Wifi connection constantly dropping out randomly for a minute or so at a time

[Giggsclifton]

I've had the Fibre 500 package for over 3 years and never had a single problem until recently. For the last 4 or 5 days the Wifi connection constantly randomly drops out for a minute or two, affecting every device: phone, laptop, echo devices, streaming services. The eero router is not obstructed and is not on the floor, it's in the same place that it's always been. I spoke to the webchat yesterday and followed their advice, did a hard reset and disconnected both the router and the fibre box for 30 minutes. It has made no difference, I'm still losing connection, sometimes multiple times in an hour. When the connection drops all the green lights on the fibre box are still on and the white eero light is on. It makes no difference where I am in the house, even if I'm right next to the box and router any devices I am using still lose connection. 

Can somebody please help, I'm getting so frustrated with this. I don't want to leave TalkTalk because in 3 and a half years I've had no problem until now, but these last few days my connection is becoming almost unusable.

ETA: I don't know if this is any way relevant or just a coincidence, but the problem seems to have been happening since engineers were working on the pole that serves me and the surrounding houses, presumably setting up a connection for people that recently moved in across the street. 

[sabelo-TT]

@Giggsclifton, thank you for this. We will also be here should you have any issues after the weekend. 

[Giggsclifton]

For the last couple of days, since following advice from the hugely knowledgeable and helpful @KeithFrench things are looking massively improved. I'm hopeful that it will stay this way, going to keep an eye on it over the next few days. Fingers crossed I can come back with good news after the weekend.

[nomfezeko-TT]

Hi @KeithFrench , thank you for the update! That sounds good. I appreciate you keeping me in the loop. Let me know if there's anything you need from my side before you touch base with @Giggsclifton. Looking forward to closing this off! 

[KeithFrench]

Hi @nomfezeko-TT 

This is still OK, I will touch base with @Giggsclifton after the weekend and hopefully we'll be able to close this one off.

[nomfezeko-TT]

It sounds like there is a significant improvement on the Wi-Fi signal strength with the Echo Dot used for Eero Built-in! That is great to hear! If @Giggsclifton is planning to try another Echo Dot in a different area of her property, it will be interesting to see if she experiences similar benefits. It might be helpful for her to consider the placement of the device to maximize coverage. Looking forward for the next update. Thank you so much @KeithFrench, you have been very helpful. 

[KeithFrench]

Hi @nomfezeko-TT 

With just one Echo Dot used for eero Built-in, the signal strength is much improved & no dropouts so far. @Giggsclifton hopes to try another one elsewhere in her property.

[nomfezeko-TT]

Hi @KeithFrench, thank you so much for the update. It's great to hear that you're working with @Giggsclifton on the Wi-Fi analysis. If you need any assistance from me or if there is anything I can do to help, please feel free to let me know. Thank you so much once again.  

[KeithFrench]

Hi @nomfezeko-TT 

I am currently working with @Giggsclifton, analysing the WiFi since one of the Dots is now extending the WiFi.

[nomfezeko-TT]

Thank you so much @KeithFrench for the update on the analysis of @Giggsclifton's Wi-Fi network. It's clear that the 2.4GHz band is experiencing significant interference, primarily due to the HP-Direct feature of the customer's printer. Turning off the printer is a good temporary solution to see if it alleviates the interference. Please let me know if there are additional details to consider. Your help is appreciated. 

[KeithFrench]

Hi @nomfezeko-TT 

I have been doing an analysis of @Giggsclifton Wi-Fi network. The 2.4GHz band is suffering badly from Wi-Fi interference. This is mainly caused by the HP-Direct facility of the customer's own printer, broadcasting out on the same channel. For the time being, we are going to try things with the printer turned off. 

Where the 5GHz band is concerned, I think that the problems may be a signal strength issue, rather than interference. Mention has been made of some Amazon Echo devices connected to the eero. If these are Echo Dots, then I can talk the customer through using these to boost the 5GHz signal strength.

[nomfezeko-TT]

Hi there @Giggsclifton we are so sorry for the problems with your broadband service, please do let us know if the issue persists. @KeithFrench ,thank you so much for helping. 

