Wifi booster

[Caddyshack]

We have a 32 ft. Forest River Salem Cruise Lite and are staying at a campground for an extended stay. We are having trouble connecting our smartphones and laptops to the internet. Sometimes we can connect, other days we can't. We are unable to get Netflix or Hulu on either of our smart flatscreen TV'S.
Can anyone suggest a wifi booster at a reasonable price that might work for us? Thank you.

[rsdata]

even if you were to get a better signal via a signal booster, most every campground has a slow connection that is taxed from over use...

can you get a good cell signal on your phone that you could then turn into a hotspot for your other devices using your cell phone signal and not the campground wifi?

[TitanMike]

Take your pick

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=wifi+repe...l_9ree5rxiaz_e

To get better WiFi for my laptop I just purchased a USB Wifi adapter then attached it to the female end of a USB extension cord. Put the antenna outside and as high as I had cable for. Worked great and cost me around $20. I already had the extension cable so starting fresh might run a little more.

[tomkatb]

We have the Wi fi pro. About $150.

Also a two piece 12’ painters pole.

Zip tied the antenna to the pole and put it up about 7’ on the ladder with bungee cords. The antenna is about 20’ tall.

Makes the best of most campground systems. The reception of one bar goes to three. We often stream music.

Getting lazy though. The Apple phone does a WiFi hub well for Netflix or music. We have the Apple cord to adapt to the tv hdmi input.

[ependydad]

It’s not cheap, but I love my WiFiRanger.

I wrote about it here:
Cellular, wifi, and networks – OH MY! | Learn To RV

That said, most campground internet isn’t worth boosting.

[wrapperman]

Even if you could get a stronger signal it will always depend on the campgrounds download speed and their bandwidth. If the campgrounds signal going to them is slow, you will not be able to stream. In other words, a strong WiFi signal does not guarantee fast internet download speeds. Cell data would be your next option.

[sgtlm17]

I use the Alfa Camp Pro for RVs cost is $155 on Amazon. Install is fairly simple. This will be my 3rd year with it and it has performed well. Remember WiFi bossters only pull in weak signals and boost the signal. It does not improve the WiFi quality. So if its is a weak slow signal the booster will make it a strong slow signal.

[thecastle]

I own a company that builds wi-fi networks for RV parks, hotels, marina's, etc. So I'll lend some suggestions. I apologize the response isn't short, but there are a lot of possible gotcha's that we have to rule out to make sure that things work better.

1st make sure your devices has cloud backups off, isn't infected with viruses/spyware, OS update downloads off, Facebook, etc. These background tasks will significantly slow down your internet experience (they're using a ton of bandwidth). This is the customer's issue that results in perceived slow wi-fi/drops roughly 50% of the time. aka IT issues.

Next test the park. The easiest test to see if the park has "sufficient" bandwidth is to stand outside your trailer in line of site of the park access points, less than 200FT away (speed is directly proportional to distance and obstructions). Attempt to steam Netflix (you only need 2mb/s to stream). If you can then you know you have a reception problem inside your trailer, or a problem with the antenna quality in your device. If you can't stream outside your trailer close to a park access point and line of site, you may still have a device problem, check a different one just to be sure. If it still doesn't work the park has a problem (assuming they don't block streaming).

You can further test your device by going to starbucks etc. and test and see if your device will stream on their wifi. If it dosent then your device has an issue.

Basic things to know about Wi-Fi. It operates at 2.4ghz or 5Ghz, and 5Ghz will only work inside an RV if you have good gear. 2.4ghz due to its lower frequency has more trailer wall/obstruction penetrating power, but suffers from lower performance due to interference. 2.4 is the same frequency microwaves operate at, backup cameras, cordless phones, automatic door openers, police radar, well anything really thats wireless. Inverters and airconditioners will also cause interference at this frequency as well as hot spots, cars, etc. So performance over 2.4ghz is limited.

Try removing insulation from the windows, metal blocks wifi.

If you made it to this point you are having a reception problem, To which a repeater will help overcome your device limitations/trailer construction. If the park has issues a repeater wont really help. Also relocating to a campsite closer to the AP and with line of sight will help and is cheaper and easier than a repeater.

