Nothing was totally satisfactory and mostly it was an exercise in frustration. I eventually went hardwired and don't regret it for a minute.

[Brice Rogers]

Running some Cat6 cable (along with a pull rope) is a good idea.

But, when I read your post "I have a 30’x40’ insulated metal building...[and] is probably 100’ or so from my house where my WiFi router is. I just spent about $60 on a Linksys range extender that didnt do any good, so I’m returning it" it gave me some thoughts that I'll share.

Some thoughts:
1. Your metal building is shielding the signal into your shop.
2. If you have a window in your shop, put the extender by the window with a clear view of your house.
3. If you can, put your router in your house by a window facing your shop.
4. If you need wifi for the purpose of listening to music, looking at Youtube, doing emails, having an extender is unlikely to be an issue that you would notice. If you are doing netflicks, then perhaps that could add a problem.

I have a Ring doorbell and I had to put in an extender to get a good enough signal. But my home wifi was trying to get through four walls and wire-re-enforced stucco. So, I put the extender in the window where it would have a clear "view" of the Ring doorbell.

I have a shop with metal overhead doors that is 50' from my house. I get a useable signal into the workshop but it is not terribly strong. But it works fine for music (Pandora), email and internet searching. But the wifi signal is making it through two stuccoed walls and shielded a bit by aluminum o/h doors and a bunch of metal things in the shop. But my house wireless router is in a room that is closest to my shop. If it were on the other side of the house, it probably wouldn't work.

I have a greenhouse at least 125' from my house (no metal o/h doors or stucco shielding on the GH) and, surprisingly, I have adequate signal to use Pandora).

If you do run conduit and Cat 6, make sure you get the waterproof variety and/or seal the conduit ends with expanding foam window caulk. Conduit in the ground often collects moisture. Water will make non-waterproof ethernet cable have a short life.