Whether you use your Wi-Fi mainly for leisure or work, it can be incredibly disruptive if your Wi-Fi signal is weak and doesn’t provide you with the coverage you need.
Thankfully, if you find yourself with a poor Wi-Fi signal, there are various ways in which you can pinpoint the areas of your poor coverage and fix the problem.
Let’s begin by looking at the four best ways of pinpointing areas of poor Wi-Fi coverage.
1. Find Out Whether Your Poor Wi-Fi Coverage Is Due to Your Device
If one of your devices seems to have weak Wi-Fi, your first step should be to compare it to the Wi-Fi signal on your other devices. If other devices have strong Wi-Fi signals, you can then pinpoint the problem more easily.
Simply look at the symbol that indicates your Wi-Fi connection. That’s the symbol with four or five curved lines.
When the symbol is filled with more lines, you’ll have a stronger connection. When it has fewer lines, it means your signal is weaker.
2. Try Your Device in Different Places
When trying to pinpoint the strength of your Wi-Fi signal at home, or anywhere else, try moving your device around the space to discover whether you have a stronger signal in some areas rather than others.
Take note of things like how close your device is to the router and how many walls are between your device and the router. You should also try repositioning your router so that it isn’t hidden behind something that could cause you to have a poorer signal.
By trying your device and your router in different places, you could pinpoint Wi-Fi dead zones. Getting a stronger Wi-Fi signal could be as simple as using your device closer to your router or moving your router.
3. Use Wi-Fi Heat Mapping
You can identify dead spots and pinpoint the problem of your poor Wi-Fi coverage by using Wi-Fi heat mapping. With a good Wi-Fi mapping tool, like SolarWinds’ Wi-Fi heat maps, you can help troubleshoot wireless dead zones easily and quickly.
The colour-coded heat maps will enable you to gain insights into access points and coverage. And once you identify dead spots, you can troubleshoot them by leveraging accurate data about your signal strength.
4. Perform Advanced Tests
There are other tools you can use to perform advanced tests. By using specific apps or programs that help you to measure decibels in relation to milliwatts, you can pinpoint dead spots and identify problems with Wi-Fi networks in your local area.
How to Fix Your Poor Wi-Fi Signal
Once you have pinpointed the problem of your poor Wi-Fi signal, you can better determine what action to take to rectify the problem.
If simple things like moving the router don’t do the trick, you should consider investing in a higher-quality router, such as a wireless N router that provides the fastest Wi-Fi speeds possible.
Alternatively, you could get a Wi-Fi extender. That’s especially recommended if you’re unable to receive adequate Wi-Fi coverage in a certain part of your home, which typically happens in larger homes.
With a Wi-Fi extender, you can gain much wider Wi-Fi coverage and eliminate dead spots.
If the problem with your Wi-Fi coverage has to do with the number of things you’re using your Wi-Fi for, such as simultaneously surfing the net, streaming videos, and playing online games, which often happens in large households, getting a long-range router could solve the problem.
The best long-range routers can handle around twenty-five different devices and cover areas of around 2,500 square feet.