On Fri, 25 Mar 2016 16:54:42 -0400, Pat wrote:

Before hacking out insulation, I'd try the attic approach first.

Too late. I already did it and without moving the wifi module to be
near the hole, the signal already improved from marginal (a red
indicator LED) to OK (the LED is now yellow). Tomorrow, I will move
the wifi module to be near the hole. I expect a green LED after that.

Pat

Final update: I moved the wifi device to right in front of my RF
hole. The LED is green and everything is back to normal. I replaced
the old insulation with non-foil type and covered the hole with the
$15 cover plate a mentioned in previous posts. All is well. Thanks.

Pat

Sn!pe wrote:



Have you considered using HomePlug powerline ethernet such as this?
$69 for a starter kit seems quite well priced. I assume that you have
power in your shed connected to your house wiring. my setup to my own
shed over a similar distance works pretty well at ~20 Mbps.

http://www.amazon.com/ZyXEL-PLA4205k...all-plug/dp/B0
05GCSZD6


I believe that some amateurs, especially those that use HF, and more
especiallly those who listen to non-amateur band transmissions on HF,
might find that suggestion bordering on the objectionable.


--

Roger Hayter

On Fri, 25 Mar 2016 16:45:24 +0000, (Roger Hayter)
wrote:

Sn!pe wrote:



Have you considered using HomePlug powerline ethernet such as this?
$69 for a starter kit seems quite well priced. I assume that you have
power in your shed connected to your house wiring. my setup to my own
shed over a similar distance works pretty well at ~20 Mbps.

http://www.amazon.com/ZyXEL-PLA4205k...all-plug/dp/B0
05GCSZD6


I believe that some amateurs, especially those that use HF, and more
especiallly those who listen to non-amateur band transmissions on HF,
might find that suggestion bordering on the objectionable.
Good point. (Although there is already a lot of digital hash in the
area throughout HF. Some from my network and some from nearby
neighbors).

On 3/25/2016 12:45 PM, Roger Hayter wrote:
Sn!pe wrote:



Have you considered using HomePlug powerline ethernet such as this?
$69 for a starter kit seems quite well priced. I assume that you have
power in your shed connected to your house wiring. my setup to my own
shed over a similar distance works pretty well at ~20 Mbps.

http://www.amazon.com/ZyXEL-PLA4205k...all-plug/dp/B0
05GCSZD6


I believe that some amateurs, especially those that use HF, and more
especiallly those who listen to non-amateur band transmissions on HF,
might find that suggestion bordering on the objectionable.

Is the HomePlug setup a known offender? They might use something like
CDMA to spread the noise over the band greatly reducing any interference.

--

Rick

rickman wrote:

On 3/25/2016 12:45 PM, Roger Hayter wrote:
Sn!pe wrote:



Have you considered using HomePlug powerline ethernet such as this?
$69 for a starter kit seems quite well priced. I assume that you have
power in your shed connected to your house wiring. my setup to my own
shed over a similar distance works pretty well at ~20 Mbps.

http://www.amazon.com/ZyXEL-PLA4205k...all-plug/dp/B0
05GCSZD6


I believe that some amateurs, especially those that use HF, and more
especiallly those who listen to non-amateur band transmissions on HF,
might find that suggestion bordering on the objectionable.

Is the HomePlug setup a known offender? They might use something like
CDMA to spread the noise over the band greatly reducing any interference.

I believe they already use most of the HF band (apart from notches
around the amateur bands) for bandwidth reason. The British national
society seriously considered sueing the regulator for allowing them to
vandalise the spectrum against the previously estabisihed interference
rulels.


--

Roger Hayter

On Fri, 25 Mar 2016 15:13:09 +0000, (Sn!pe) wrote:

Pat wrote:

My antenna theory knowledge is a little weak so I thought you guys
might be able to help.

Background:
I have a shed about 50 feet away from my house that contains water
pumps and similar equipment that I monitor. The shed has no windows
but was built using normal stud-wall construction. I built a small
device that receives information from sensors and then reports back to
my PC via my home network. I have no way to run wires to the shed
because there is a driveway in between, so I decided to use wi-fi. The
shed had a good strong wi-fi signal inside it and everything worked
well for the last 5 years. Recently, vinyl siding was added to the
shed. The installers used foil coated styrofoam insulation under the
siding. The shed has changed from being fairly transparent to RF to
being a somewhat leaky faraday shield. The wifi module still works,
but just barely. There are lots of missed messages and any
interference from devices like the microwave oven in the house shut
down communications.

Question:
I want to create an RF "window" in the shed wall. How big does it
need to be to let 2400 MHz signals pass through it? A full
wavelength? Half wavelength? Should it be rectangular or would a
vertical slot work? Opening the shed door (a full size metal door)
temporarily restores a strong signal, but I was hoping a much smaller
opening would work equally well. For aesthetic reasons, I can't
experiment by cutting various size holes. What's the smallest hole I
can cut in the foil coated insulation and be reasonably assured it
will work?

Thanks,
Pat


Have you considered using HomePlug powerline ethernet such as this?
$69 for a starter kit seems quite well priced. I assume that you have
power in your shed connected to your house wiring. my setup to my own
shed over a similar distance works pretty well at ~20 Mbps.

http://www.amazon.com/ZyXEL-PLA4205kit-HomePlug-Powerline-Wall-plug/dp/B005GCSZD6

Yes. I have considered that. However, the shed is powered from a
separate feed back the power company. I didn't want to risk the money
to buy one of these only to find its signal didn't make it through the
power company's transformer.

Pat

On 3/25/2016 5:33 PM, Sn!pe wrote:
Pat wrote:

On Fri, 25 Mar 2016 15:13:09 +0000, (Sn!pe) wrote:

[...]

Have you considered using HomePlug powerline ethernet such as this?
$69 for a starter kit seems quite well priced. I assume that you have
power in your shed connected to your house wiring. my setup to my own
shed over a similar distance works pretty well at ~20 Mbps.

http://www.amazon.com/ZyXEL-PLA4205kit-HomePlug-Powerline-Wall-plug/dp/B005GCSZD6


Yes. I have considered that. However, the shed is powered from a
separate feed back the power company. I didn't want to risk the money
to buy one of these only to find its signal didn't make it through the
power company's transformer.

Pat


Agreed, I think it's highly unlikely that the signal would get through
a transformer. I've heard that it can even have trouble getting from one
segment of house wiring to another if they're on different sections of
the consumer unit distribution board, although I haven't found that to
be a problem here.

No, a signal like this definitely won't get through the transformer.
The power companies in some areas use the electric wires to send control
signals like a network. They have to install high frequency jumpers to
get past transformers.

--

Rick