"Repeaters", have to be setup correctly or they make the problem worse. They need to have their transmit/receive antenna placed outside of your trailer (this is a must!), preferably with line of sight to the access point at the park. If you can't see the parks access point from your antenna then you will have significantly reduced performance. Line of sight is critical to performance, can't stress this enough. Then connect that external antenna to your own internal to the rig repeater. IF you put a repeater inside your trailer, it can't "boost" a non-existant signal, which is why an external antenna location is critical.

I'd also recommend connecting to the park with a repeater at the 5Ghz frequency range as performance will be significantly better than the congested 2.4ghz range due to interference and congestion.

Setting up a repeater incorrectly like a cell phone booster won't help.

Personally I like to use a Ubiquiti Loco Nanostation 2 or 5 your choice, mounted outside your rig with line of sight to the park AP. wired with an ethernet cable inside to a POE injector and a ubiquiti customer AP. This will cost about $150+ in parts, and it will require you have a laptop with an ethernet port to configure as well as some IT know how. It is not plug and play, but it works very well.

Wifi ranger is an excellent product, and there are others I'm sure. The construction of trailers and the low quality of the antennas in many customer devices means you may need a repeater to work well with a park wifi system. I've literally encountered laptops that are in office environments less than 30ft of an access point and are barely able to connect, due to the poor quality of their internal wifi gear. HP, Vizio and Furion I'm lookin at you. Adding a usb wifi adapter with a decent antenna makes all the difference.

Most mesh or indoor repeaters don't work. If they are to help, they have to be placed inside your trailer in a location with good park signal. If you put it in a dead spot, it won't magically create a signal where there is no communication with park. So basically these cheap solutions rarely work.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by thecastle

I own a company that builds wi-fi networks for RV parks, hotels, marina's, etc. So I'll lend some suggestions.

1st make sure your devices has cloud backups off, isn't infected with viruses/spyware, OS update downloads off, Facebook, etc. These background tasks will significantly slow down your internet experience (they're using a ton of bandwidth). This is the customer's issue that results in perceived slow wi-fi/drops roughly 50% of the time. aka IT issues.

Next test the park. The easiest test to see if the park has "sufficient" bandwidth is to stand outside your trailer in line of site of the park access points, less than 200FT away (speed is directly proportional to distance and obstructions). Attempt to steam Netflix (you only need 2mb/s to stream). If you can then you know you have a reception problem inside your trailer, or a problem with the antenna quality in your device. If you can't stream outside your trailer close to a park access point and line of site, you may still have a device problem, check a different one just to be sure. If it still doesn't work the park has a problem (assuming they don't block streaming).

You can further test your device by going to starbucks etc. and test and see if your device will stream on their wifi. If it dosent then your device has an issue.

Basic things to know about Wi-Fi. It operates at 2.4ghz or 5Ghz, and 5Ghz will only work inside an RV if you have good gear. 2.4ghz due to its lower frequency has more penetrating power, but suffers from lower performance due to interference. 2.4 is the same frequency microwaves operate at, backup cameras, cordless phones, automatic door openers, police radar, well anything really thats wireless. Inverters and airconditioners will also cause interference at this frequency as well as hot spots, cars, etc. So performance over 2.4ghz is limited.

Try removing insulation from the windows, metal blocks wifi.

If you made it to this point you are having a reception problem, To which a repeater will help overcome your device limitations/trailer construction. If the park has issues a repeater wont really help. Also relocating to a campsite closer to the AP and with line of sight will help and is cheaper and easier than a repeater.

"Repeaters", have to be setup correctly or they make the problem worse. They need to have their transmit/receive antenna placed outside of your trailer (this is a must!), preferably with line of sight to the access point at the park. If you can't see the parks access point from your antenna then you will have significantly reduced performance. Line of sight is critical to performance, can't stress this enough. Then connect that external antenna to your own internal to the rig repeater. IF you put a repeater inside your trailer, it can't "boost" a non-existant signal, which is why an external antenna location is critical.

I'd also recommend connecting to the park with a repeater at the 5Ghz frequency range as performance will be significantly better than the congested 2.4ghz range due to interference and congestion.

Setting up a repeater incorrectly like a cell phone booster won't help.

