68U strength has declined?

[wahoowad]

My RT-AC68U was noticeably stronger when I first installed it as my standard home wifi router. Nothing special - just the basics out of the box install and home usage. Signal strength out in my garage was increased (more bars shown on mobile devices) and even walking the dog had me connected walking a good bit down the street.

I've been running it a couple years, and not sure when but it now doesn't seem to have the same range or power. I'm still connected to the 5G channel and haven't changed a thing. I'm at work and can't check my firmware version but it hasn't been updated in quite awhile - which I wouldn't expect that to matter here. It should be as strong today on the same firmware as it was months ago on that firmware, right? Yes, of course so.

Unit hasn't been moved/relocated - still up where I had it. Any ideas? It gets rebooted periodically - maybe every 2 months when the power goes out. I'll reboot it but know I've done that numerous times since I first noticed it lacked the same footprint and strength it seemed to have originally.

 

[wahoowad]

Current firmware I'm using is: 3.0.0.4.380_4164-gcc3b748

Uptime: 88 days 8 hours 26 minute(s) 12 seconds



Ok, that is longer than I thought but I know I have been dealing with the reduced signal strength for longer than 88 days. It's been like 6 months or even more. I just accepted it since I had adequate internet access, but now I'm streaming football games out in the garage and getting occasional buffering or drops when it didn't do that the first few months after installing it.

 

[L&LD]

Even if your routers output or performance didn't change, your environment has. This is normal.

You can try to relocate the router. Even a few inches one way or another may make a difference. You can try different antennae positions (straight up works best for me). You can try to see if certain channels give you better performance. Testing channels is a long process but worth it if you find a better performer. Or, you can simply reboot your router and ISP's equipment, better yet; leave it off, physically unplugged from the power source, for at least 10 to 30 minutes. Some or all of the above may help.

WiFi isn't just science. It involves luck and a bit of magic too.

 

[wahoowad]

Hmmm. Restarted cable modem and router and everything seems the same. I used to have good wifi in garage and even on other side of neighbor's yard but now I only have half-strength halfway across my yard and weak in garage. Unit is in exact same location as previous high output in same orientation, nothing new in layout or furnishings of house.