Updated April 2022

1. Don’t Buy The Wrong System For Your House

When consumer grade mesh WiFi launched a few years ago, there were only a couple options, but today there are over ten systems available for purchase. So how do you know which one to get for your house? First of all, take the square footage rating with a grain of salt. Manufacturers that claim 4,000 square feet of coverage may give you some signal throughout the house, but you certainly won’t get the full speeds your internet service provider promised you. In general, it’s better to overbuy - sometimes you need more than the two to three access points that come in the box.

Dedicated Backhaul Is A Must For Big Homes

There are several things to look for in a mesh WiFi system, but try not to pick solely based on aesthetics and price if you can help it. Small mesh access points that look cool may be pleasant to look at, but they often suffer from performance issues compared to bulkier systems with larger and more plentiful radios.

Make sure you get a system with a dedicated backhaul radio for communication between access points, especially if you have a larger home. Netgear’s WiFi 6 Orbi line of products has this dedicated channel. These work better if you have to jump to more than one access point from the main router. For example, if the main router is in the basement, the signal may have to travel to the access point on the main level, then up to the access point on the second floor before reaching your device on the third floor. In this case all those hops will lead to degraded performance in systems without a dedicated channel for backhaul.

2. Turn Off Your ISP Modem/Router Combo’s WiFi Radios

The modem/router combo unit your ISP gave you isn’t particularly good at being either a modem or a router. If you’re paying monthly for it, you should definitely buy your own modem (without WiFi radios inside). But if your unit is included or you don’t want to buy your own modem for another reason, you can turn off the WiFi radios to improve the performance of your mesh system.

Whether you choose to turn off the WiFi radios manually or put the modem/router combo into bridge mode, it’s important to make sure you aren’t broadcasting two or more WiFi networks. That’s because those signals, especially on the farther reaching 2.4 Ghz frequency band, can cancel each other out and reduce performance.

3. Poor Placement Leads To Poor Performance

The placement of your main router and satellite access points (APs) can be the difference between speedy wall to wall coverage and a slow, spotty signal. One mistake many folks make is to rely on the guidance of the mobile app they use to setup the mesh WiFi system. Often times, the app will say “placement looks great!” even when the AP is in a fair position, at best. It’s up to you to try a few positions and test your speed and connectivity, rather than relying on the app.

To prevent frustration, most manufacturers apps will accept your placement even if it only allows 50% signal throughput, which is not acceptable when you’re looking to get access to your full bandwidth (internet speed) through the whole house.

Start in the Center

For the placement of your modem and main access point, aim for the center of your house. If you start in the corner of the basement, you’re more likely to take multiple hops to get from the main router to the end user device. Ideally, your setup will resemble a star layout, with each satellite access point connecting directly to the main router/AP.

Place Access Points Where You Already Have A Strong Signal

Each satellite AP should be about 30 feet away from the main router. Put APs between where you have and want a good signal, not just where you want it. If you are struggling to get a signal in your kitchen, your AP will struggle too. The hallway just outside the kitchen, closer to the main router, will give the satellite AP a strong signal. That AP will then broadcast the strong signal to your devices.

Resist The Urge To Hide APs In Cabinets Or On The Floor

Placing your access points out in the open, as high up as possible, leads to the best results. If you insist on hiding your APs, get system with more powerful, plentiful APs to make up for it. The Orbi is a good choice here. It’s not pretty, but it is powerful. Don’t take this as a license to hide your Orbi though, you will still get better performance by keeping your APs elevated and out in the open.

4. Don’t Ignore Existing Ethernet Wiring

Even the best mesh WiFi system using wireless backhaul between access points won’t stand up to the reliability and speed you get from using an ethernet cable. If your home has ethernet cables installed, use that infrastructure for wired backhaul (to connect your APs to each other). Several mesh systems, including the Netgear Orbi AX4200 I mentioned earlier, can use ethernet cables for wired backhaul.

If you have ethernet running through the house but it ends in a mess of wires in the basement, you may want to call a professional to sort it out. Or, if you’re feeling handy, buy a wire toner and start sorting through the rat’s nest of wires yourself.

5. Don’t Use A Consumer Grade System For Enterprise Grade Tasks

If you’re running a file server, 100+ devices, a VPN, and have mission critical systems that need to be working at all times, don’t choose a consumer grade system. You need enterprise grade equipment to predictably and securely handle that kind of load.

I recommend the UniFi line from Ubiquiti, which is very reasonable in price and has fantastic performance. For anyone moving to a semi or permanent Work From Home status, Ubiquiti products (paired with reliable internet) will give you performance closer to what you were used to in the office. Ubiquiti has released several capable WiFi 6 Access Points including the U6 Lite, U6 Long Range, and the U6 Pro. All are excellent and will be relevant for many years.

6. Don’t Buy A WiFi 5 System In The Age Of WiFi 6

Now that WiFi 6 is widely available, skip the WiFi 5 systems of the past like the first generation Linksys Velop and WiFi 5 Netgear Orbi. WiFi 6 will stay future-proof longer and support more simultaneous devices and higher speeds.

WiFi 6 is a must for gigabit internet connections. I recommend the Netgear Orbi AX4200, which comes in two or three packs. You can find it on Netgear’s website, Best Buy, and other retailers. WiFi 6E is just coming out now but I wouldn’t recommend investing the $1500 it costs to get the 6E version of the Orbi. The WiFi 6 version is just fine.

Glossary of Terms

Access Point (or AP): In the context of mesh WiFi systems, a physical device that broadcasts and receives WiFi signals to communicate with end user devices (like phones and computers) and other access points. The main access point is called the router and connects directly to the modem. A satellite access point does not connect to the modem directly, but instead communicates with the main access point (or router) or another access point via WiFi or a wired connection.

Backhaul: Communication between access points in a mesh network. Backhaul can be wireless (using WiFi signals) or wired (using ethernet).

Bandwidth: The amount of data transmitted over a period of time. Think of it like a pipe coming into your home: as you increase the bandwidth, or size of the pipe, you get more speed and support for more simultaneous data usage.

Mesh WiFi: Refers to a WiFi system with multiple access points connected via WiFi or ethernet cables. One of those access points serves as the router and connects to the modem with an ethernet cable. The system intelligently switches devices like computers and phones to the AP with the best signal.

Modem: Supplied by your internet service provider (ISP) or owned by the customer, this piece of hardware takes the signal from outside the house and decodes/translates it to something your devices can use. A modem by itself only supports one device, so a router is used to distribute that signal to multiple devices.

WiFi 5: 802.11AC, which is what most devices support now. It supports some simultaneous streams but can struggle under heavy loads.

WiFi 6: 802.11AX. New iPhones, Macs, and most mid to high end electronic devices use this standard, which is much better at simultaneous high bandwidth tasks.

Casatech is an IT company providing on-site computer and network services to individuals and small businesses in Ann Arbor, Michigan and remote service and consulting anywhere. Contact information available here.

Casatech does not have a business relationship with any of the brands, products, or retailers mentioned. Buying decisions should be based on your research and/or the advice of a hired professional. Trademarks are the property of their respective owners.