Personally I like to use a Ubiquiti Loco Nanostation 2 or 5 your choice, mounted outside your rig with line of sight to the park AP. wired with an ethernet cable inside to a POE injector and a ubiquiti customer AP. This will cost about $150+ in parts, and it will require you have a laptop with an ethernet port to configure as well as some IT know how. It is not plug and play, but it works very well.

Wifi ranger is an excellent product, and there are others I'm sure. The construction of trailers and the low quality of the antennas in many customer devices means you may need a repeater to work well with a park wifi system. I've literally encountered laptops that are in office environments less than 30ft of an access point and are barely able to connect, due to the poor quality of their internal wifi gear. HP I'm lookin at you. Adding a usb wifi adapter with a decent antenna makes all the difference.

Most mesh or indoor repeaters don't work. If they are to help, they have to be placed inside your trailer in a location with good park signal. If you put it in a dead spot, it won't magically create a signal where there is no communication with park. So basically these cheap solutions rarely work.

FINALLY!!! FINALLY!

Somebody who knows what they are talking about and considerate enough to share their knowledge on this forum.

I have always stated that 2mb/s is all you need for streaming Netflix, here and other places, only to be shot-down by almost everybody who has a say. People seem to confuse the small “b” with the large “B” when it comes to bandwidth and always tell me I am wrong.

Your verbiage is very similar to that of a person I have dealt with over the phone regarding the WiFi at Spring Gulch Campground. Was this you? Is it your company that provides their service? Their WiFi is excellent and the provider’s customer support is awesome.

Thanks,

Bruce

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by nomad297

FINALLY!!! FINALLY!

Somebody who knows what they are talking about and considerate enough to share their knowledge on this forum.

I have always stated that 2mb/s is all you need for streaming Netflix, here and other places, only to be shot-down by almost everybody who has a say. People seem to confuse the small “b” with the large “B” when it comes to bandwidth and always tell me I am wrong.

Your verbiage is very similar to that of a person I have dealt with over the phone regarding the WiFi at Spring Gulch Campground. Was this you? Is it your company that provides their service? Their WiFi is excellent and the provider’s customer support is awesome.

Thanks,

Bruce

I just remembered the name of the internet provider I am talking about. It is Fast Wave Networks.

Bruce

[aceinspp]

Also remember some cg frown on streaming and ask that you not do it or they slow the system down. I use a Jet Pack to be able to get WiFi. Later RJD

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by aceinspp

Also remember some cg frown on streaming and ask that you not do it or they slow the system down. I use a Jet Pack to be able to get WiFi. Later RJD

This is true, but at Spring Gulch, it is encouraged by both the campground and the WiFi provider because it is a superior setup that is an asset to the campground and appreciated by everybody.

EDIT: ...appreciated by everybody who is willing to PAY for the service. But it is worth it.

Bruce

[5picker]

Originally Posted by thecastle

I own a company that builds wi-fi networks for RV parks, hotels, marina's, etc. So I'll lend some suggestions. I apologize the response isn't short, but there are a lot of possible gotcha's that we have to rule out to make sure that things work better.

1st make sure your devices has cloud backups off, isn't infected with viruses/spyware, OS update downloads off, Facebook, etc. These background tasks will significantly slow down your internet experience (they're using a ton of bandwidth). This is the customer's issue that results in perceived slow wi-fi/drops roughly 50% of the time. aka IT issues.

Next test the park. The easiest test to see if the park has "sufficient" bandwidth is to stand outside your trailer in line of site of the park access points, less than 200FT away (speed is directly proportional to distance and obstructions). Attempt to steam Netflix (you only need 2mb/s to stream). If you can then you know you have a reception problem inside your trailer, or a problem with the antenna quality in your device. If you can't stream outside your trailer close to a park access point and line of site, you may still have a device problem, check a different one just to be sure. If it still doesn't work the park has a problem (assuming they don't block streaming).

You can further test your device by going to starbucks etc. and test and see if your device will stream on their wifi. If it dosent then your device has an issue.

