Fibre 65 signal issues

[durdle]

I've been on Fibre 65 for a couple of years now and, initially, it seemed reasonably stable. Then, I was given a Ring doorbell at the beginning of last year. This has worked as expected except that one or more of the doorbell, the battery cam or the chimes has tended to stop working from time to time and had to be reconnected to WiFi. It's been annoying, but not a massive problem because these devices seem to provide quite good instructions on how to recover from connectivity problems. 

My Epson ET-2850 printer, purchased around mid ’21, has been a different kettle of fish. It has dropped its connection too often for comfort, and required various efforts on my part to become reconnected, eg by powering it, my router, and/or just my WiFi connection off and then back on etc. 

Very recently, however, these issues have become more difficult to resolve in that the printer became unavailable for several consecutive days earlier this week, and I could not recover it using any of my old strategies. Two days ago, I took it to the print shop that originally sold it to me, and they kindly configured it for their shop network, where it appeared to work with no problems. When I took it home, I attempted to reset it for my home network, but this appeared to fail with error (E-9), the subsequent printer generated report being as shown below. 

Later that evening, I noticed that the device was again showing its connected-to-WiFi symbol and found that I could print files again. 

The printer is still working this morning, well over 24 hours later, though it did go offline late last night for a while. While I'm happy for now, I'm not over confident that I won't have similar problems again before too long. 

Apart from my printer and doorbell problems, the other main issue with my WiFi has been that, all too often, I have attempted a Google search but have seen a black ‘no internet connection’ display for a few seconds before the requested information has then appeared. Also, sometimes, I have seen an equally black ‘download pending’ screen that has not delivered the goods, although a repeate attempt sometimes has done. 

These issues have often lead me to suspect my WiFi signal strength. I can't access the same information on my Samsung A9 tablet, but my Samsung A71 phone suggests it's of the order of 110 dBm 30 asu, not that I have any real understanding of what these figures imply. 

The Ring doorbell and accessories have device health displays in the Ring app, all of which seem to suggest signal strengths varying from around 45 and 70 ssi. If I look online, sometimes I see that higher ssi values indicate weaker signals, sometimes I see its the lower ones. As I say, I suspect I'm suffering from a poor signal, even though at least half my devices, including my printer just now, are only a few metres away from my router. 

I apologise for the length of this post, but can anyone offer any thoughts here, please? 

Check Network Connection

Check Result                                                      Unknown

Error code                                                           (E-9)

Confirm the connection and network setup of the PC or other device.

Connection using the EpsonNet Setup  is available.

Contact your network administrator for assistance.

If your problems persist,

see your documentation for help and networking tips.

Checked Items

Wireless Network Name (SSID)                          Pass

Communication Mode Check                              Pass

Security Mode Check                                          Pass

Mac Address Filtering Check                              Pass

Security Key/Password Check                            Pass

IP Address Check                                               Pass

Detailed IP Setup Check                                     Unknown

Network Status

Printer Name                                                      EPSON0xxxxx

Printer Model                                                      ET-2850 Series

IP Address                                                         169.xxx.y.zzz

Default Gateway Network Name (SSID)            abcde

Security                                                              WPA2-PSK (AES)

Signal Strength                                                  Excellent

MAC Address                                                     E0:BB:9E:01:XX:YY

[KeithFrench]

Can you try an extension lead somewhere near the doorbell, as with WiFi & not being there myself, it has to be guesswork I am afraid.

[durdle]

Hi @KeithFrench 

	Booster	Doorbell	Outside	Inside	Upstairs	Liv area	Kitchen		Average
	location		camera	camera	chime	chime	chime		sig strength
	no booster in use	-63	-73	-60	-59	-41	-60		-59
1	kitchen, over lh corner wall unit	-65	-55	-60	-44	-38	-19		-47
2	bedroom 3, middle of floor	-63	-53	-49	-44	-42	-53		-51
3	kitchen, above lh central wall unit	-60	-53	-55	-54	-38	-60		-53
4	kitchen, on worktop	-65	-72	-59	-56	-40	-60		-59
5	bedroom 3, chest height	-62	-72	-64	-56	-40	-60		-59
6	top of tall cupboard, bedroom 2	-63	-76	-62	-59	-40	-61		-60

The table above shows the various signal strengths my Ring app has reported for different booster locations. I've been checking every time I've moved it and, bizarrely to my mind, location 1, which seems to give my best set of results, only has a good connection, according to my router dashboard.

I really don't trust the Ring app as a calibration tool; it's taken a lot of device reboots to get the figures to change sometimes,  especially with the outside mains powered camera, and with the battery doorbell,  which can't be powered off, I had to remove the unit and put it on charge for 15 minutes to convince the app it wasn't actually receiving a poor signal. To my mind, a poor Ring signal kicks in at -70.

