[SOLVED] New Home Internet Setup Suggestions

[BassHoppa888]

Hello,

Long time lurker here in need of some help. We are based in the UK and recently moved to a converted steading in the country which only has regular broadband (2-4mb/s). This wouldn't do, so we had the option of 4G or Satellite internet. 4G won out due to better speeds, cost and latency. We needed unlimited data so our only real option was the provider Three. Our original setup was a Huawei B535 with a Poynting A0001 Omni directional antenna off of Amazon. We ran this to a mesh network of 5 Google Whole Home hubs. This seemed to do ok initially but due to the shape, age and size of the house (basically a big T with 600mm thick stone walls) running a mesh system didn't go well, nor did the Poynting Antenna. While our speeds initially hit 40-60mb/s down it fluctuated too wildly to be reliable.

Setup 2 was running a Outdoor Router (self contained outdoor unit) outside up a pole on the roof powered via poe back into the house to the 5 google units this time with extreme ends of the steading now running in backhaul with their dedicated cat 6 cable. This seems to have made things more stable, at least initially. However now we are getting constant drop outs and i have to reset the router almost every day. Also on the issue of maintenance i don't like the idea of going on a roof should i need to simply change a sim (which i want to be able to do)


So i need a setup 3 with the following criteria:

• The main router needs to be indoors so I can swap out sims or for any maintenance. I was thinking about purchasing TP-Link Archer 4g router mr400-600 or the like with WiFi disabled and connected to the base Google WiFi hub. Can anyone recommend anything better?

• The antenna needs to be outdoor on a pole as high as possible. Can anyone recommend a good directional 4g antenna like the Poynting A0002 or better? Or would a good omnidirectional one be better? If so any suggestions would be great. I'd try getting the Antenna as close to the router as possible (within 5-10m) but if not can I do longer runs with LMR 400 or 600?

• The main Google hub would be connected to a switch where from there would go out (via backhaul) to the other 4 hubs in the mesh via Ubiquiti cat6 shielded cable (externally run for ease)

I still think 4g is the way to go, at least until star link is up and running in the UK for rural folk like myself. With the added pressures of working from home and increased streaming it's really put a strain on our system and honestly any suggestions would be welcome cause at this point i am willing to try anything.



Thanks again

 

[SamirD]

If you really want robust cellular, cradlepoint is the company that does it 'right'.

Your wired backhaul is the key to performance. The more wired stuff you have, the better.

 

[gggplaya]

Keep the antenna cable as short as possible. If you have a normal shingle roof, you can also put the antenna in the attic of the house, works way better than inside the stone walls of the home and nearly as good as outside the house.

Get a directional antenna and figure out where the closest tower is for your provider.

To be honest though, an outdoor unit with the modem/router built into it is going to be the best possible signal. Your lines will be extremely short from the antenna to the cellular modem/signal amplifier because it's all right there at the pole. Something like this, but attach one of your own directional antennae optimized for THREE: https://www.outdoorrouter.com/produ...outer-mimo-wifi-300mbps/uk-4g-outdoor-router/

Be sure to properly ground the pole and wire connections. U.S. NEC code requires a spike to be placed 3 feet into the ground and all wires and the pole to be attached to it for proper lightening protection. I'm not sure what U.K. code is. Ubiquiti makes a cheap ethernet surge protector to keep you code compliant: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ubiquiti-ETH-SP-G2-Ethernet-Surge-Protector/dp/B079HXKRW1 just be sure you use shielded ethernet cable with metal connector ends.

 

[bill001g]

The less antenna cable you have the better. Even for shorter runs I would go for the lmr600 you get a lot of signal loss in cable, many times more than the antenna adds if you are to cheap.

The best antenna are yagi tuned to the band your ISP uses. Mostly this is to filter out all the other junk signals. A more generic form is called Log Periodic Directional Yagi Antenna. They have models designed to receive the range of common cell tower frequencies.

The tricky part to get full speed you actually need to have 2 antenna since they use MiMO. You must mount then 90 degrees off each other...ie one horizontal the other vertical.

I am unclear the laws in the UK. The rules in the USA say you are allowed to use them with the permission of the license holder (ie the cell company). Although the cell company might tell you its ok none will actually provide the paperwork you need to be legal. I guess the good thing is unless you are causing some kind of interference nobody is going to report you anyway.