No WiFi been told tough [-Censored-]

[#1]

Hi, not sure if anyone can help. My WiFi is slow to almost no existent. A speed test usually comes back with around 10-14mbps but tonight has come back with “your speed is very slow”. 

After speaking to Plusnet, I have been told the line speed is testing out at 79mbps so I am getting the speeds they guarantee and my only option is to basically hardwire everything or pay to have my contract terminated which given I have been with them for 2 months is gong to cost me!

It is not practical to hardwire everything, security cameras, tv, laptops, phones, tablets etc. Can anyone offer any advice? This issue has been going on since I was first connected. Thanks

[#2]

@Benm1 Welcome to the forums. A little more detail would help other Community members help you.

I assume you have looked at the 'Speed Issues' topic towards the top of this board?

Sight of your routers 'HelpDesk' tab would be useful - but edit out any personal details before posting them. Have you checked your phone line for noise - dial 17070 - option 2 from a (preferably) corded phone - the only thing you should hear is the periodic 'Quiet Line Test' message - if there are any distortions/crackle/whistles on the line, report a phone line fault first. Without a clear phone line, you will not get a reasonable throughput on your broadband connection.

[#3]

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@Benm1 wrote:

It is not practical to hardwire everything, security cameras, ...

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I'm not sure I'd call a security camera by that name if it relied on WiFi   

[#4]

Thanks for the reply John.
I don't have a phone in the house so can't do that test. Plusnet said they did a line test and it is all ok.

Not sure what you mean by routers helpdesk. I literally plug it in and hope it works. Keeps the mrs and kids quiet. Like I said it's been like this since day one but I've never had chance to do anything about it.

[#5]

It might as well go in the bin now. Had no problems with previous supplier in 2 years but they were getting a tad expensive

[#6]

OK - but a cheap phone (~£5.00 from the likes of Argos) is an essential first line of defence, and there are ocassions when the PN test doesn't pick faults up.

You are obviously a novice at this, with respect, so please bear with me - if other Community members are to help, we need something to work with as we obviously don't have access to the PN systems.

What type of phone master socket do you have?

What 'might as well go in the bin'?

We will help, but you have to help us to help you.

[#7]

Thing is, any provider will not guarantee wireless speeds, there are too many variables. Line speed to the router is what PN will be going on to determine the correct speeds are being delivered. Wireless problems are then down to the customer. I would download a programme like Inssider to see how congested the wireless channels are around you and switch them if necessary. Then you can always split the 2.5ghz and 5gz wireless channels to see if that makes a difference. Wireless phones next to the router and other equipment can also cause interference and internal brock walls can block signals. You will also need to ensure you are plugged into the test socket of the BT socket (behind the faceplate) to ensure your internal wiring isn't causing the issue.

[#8]

All good suggestions, @Marksfish , but I have a sneaky suspicion a lot of your comments will go over the OPs head.😉

[#9]

Further thoughts as well, @Marksfish - I doubt quite honestly that this is a congestion issue - if the OP said he had 'no problems' with previous (unspecified) provider, it could be a number of things - possibly connected to the router - the Hub1 is not exactly the best on the market, although it can be made to work reasonably reliably. It could be the OP's wiring, it could be a simple set-up error - he did say it has 'always' been like this since he switched. Without more detail we are floundering around in the dark.

[#10]

A cored "line powered" ( that is it has no batteries and only plugs into a phone socket) landline phone is still an important device to have.

 in the event of a power cut then the landline will still work - powered by back up generators/systems at the exchange

 mobile phone masts may have batteries to run for a short while but this isnt in every mast base station, thats why weather warnings also warn of mobile phone reception loss.

As previous you will need to connect to th router via a wired connection to realy troubleshoot it

[#11]

This thread seems to be doing nothing towards helping @Benm1 resolve his problem. 
Plusnet have reported that his sync speed is 79Mbps, suggesting to me that there is no phone noise etc.

@Benm1  Accepting that not everything can be hard wired do you have a laptop that can be connected to your hub via an Ethernet cable? If so can you connect it and do a speed test? If you are getting over 70Mbps then we know that we are just looking at a wireless problem.

In this case the first thing to do is separate 2.4 and 5GHz bands, see https://community.plus.net/t5/My-Router/2-4ghz-and-or-5ghz-best-practice/m-p/1351966#M840 try each band in turn to see which works best.

If you want a better hub for peanuts go to an auction site and get a BT Smarthub 6. Settings are here https://community.plus.net/t5/My-Router/Using-A-BT-Smarthub-An-Update/m-p/1795292#M24601

[#12]

Thanks for the replies everyone.  I have been at work so unable to do anything.

@jab1  - I was referring to the security camera that may as well go in the bin after RobPN’s comment 😉.

I’ll have to check the master socket when I get home tonight but I’m sure it is just a standard socket with one outlet plus it is the only one in the house. I can check speeds by connecting the laptop via a cable, I’ll bring one home from work tonight. I can also check by plugging into the test socket on the rear and check the wiring while I’m at it. In an ideal world, I would hardwire everything in but don’t have the time nor inclination to start running wires everywhere nor do I think the mrs would appreciate me pulling floors up and chasing walls out to hide cables!

I have had issues using WiFi around certain equipment, fans and motors etc but have been able to mitigate those and as I said I didn’t have the issue with my previous supplier who was EE.

I can try splitting the bands but a couple of bits I use prefer 2.4GHz. I’m not a complete novice but never had to go into the backend of the router before nor have I had any interest in doing so. I was tired last night when you asked that question and wasn’t thinking straight!!

@Baldrick1 The guy at PN actually suggested I purchase a better router or wait until they roll out the software update later this month. I’ll probably look for a better router if I’m honest.

@pint not worried about the case of a major power outage, my phone gets switched over to priority network through work if this was to happen and I have means for keeping it charged.

If I get chance tonight I will take a look at the options discussed and let you all know.  Thanks for your help, much appreciated.

[#13]

@Baldrick1 Fair enough - and thanks for your help.

@Benm1 Understand if you were tired, I've done the same - posted when I really shouldn't - and have to go back and explain later. 😉

If you follow @Baldrick1 's suggestions, and report back on the rest of the issues tonight, we will probably be able to sort you out. 😀

[#14]

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@Benm1 wrote:

@jab1  - I was referring to the security camera that may as well go in the bin after RobPN’s comment 😉.

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 No need to dump the camera, that's just @RobPN 's opinion......

[#15]

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@Champnet wrote:

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 No need to dump the camera, that's just @RobPN 's opinion......

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@Champnet 

Disregarding the possibility of a WiFi camera being hacked, anything which relies on unreliable WiFi to transmit any type of 'live' security data is vulnerable to having its 'link' interrupted by being jammed either intentionally or just by overloading/clashing of the WiFi channels in the local vicinity.

Fair enough if the camera has onboard recording capability those recordings might be safe, but any monitoring of the camera will be lost.