Extending coverage outdoors

[Lsstefan]

Hello.
I'm looking to buy the upcoming 2 pack AX92U (AX6100) to use them in a home and garden coverage. They will use ethernet backhaul.
I tested the coverage with an apple airport router and even the 5GHz reached in the whole house (medium signal), I'm going to assume the 92U will do better. The thing is, outside in the patio the 2.4 struggled and the 5 was nowhere to be found. I wanted to use 1 92U upstairs and 1 downstairs, but considering 1 covers the whole house, then it's overkill. Unfortunately, anywhere I set the AirPort router, it didn't have good signal outside. I even tried the attic, nothing works. I can't put the 92U outside due to weather.
I was thinking of buying an outdoor AP, with ethernet backhaul thru the attic for it to cover the outside of the house.
Now here's my issue: the AP should/will have a different SSID because it can't be put in the AiMesh, but that kind of makes 1 network for everything obsolete, not to mention if coming from the outside in the house, the device might still be connected to the AP instead of the asus network.
Are there any other solutions to my problem? External antennas connected to one of the routers?
Thanks for the help.

 

[Smokindog]

You can use the same SSID for the AP node. It doesn't require AiMesh. I cover a lot of space inside and out with a main router and multiple APs connected via wire. ALL have the same SSID.

Depending on where your wired connection are you may be able to get coverage outside by placing AP nodes near the outside walls/windows adjacent to the space. I do have outside wiring but only occasionally use it as my coverage from the inside nodes is adequate for most use.

 

[Lsstefan]

You can use the same SSID for the AP node. It doesn't require AiMesh. I cover a lot of space inside and out with a main router and multiple APs connected via wire. ALL have the same SSID.

Depending on where your wired connection are you may be able to get coverage outside by placing AP nodes near the outside walls/windows adjacent to the space. I do have outside wiring but only occasionally use it as my coverage from the inside nodes is adequate for most use.

But wouldn't devices inside the house still connected to the AP have lower speed? That kind of makes having high performance routers useless, no?
I know I'll probably never have ethernet as fast as the router can offer, but that still means I spent a lot of money on basically nothing if I'll be on the AP SSID.

 

[Smokindog]

I'm not sure I'm following your concern.

Each AP has it's own set of radios and each client will choose which AP and band for a connection. A device outside the house won't affect a device inside the house.

Your biggest challenge IMO is to make sure you don't have too much channel overlap. Start with the APs in "Auto" mode for channel selection. Download a tool like "WiFi Analyzer" for PC/Android and walk around you intended areas of use. That tool and others can look at both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz spectrum (provided your device has a dual band radio). You'll see contention for each channel both from your APs and your neighbors' networks. If need be, manually assign the channels for each band on each AP based on the results from your survey.

I'm not endorsing this article, just scanned it after a quick "google" and they it to give a decent base of knowledge. Perhaps there's already a best practices thread on SNB that someone will call out.

https://www.madebywifi.com/blog/multiple-wifi-aps-on-the-same-network/

But wouldn't devices inside the house still connected to the AP have lower speed? That kind of makes having high performance routers useless, no?
I know I'll probably never have ethernet as fast as the router can offer, but that still means I spent a lot of money on basically nothing if I'll be on the AP SSID.

 

[Grisu]

First main question: How fast is your line?
What will you expect to get with wifi inside and outside?

Coverage wont be significally better with different routers as the technic behind is regulated and physics are the same.
AC11000 and AC1900 often wont make any difference in real life as you need appropriate clients and MuMiMo only takes place nearby router.

You could place a cheap router outside under the roof or another rainproof location.

 

[Clark Griswald]

You could place a cheap router outside under the roof or another rainproof location.

I ran cat5e to our cabana, and run my old R7000 as an AP for the summer. My teenage daughter let me know our house sucked without wifi by the pool.

 

[Lsstefan]

First main question: How fast is your line?
What will you expect to get with wifi inside and outside?

Coverage wont be significally better with different routers as the technic behind is regulated and physics are the same.
AC11000 and AC1900 often wont make any difference in real life as you need appropriate clients and MuMiMo only takes place nearby router.

You could place a cheap router outside under the roof or another rainproof location.

500 mbits guaranteed is the contract with the ISP. I am aware the setup is overkill, but I can't justify spending hundreds now on something that might become a bottleneck at some point in the next 5 years. (Most likely speed won't increase past gigabit, but it's just me being paranoid)
Also more devices with wifi6 will come out so why not take advantage of it since I'm starting from scratch and not upgrading.
I have a patio about 10m from the house. I need wifi there also, can't run a cable from the house to there.
My issue with placing another router that's not in the AiMesh network is that, even if it will have the same SSID, if the device gets connected to that AP for example and I come inside the house, the device might still be connected to that AP so what's the point of spending money on high end tech if I'm on a cheaper tech?
Full disclosure: i'm doing this for a friend(said its me because its easier to explain), he's not a tech guy and wants the best stuff out there, so I'm trying to understand the best stuff to give him good advice.
So an external antenna router won't send signal further than an internal antenna router? (Coverage wise)

I'm not sure I'm following your concern.

Could be i'm wrong but lets assume I have a dual band AP outside the house and I go furthest from the house where only 2.4 band reaches. Then i come back to the house, go inside. Won't the device still be connected to the 2.4 band from the AP? (Because its still in range) So instead of utilizing the high end routers I bought, I'm using a lower speed.

 

[Grisu]

its all up to your clients what they will do and how they perform or change band and node!
Mesh only will 'help' clients to change and works best with clients fully supporting newer standards.
Other antennas 9/12dbi can help for 2.4G coverage, but destroy Mu-MiMo which will mostly be used with 5G.