Re: Wireless router antenna design fail

"Whatever is best for your environment"

My APs have internal antennae (except for the one in the garage whose antennae are outside the house)

The shrink tubing may work. If I have any of large enough diameter. Otherwise, I think I will just superglue them in three different orientations -- this gives 6 different configurations (plus the "tilt" allowed for each as well as reorienting the entire unit)

I'm not keen on spending any time on it (its not mine) but want to at least LOOK like I made an effort (before advising them to replace the thing)

Use a dipole, so the weight of the two halves balances at the connector.

Not my kit. I'm just the local "let's-bring-it-to-Don,-HE'LL-fix-it!".

I try to "make an effort" that is proportional to the item being rescued. In this case, a $50 a/b/g/n router isn't worth too much of an effort.

Superglue a lump of lead on the opposite side of the connector to balance it.

Elastic bands to hold it in place.

Replace the fancy bits with some copper wire that can be bent to the required position.

For everyone else, there are wireless mesh networks. I've upgraded a few customers who were having indoor coverage problems to TP-Link mesh systems:

One really nice feature is seamless roaming, where a user can walk around the house and not drop the connection. That's very handy for Wi-Fi calling from a cell phone. Another is that the system is remotely accessible from the internet for admin and monitoring. Prices vary considerably. I haven't installed any of the Wi-Fi 7 models yet because of the high prices. Wi-Fi 6 is good enough for most home users $100 for a 3 pack:

Internal antennas work, but you were asking about coaxial sleeve antennas.

If you're going to be juggling wi-fi antennas, I suggest you become familiar with the various wi-fi analyzer apps available for smartphones. They display the signal strength with which you can determine if you're making progress. Hint: Temporarily set the wireless router or access point to a fixed minimum speed when measuring signal levels.

I mostly use WiFi Overview 360 Pro:

With super glue (cyanoacrylate adhesive), you have one chance to position the antennas correctly. It is possible to remove cyanoacrylate glue with acetone. However, I think it best to use something removable, such as hot melt glue, which works nicely for temporary installations. If you just want to freeze the position of the antenna, maybe try removable Loctite Threadlocker Blue 242.

Right. Appearances are important. That's why I recommended the Asus

Gone to purchase some lactase pills. Hopefully, that will make me less intolerant.

More "boxes" and "wall warts" to hide. I have two APs inside the house, one for the back yard and one for the garage (to link to the car). But, they are all relatively well hidden soas not to look "techy".

We tend not to have coverage problems as homes tend to have pretty "open" floorplans. E.g., I can "see" from one end of the house to the other -- despite a fake wall that was placed to try to break up such sight lines.

Extending coverage *outside* the home tends to be a bit more challenging (hence the AP on the back porch and above the garage door.

OTOH, I can "see" the SSIDs for several of my neighbors...

Not my problem. I just had to prevent the "limp antennae" issue. If this was working for them previously, it should continue to do so.

Or not. (and I will still be credited for making the effort)

Yes. I connected all three antennae. Ensure they were well secured. Then, turned the router around so the rear was facing me (to make those connections more easily accessible). Arranged the antennae as I wanted them and, as they WANTED to "flop over", propped each into the desired position. A few drops of superglue to saturate the "swivel point" and wait a while. Later, unscrewed each connector by 1/2 turn to expose their undersides. A bit more glue and done!

Blue and red only seem to work on *tight* connections. There's too much slop in these.

Most people hide their APs exactly because they look so unnatural. Closets being a prime location. Of course, getting power into those spaces is a bit of a challenge (all my kit is PoE)

I have "issues" with some breakfast (dry) cereals. The doctor suggesting lactose intolerance. I counter with the fact that I can drink 12+ oz glasses of whole milk with no problem. Must be something in the cereals...

Be aware that TP-Link is flagged as a security problem:

.

There is a list of the known-compromised makes and models.

Joe

Gluing the rotatable part seems to have worked well. As the glue is transparent and low viscosity, it isn't even noticeable (as most has flowed INTO the "joint")

I will caution them regarding *removal* of the antenna (each must be "straightened" prior to removal) but doubt they will ever need to remove them.

And, if an antenna comes loose (mechanical force on it), they can just snug it up and it will return to the "preset" orientation that I have established.

No doubt they will eventually update to 6 or even 7 so this seems about the correct amount of effort (and zero expense).

If something like this happens again (on some other bit of kit), I may try slipping a length of brake line or vacuum line over the connector in the hope that it provides enough "drag" on the movable portion.

That's why they make green :-). Several part numbers to cover a range of clearances, mostly advertised for bearing retention I think.

Green is comparable to red. But, all of those products are designed for parts that already "fit reasonably well" and just need to be secured against vibration.

This is a sloppy fit. Much looser tolerances than threaded parts (even poorly machined parts!) would exhibit.

When I first was handed the router, the antennae were so sloppy that my first impression was the connectors had broken free of the PCB. (OK, I'll take it apart and reflow the contacts).

But, the PCB-mounted connectors were intack. As were the mating connections for the antennae. It was outboard of the connection that the problem existed. I could get an antenna to stand perfectly vertical (if I patiently "balanced" it) but anything off of vertical quickly (as in "within seconds") fell until it encountered some other support.

Jeff's shrink wrap might have worked (I don't have anything that diameter) -- but, likely only for a short while as it tends to stretch when subjected to stresses.

Liz's rubber bands could have worked -- until they inevitably failed (what the hell are "rubber bands" made of, nowadays, as they all seem to deteriorate in short order!).

If it was a "real project", I would try some rubber tubing with a carefully chosen ID in the hope that it would put enough drag on the parts and NOT "stretch out" with repeated use.

But, anything < $100 is disposable, nowadays. So, if I could get them up and running until they decided to replace the router, I can justify the time spent.

Search for "adhesive lined heat shrink tube". It won't slip.

I still recommend that you use hot melt glue, because it can easily be moved or removed: