wifi signal booster....

CliffA

CliffA

Well-Known Member
Dec 29, 2009
4,712
Lake Norman, NC
Boat Info
2001 Sea Ray 340DA
Name: 'Happy Place'
4.5kW West. Generator
Purchased Nov. 2014
Fresh Water Use
Engines
Twin Merc. 6.2L (MPI)
640 hp (Total)
Raw Water Cooled
V-Drive Transmissions
our marina has free wifi but the signal strength at my boat is very weak...i feel sure the marina will not spend any money to help this situation so i will likely have to tackle it on my own....from my limited knowledge and limited research it looks like i can buy some type of wifi signal booster for less than $100...if it works to get a good wifi signal to my boat it will be worth the cost...i am getting ready to install a cloud based security camera and a cloud based remote temperature monitor on my boat and both will require a decent wifi signal to work properly...

can anyone recommend a signal booster like this?.....the distance from my boat to the main office in the marina is around 300 yds....i don't know for sure but i assume the current wifi router is located in the main office....

thanks...
cliff
 
Cliff,

I would recommend looking at a range extender like the ones at this link:

http://www.netgear.com/home/products/networking/wifi-range-extenders/

A best case scenario would be locating the extender somewhere between your boat and the marina's access point, however that may not be a possibility. If you have to locate the extender on the boat hopefully you'll be able to place optimal signal, maybe somewhere high.

Any idea why the signal is so weak at your boat? Is it strictly the distance?
 
The wifi extenders do not work well from my experience. If the router is too far away and there happens to be a cat 5 outlet closer to your boat you could ask the marina if they would let you hook up an access point. You could also get a phone with unlimited data and create your own hot spot. Then you would have internet wherever you are.
 
Running a cable would definitely be preferable over an extender, I completely agree with you on that. I've had mixed results with WiFi extenders, it all depends on the environment. Hopefully the antenna on an extender would be strong enough to pull a decent signal from the marina's AP.

The phone idea would definitely work, however Cliff wants to be able to monitor things while he and his phone are away.
 
thanks guys...i am not sure why the signal is weak other than distance...here is a pic of our marina...we are located near the right side end of 'D' dock...the main office is located where 'Parts & Services' is shown in the pic....all of the docks are covered with tin roofs so that may be a factor....there is a small store on the water side end of the building labeled 'Dry 1'....i was thinking i may coud put some type of booster in the store....

cliff

overhmaped.jpg
 
Bought the Rogue Wave. Hasn't helped a bit yet because turns out I am finding the problem at marinas I stay at is data bandwidth bottlenecks, not signal strength.
 
Cliff I am far from an expert on this but I think you are on the right track with distance and metal roofs and buildings.

Maybe a way to test is use your cell phone's Wi-Fi signal and look at the signal strength. When I was at Skippers I was the first boat nearest the office, uncovered and did not have a good signal. Metal building no more than 50yds. However I got a great signal from the house across the creek. Just didn't have their password.:smt089
 
sdarc said:
Cliff I am far from an expert on this but I think you are on the right track with distance and metal roofs and buildings.

Maybe a way to test is use your cell phone's Wi-Fi signal and look at the signal strength. When I was at Skippers I was the first boat nearest the office, uncovered and did not have a good signal. Metal building no more than 50yds. However I got a great signal from the house across the creek. Just didn't have their password.:smt089
Click to expand...

thanks Steve...i will try that this WE to see how strong the signal is at different locations...this may sway the decision on what type of booster to get or if one will even work at all....

cliff
 
Hello,

I put a Jefa Tech RV long range repeter/booster with external antenna in my boat. My marina has no wifi and I did not even pick up a signal anywhere around with my laptop. When I put in the Jefa unit and mounted the antenna I now have 5 wifi signals that I can pick up. However they are secure and can't use them but the unit did work.....
 
I have one and it works during the week when the place is empty. Come weekends to many people are using it not enough band with just a waste of money. When it works must keep clear of breaker panel like 5 feet.
 
OK, thanks everyone....sounds like i have some more work to do to figure out if this can work and if so where to install the booster and which brand....

why can't things be simple for once........
cliff
 
We went with the Digital Yacht system antennae, modem, and our off the shelf router. We are up against distance, strong winds, and even the tide which dropped our boat low enough to lose the direct wifi signal. We are north of the office, and the coastal north wind affects our signal strength.
The system was very expensive -- $1,000 installed, but it acts as a booster and very much extends the range which improves the signal even under heavy bandwidth use. i can evaluate this by signing on directly to the marina's wifi system and measuring upload and download speed and then do the same measurements again by signing on to our personal wifi using the Digital Yacht system. I get a significantly measurable improvement. As liveaboards, this is very important to us. Also, another thing to think about is that I now have a private secure connection rather than the open wifi connection because I am going through my own passworded router.
 
Most Marinas do not have up to date wifi. If you have limited understanding go to Islandtimepc.com. He will set you up with a ready to install system. I used his system and a 12 volt router. Very easy install and Bob is always available to give advice. Good luck.
 
As I'm reading this I'm thinking of my own situation. We have a really crappy wi-fi signal. But then I remembered I have cable TV connected to the boat at the dock. So now I'm wondering if I can get add a cable company router to the cable input like I have here in the house, add a wireless router and then have my own boat-based network? Hhmmmmm.....
 
Why not get a 4G hot spot from Verizon? $50 upfront and $20 per month.
 
We checked into using our marina cable TV connection with our own router and found that it would have cost us at least $50 per month and then you're limited to just your dock cable connection. By using the Digital Yacht system we can anchor out anywhere along the coast or at any marina, and as long as the modem can find an open wifi signal, we can use our router. There is no additional charges for usage. It all depends on how you're using your boat.
 
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