Finally, I don't for a moment believe the figures above have any real stability.  I think the doorbell itself possibly does need it's own booster but it's location,  with no power points closer than the one serving the router,  and with at least two solid walls between it and both the router and the booster, wherever I place the latter, meant I got nowhere trying to position the booster to help it. 

With regard to the other suggestions, 

My 2nd gen Ring doorbell does not have an ethernet port. I think I would need the Elite model for that.

Would there be any point installing a mains socket near the doorbell given that I got nowhere early on with the booster plugged into an extention board with a 3m lead long lead and positioned very close to the bell unit?

If I do decide I want to try with another booster, how much are they, please? 

I think I now need to leave things alone for a while and then check row 1 again. I'll spend the meantime wondering how to get my Hive heating hub working again. It was doing well before the new booster was set up.

[durdle]

Sorry, @KeithFrench, I didn't realise at the time that that would have possibly been more informative. .

[KeithFrench]

Hi @durdle 

I assume you want me to comment on those you sent me on the 5th of Sept. Well, they are out of date now that you have the one F266 and that they were taken close to the router. Some others from farther away may have been more useful.

There are two 2.4GHz channels & one 5GHz band, I assume that this was the router & your old extender. Other than that, there is no real interference there, maybe if at the time you'd have taken more from bad reception areas, it could have been more useful to see.

[durdle]

@KeithFrench Thanks, that is helpful, but it's going to take me quite a while to digest it all. Given that many properties are relatively small and tend to be full of things mentioned in your list, it does make me wonder whether a lot of these devices are purchased only to be found not particularly useful. Meanwhile, I'm now pretty convinced ceramic wall tiles don't help either. I think they possibly kill the prospect of significantly improving my Ring doorbell's signal strength, but I might well go for another F266, if only to try to boost the signal for my mains powered security cam at the rear of the house. I can experiment with the one I have first but, meanwhile, any chance of a pm from you with a few words about what you gleaned from the screenshots I sent you around the 4th/5th of this month, please? 

[KeithFrench]

Hi @durdle 

Following on from my last post, I can't remember if we have discussed location considerations that could also affect signal strength. This applies equally to the router, booster & all of your devices. This is a very long thread and our PM chain is very long, so I am not going to read through everything again. 

These are the best locations, but obviously, this is not always practical & a compromise has to be reached.

The general rule is to keep them away from:-

1. Cordless phone (DECT) base stations
2. TVs
3. Loudspeakers & any sub-woofers (including those used with a PC)
4. Computer monitors
5. Electrical appliances – they often transmit their own signals that can interfere with Wi-Fi signals.
6. Bluetooth devices – they operate on the same Wi-Fi frequency as your broadband, which can cause signal problems.
7. Mirrors – they actually reflect Wi-Fi signals, stopping them from passing through walls and reflecting them back into the room.
8. Anything containing large amounts of water – things like fish tanks and boilers can absorb Wi-Fi signals like a sponge.
9. Large metal objects – radiators, for instance, will have the same effect on your Wi-Fi as mirrors. If you have a tower PC case with an internal WiFi card, the metal of the case can block signals to & from the antennae if they are located behind the tower case.
10. Glass - different types of glass can cause problems for Wi-Fi signals to pass through:-

a) Thick window glass or glazing can block Wi-Fi signals.
b) Low-emissivity (Low-E) windows have a metallic film that can reflect and block Wi-Fi signals more than clear glass.
c) Tinted glass often has a metallic film that can interfere with radio signals.
d) K glass double glazing has a metal vapour coating that can reduce Wi-Fi signal strength by 30-50%.

If you are using a USB Wi-Fi adapter, use a USB socket on the front of the PC, as there is more open space around it than at the rear. If a USB extension cable is used, try to ensure that it is fairly short, so that the power from the computer is not attenuated. Long extension cables can cause the adapter to not have enough power from the computer to work correctly.

Where USB or PCIe-connected WiFi adapters are concerned, power management is best disabled if running in Windows to keep a reliable Wi-Fi connection working at full speed. Once you have made the changes outlined below, it is probably best to restart the PC.

Windows Power Management issues. To check this in Windows 10 or 11, open Device Manager and expand Network adapters. Then right-click your WiFi card & select Properties. Next, click on the Power Management tab and untick Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power. If the adapter is connected via USB, then expand the USB section in Device Manager and the same option can be found in the Power Management tab in most Root Hubs and USB Controllers. Untick it in there as well.

If you do decide to purchase another booster from the Loyalty Department, then there are extra location considerations for each of the boosters, to get the maximum out of them. 

Each 266 needs to be in a location that has a excellent or good signal reception from the router. To test this connection, first turn off all other F266s and try moving the one F266 to a good position as far as signal strength is concerned. Then turn that one off & repeat the sequence for all other F266s, one at a time. Next, each F266 needs to be far enough apart from the other F266s, to ensure that the signal an F266 receives from the router is higher than the one they receive from a nearby F266.