[Giggsclifton]

Yes I did that on Thursday when the help chat advised me to do so. But I will try it again today.

[KeithFrench]

That sounds more like a problem between the Eero & the fibre. Have you tried turning the ONT off for a minimum of 30 minutes? I can still check your WiFi reception when you send me your files.

[Giggsclifton]

Hi @KeithFrench 

Thank you so much for taking the time to help me. I was out most of yesterday, but during a short outage this morning I was able to check the eero app, and it told me I was offline. This was just for a very short time. 

Than for sending me your guide, I will go through this today or tomorrow and send you what you need. 

[KeithFrench]

Hi @Giggsclifton 

When you say everything goes down, this could (as all your connections are wireless), be a Wi-Fi reception issue, or it could be a problem from the Full Fibre & ONT to the eero. That is why I suggest you check the eero app first and/or the light on it when this happens.

However, I would guess that it is a wireless issue.

Do not worry about interpreting the results; I will do that for you. I will send a PM to you that contains a link to a guide of mine on Wi-Fi interference. It is quite lengthy (approximately 30 pages), but you will likely only need to review three or four pages in total. Initially, look at the section called "Are you suffering from interference – prove it first". This is the first link in the table of contents. This section includes full details of free Wi-Fi analysers that I recommend for Windows, Windows phone, Android and Apple operating systems. However, I have no way of testing the Apple product. Select the analyser of your choice & my guide explains how to use it.

If you are using Wi-Fi Scanner, please attach the zip file to this thread. As soon as I have downloaded it, I will remove the attachment from your post to preserve your privacy.

With all other analysers, please follow my instructions below.

Please collect the required screenshots and include them in your reply.

Please post the screenshots to me in a PM (to protect your privacy), which I have requested in my guide. No photos, please, as they can be difficult to read, because the text can get out of focus when zoomed in. Please ensure that the analyser window is maximised (if Windows) before taking the screenshots & uploading them via the "Insert Photos" button (in a mobile browser it's the picture icon) on the post editor's toolbar with the Size parameter set to Large.

The information below is provided by TalkTalk. For confirmation, please contact @Lorrainef, the manager of the TalkTalk support staff on this forum.

KeithFrench is one of our valued Community Stars and can help with a range of issues related to wireless and networking. At times, he may ask you to send him test results via a Private Message to help analyse/diagnose an issue. Although Keith does not work for TalkTalk, he very kindly shares his time and knowledge to help others.

If you need further help or if we need to take any details such as personal information about your account, like phone numbers, account numbers, etc, one of the TalkTalk team will jump in and help out.

[Giggsclifton]

Hi Keith, thanks for your reply. I don't have any wired connections. 

When you say the status in the app for internet connection, that's the eero app, yes? ( Forgive me, I am coming at this as a complete layperson with extremely limited knowledge). I hadn't even considered checking the eero app whilst a dropout was occuring until last night, so that's something I will need to do next time one happens. I would like to request your guide please if I could.

[KeithFrench]

Slow speed, intermittent dropouts, breaks in the signal or no signal on some or all devices or no internet access might be caused by Wi-Fi interference from other local networks, which can also lead to a permanent reduction in speed. No ISP can be responsible for your local environment; this is mainly a byproduct of the popularity of Wi-Fi.

However, other factors should be investigated first. When this happens, what is the status displayed in the app for the internet connection? Do you have any wired connections & if so, how do they perform?

Generally speaking, the 2.4GHz band suffers a lot more from interference than the much faster 5GHz band, but the 2.4GHz band can sometimes have a better range; however, this all depends on your local area.

In other words, I offer a free, impartial analysis of your Wi-Fi network and will try to help you optimise your Wi-Fi connection. The next stage involves sending out a guide to you to help you get me some important diagnostic results so that I can analyse them for you and recommend changes to your router configuration to solve them.

I only send this out to people who request it.

Whilst the eero is supposed to manage Wi-Fi interference, if this is very bad, particularly in the 2.4GHz band, then it cannot do anything about it, no router can. The same goes for any router at that point. Other things that may then need to be investigated are its location within your property and the WiFi bands that you use.