# Getting WIFI in my Workshop



## poppameth (Oct 2, 2008)

Do you have a any type of conduit trenched out there for power? I'd suggest pulling a run of Cat6 from the house to the workshop. A hardwired connection will be the cheap and reliable way to do it. You could spends hundreds trying different antennas and signal boosters and still not get the results you want.


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## iamrfixit (Jan 30, 2011)

I agree, at only 200' a wired connection is probably the best route, cheapest and reliable. But this might not be the time of year to dig it in depending on your location. I would put it in conduit and use a quality cable that can handle being buried, it will cost a bit more but is not a deal breaker. I would not pull the wire in an existing conduit with a power feed, you would likely have interference issues.

I have had good luck with these Ubiquiti nanostation M2. I have these working a couple places at more than 800 feet line of sight. Searching on the internet some folks have them going 10km reliably. You need two of them to create a point to point bridge. If you have a few computer and networking skills they are not difficult to get up and working. They have been very reliable, quick and easy to set up and aim, 200 feet will not even be a challenge for these if you have decent line of sight. At $50 each and another $20 each for the mounting brackets they won't break the bank. These can also be configured to broadcast or receive Wifi to extend range, but in my situations it works best just using them as a point to point bridge. Here is a link to a video describing setup.


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## poppameth (Oct 2, 2008)

Yeah, not good to run cable in an existing power conduit. If you are using Cat6 and have nothing but 110 line run you may be okay, but there is still the possibility of interference, plus it's code violation. If you have a separate conduit for phone though feel free to pull Cat6 through that. Otherwise a point to point system as iamrfixit suggests may be a viable option.


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## PD_Lape (Nov 19, 2014)

Wired is definitely the cheapest and most reliable solution for your case. Going the wireless route would involve getting 3-4 outdoor repeaters strategically positioned to reach your workshop. That would yield only about 60% of signal strength and reliability you get from a wired set up.

-Paul

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## RHeat (Nov 14, 2014)

Updating your wireless to the newest AC model should only require 1 repeater to stretch the signal that far


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## PD_Lape (Nov 19, 2014)

RHeat said:


> Updating your wireless to the newest AC model should only require 1 repeater to stretch the signal that far


I highly doubt that. Routers with wireless AC does not have a longer range. They only offer a higher throughput. It's maximum effective range is 75 feet interference aside. One repeater wont really do it plus buying a new router and a a couple repeaters still won't give him a reliable connection in a room full of interference such as a workshop.

-Paul

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