Basic things to know about Wi-Fi. It operates at 2.4ghz or 5Ghz, and 5Ghz will only work inside an RV if you have good gear. 2.4ghz due to its lower frequency has more trailer wall/obstruction penetrating power, but suffers from lower performance due to interference. 2.4 is the same frequency microwaves operate at, backup cameras, cordless phones, automatic door openers, police radar, well anything really thats wireless. Inverters and airconditioners will also cause interference at this frequency as well as hot spots, cars, etc. So performance over 2.4ghz is limited.

Try removing insulation from the windows, metal blocks wifi.

If you made it to this point you are having a reception problem, To which a repeater will help overcome your device limitations/trailer construction. If the park has issues a repeater wont really help. Also relocating to a campsite closer to the AP and with line of sight will help and is cheaper and easier than a repeater.

"Repeaters", have to be setup correctly or they make the problem worse. They need to have their transmit/receive antenna placed outside of your trailer (this is a must!), preferably with line of sight to the access point at the park. If you can't see the parks access point from your antenna then you will have significantly reduced performance. Line of sight is critical to performance, can't stress this enough. Then connect that external antenna to your own internal to the rig repeater. IF you put a repeater inside your trailer, it can't "boost" a non-existant signal, which is why an external antenna location is critical.

I'd also recommend connecting to the park with a repeater at the 5Ghz frequency range as performance will be significantly better than the congested 2.4ghz range due to interference and congestion.

Setting up a repeater incorrectly like a cell phone booster won't help.

Personally I like to use a Ubiquiti Loco Nanostation 2 or 5 your choice, mounted outside your rig with line of sight to the park AP. wired with an ethernet cable inside to a POE injector and a ubiquiti customer AP. This will cost about $150+ in parts, and it will require you have a laptop with an ethernet port to configure as well as some IT know how. It is not plug and play, but it works very well.

Wifi ranger is an excellent product, and there are others I'm sure. The construction of trailers and the low quality of the antennas in many customer devices means you may need a repeater to work well with a park wifi system. I've literally encountered laptops that are in office environments less than 30ft of an access point and are barely able to connect, due to the poor quality of their internal wifi gear. HP, Vizio and Furion I'm lookin at you. Adding a usb wifi adapter with a decent antenna makes all the difference.

Most mesh or indoor repeaters don't work. If they are to help, they have to be placed inside your trailer in a location with good park signal. If you put it in a dead spot, it won't magically create a signal where there is no communication with park. So basically these cheap solutions rarely work.

A lot of good information in this post and the same basic approach I use.
I posted my use of this last fall.
There is some technical knowledge to this set-up but well worth it.

The MOST important thing to remember when wanting to better receive the campground wifi is courtesy.
If the campground has limited bandwidth and you hog most of it streaming Netflix and other things, that leaves little for others.

If you simply can't be without lots of bandwidth and there is an ability to purchase extra, please do so.
I think more and more campgrounds are going to go this route of having an option as we become more and more dependent on internet service. I have no issues paying for extra.

If additional bandwidth isn't available, find a data package from your favorite cell provider.

[thecastle]

I'm not a paid vendor on these forums so I have to be mindful of what I say in regards to various companies / vendors.

Yes, there is a huge amount of variability in the quality of wi-fi networks installed in parks. Everything from my kid who plays fortnight installed a super duper ASUS router inside the main office and DSL should be plenty for 150 sites. To hiring a company with actual RF engineers, design tools, deep packet inspection , bandwidth controls, etc. who select adequate internet service to match their customers needs/wants.

There are always two issues customers are concerned with coverage (reception), and performance (latency, jitter, and bandwidth). Since all wi-fi systems are really a 50-50 partnership, 50% being the quality (maybe higher) of the park setup, and 50% being the quality of the customer devices, as a customer you only have control over your side.

Assuming the park gives you the ingredients for a good wi-fi experience, good reception and performance outside your trailer. Then adding various extenders (especially when everything inside your tailer is wifi based), and usb wifi adapters can help a lot. If you have no signal outside, or a weak one, then the park has more issues that may or may not be improved by using a repeater.

Wi-Fi is 2-way radio. As any electrical engineer will tell you, when you build an RV with foil backed radiant insulation, you built a faraday cage. Meaning Wi-Fi won't penetrate the walls of your trailer (big problem on airstreams). Which leaves your windows for wi-fi transmissions. Unfortunately, a lot of full timers love to put that aluminized bubble wrap insulation in the windows which blocks the only path into your trailer for Wi-Fi. So those folks have to use some sort of repeater. Wi-Fi simply can't overcome physics.