I hope this helps.

[KeithFrench]

Hi @durdle 

There is not much more we can do, the location of devices, router & booster are down to you. These are the main other thoughts that I have:-

• Could you use an Ethernet connection to the doorbell?
• You could purchase a second  Any more you have to purchase.
• Alternatively, look to have a power point added by the doorbell.

[durdle]

I've tried the new booster in an few places about the house and I can't say any off them gave rise to a real improvement in signal strengths over what I had before. It's difficult because the only way I seem able to quantify wi-fi signal strength is by quoting figures taken from the Ring doorbell app. I've seen one or two very short-lived ‘No internet’ indicators but no black screen ‘Download pending ones’. The printer connection has seemed good and the Epson Smart Panel has been able to locate my ET-2850 whenever required to. It was, however, already doing that with no booster in place.

This morning, I placed the booster in the small bedroom upstairs and took Ring readings as follows:

 Time             A            B             C             D            E              F

09:30           -71          -53          -50          -61          -40          -64          -

10:00           -64          -53          -54          -61          -40          -64

10:30           -64          -53          -54          -61          -40          -64

11:30           -64          -53          -51          -61          -40          -64

12:45           -60          -53          -51          -41          -40          -60

13:30           -60          -53          -55          -41          -40          -60

14:30           -63          -53          -55          -41          -40          -60

15:30           -63          -52          -48          -41          -40          -58

16:30           -70          -52          -48          -41          -40          -58

17:30           -70          -52          -48          -41          -40          -58

19:30           -70          -52          -50          -41          -40          -58

A- Doorbell, no power points close by

B- Mains security camera, external wall, level with upstairs floor

C- Battery camera, top of downstairs dresser, just below booster

D- Upstairs chime, boiler cupboard

E- Living area chime, floor level

F- KItchen chime, wall socket below cabinets

Booster: On floor, bedroom 3, excellent connection with router.

I’ve also tried the booster in the integral garage, ie using the power socket nearest the doorbell, but it did not receive an excellent connection with the router, and the doorbell and mains security camera both went off line.

[Michelle-TalkTalk]

Hi durdle,

Ok. We'll check back in with you next week to see how you're getting on. If anything does happen in the meantime then just post back here.

Thanks

Michelle 🙂

[durdle]

Yes, I have moved the booster, once, but I don't know any quick way to assess the impact of moving it. I suspect that all I can do for now is wait for something to happen that suggests there might be a better location for it. Whether I will actually spot such suggestions without expert advice remains to be seen.

[KeithFrench]

Hi @durdle 

As per my PM, have you tried different locations for the booster?

[durdle]

There have been no dropped connections since I installed the booster,  but I did say in my original post here that they happened from time to time. With the doorbell, that meant the bell and/or an accessory dropping out very roughly every 6 weeks on average. With the printer, it was more a case of no problems for several months, then non stop problems until things somehow became stable again. They were the main culprits,  but they've maintained stable connections since I installed the booster. I think I possibly just have to wait now, and hope the disconnections are a thing of the past. I've seen only one short lived 'no internet connection', and no 'download pending' events, but I can't see the booster being particularly relevant to these as the bulk of my Google acivity happens with me sat very close to the router. I'll leave things be for another week before I act to return the old router. You can have my earlier DLink DSL SuperRouter back at the same time, if you want. One owner, only used for a few weeks.

[Michelle-TalkTalk]

Hi durdle,

Ok thanks for the update. Has the connection dropped yet since the adapter has been connected?

Michelle

[durdle]

I plan to but, just now, it's early days and I'm not at all clear on how to formulate a comparison apart from registering how long it takes for devices to lose connection and how long it takes to recover it, that is. I installed the booster with it located next to the router in my living area. I've moved it for now to the top of a dresser at the far end of my living area, next to a Ring battery cam. I would prefer to locate it near the Ring doorbell, but the only power socket within 15 feet of that is in the integrated garage, about 6 feet away. Unless advised otherwise, that's probably where I'll try it next in a weeks time. 

[Michelle-TalkTalk]

Morning,

Thanks for the update and please let us know how your connection compares.

Thanks

Michelle

[durdle]

@Debbie-TalkTalk , The booster has been delivered, thank you, and set up. I've sent Keith a PM, and I'm waiting for further instructions.

[Debbie-TalkTalk]

Hi durdle

No problem 🙂

Debbie

[durdle]

Thank you. 

[Debbie-TalkTalk]

HI @durdle 

Thanks for your reply.

The WIFI booster is on its way, please allow 48hrs for this to arrive.

Let us know how the connection compares.

Thanks again.

Debbie

[durdle]

Yes, please. Two of my Ring  accessories lost wi-fi again yesterday. They're not too difficult to recover but they still keep showing weak signals.