Repeaters can help with both coverage (range) and performance (speed), assuming the park is doing things right. Repeaters help with range by having superior antennas, better more powerful amplifiers that aren't battery powered, and thus improve signal to noise ratios allowing you to connect to the park at a higher data rate (speed). This helps everyone else too in the park, BTW.

Access points and devices operate on a party line with Wi-Fi (assuming no MU-MIMO). Meaning only one device at a time can communicate on a given wi-fi access point. So if 30 people are connected to a park access point then only 1 device out of the group (31 customers+AP) can communicate at a given moment on a given channel (wifi hot spots interfere by using the same channels). If two devices communicate simultaneously it results in a network collision and garbled transmissions, causing the devices to wait until the line is clear and try again.

So If you have everyone else connected to a specific AP 150mb/s, and your limping at 6mb/s. That means to transfer 1MB of data to you takes 25x longer than the other customers. So one slow busy client can monopolize 25x more airtime than a faster client doing the same thing. The end result is even though your not moving a lot of data, you're monopolizing the airtime and slowing everyone else down (by leaving less airtime for everyone else). When you enhance your data rate, you speed things up for everyone.

Just as an observation on antenna's. A "good" wifi antenna costs $175-$500 depending on characteristics. Which means your $90 10 year old android tablet probably has not put in a good wi-fi antenna meaning you're going to have less than ideal experience.

[nomad297]

Thank you, thecastle.

Bruce

[Daycruiser]

I'll ad one thing that Mr. Castle may have skipped, many parks intentionally limit what can be downloaded or streamed over their WiFi network. Just because you can't get Netflix or Hulu doesn't mean there is an issue with your reception or equipment it may simply mean the Park has employed a Firewall to block those services so people can't consume all the bandwidth by streaming video.

[nomad297]

Originally Posted by Daycruiser

I'll ad one thing that Mr. Castle may have skipped, many parks intentionally limit what can be downloaded or streamed over their WiFi network. Just because you can't get Netflix or Hulu doesn't mean there is an issue with your reception or equipment it may simply mean the Park has employed a Firewall to block those services so people can't consume all the bandwidth by streaming video.

The WiFi at my campground is completely controlled by the provider, Fast Wave Networks. The campground has no authority or ability to control WiFi use.

Bruce

[thecastle]

Originally Posted by Daycruiser

I'll ad one thing that Mr. Castle may have skipped, many parks intentionally limit what can be downloaded or streamed over their WiFi network. Just because you can't get Netflix or Hulu doesn't mean there is an issue with your reception or equipment it may simply mean the Park has employed a Firewall to block those services so people can't consume all the bandwidth by streaming video.

Good point, and your right! The key is in determining if you have a park or personal problem before jumping to a wi-fi extender. Park problems you have little control over other than to move to a site with better wi-fi (its not related to a firewall issue).

At the parks we build we block a whole range of "illegal" and "abusive" activity on the networks to keep the performance as good as possible for everyone else. We block a lot of unnecessary network traffic which keeps users from hacking each other and frees up bandwidth and airtime for actual internet needs. One of the bigger problems really is hitting the limits of air bandwidth (on 2.4ghz), well before you usually hit internet connect limits (My company only uses Metero-E connections at parks we build).

The 2.4ghz bandwidth issues can be so bad if the park is built say in an urban area next to an apartment complex, that one of the three non-overlapping 2.4ghz wi-fi channels can be 80% utilized by other folks before we even add the park. Knowing that and addressing that problem is where the real engineering comes in. BTW every wi-fi system in the world uses the same 2.4ghz channels and they all compete, for airtime and are all single access. Thats why I recommend 5ghz for extenders as typically its more lightly used.

IT issues, RV issues, equipment quality issues are under the customers domain. A repeater helps most people if done right*

*its not plug in and play, and requires a bit of know how and setup. Also using an app to find wi-fi signal to noise ratios and testing link speed helps too.

[B and B]

Or taking a spectrum analyses and doing a site survey to find the best place to aim your antenna helps too. I have a pocket device that works in both 2.4 and 5 g bands too.