Wi-Fi slow upstairs or in the garden? Here's why, and how to fix it

First: is it the Wi-Fi, or the broadband?

Stand right next to your router and run a speed test (search "speed test" on your phone or computer). Then do the same upstairs, or wherever it's bad.

• Slow next to the router too? It's your broadband line. Restart the router, then talk to your provider. If they can't fix it, switching might be the answer.
• Fast next to the router, slow upstairs? It's the Wi-Fi not reaching. Good news: that's very fixable.

Why Wi-Fi struggles to get around the house

• Where the router lives. It usually sits wherever the phone line comes in — often at the front of the house, on the floor, behind the TV or shut in a cupboard. That's about the worst place it could be.
• Walls and floors. Solid brick, stone and concrete soak up Wi-Fi, and so do foil-backed plasterboard and underfloor heating. Older houses and newer extensions are both common trouble spots.
• Things in the way. Mirrors, fish tanks, big metal radiators and kitchen appliances all get in the way of the signal.
• Distance. A bedroom in a loft conversion, or a garden office, may simply be too far for one router to reach.

Free things to try first

1. Get the router out of the cupboard and off the floor. Higher and more out in the open makes a real difference.
2. Restart the router — off at the wall for 30 seconds, then back on. Old advice, but it still works.
3. Check its age. If your provider's router is many years old, ask whether they'll send you a newer one. Often they will, free.

Why cheap plug-in boosters often disappoint

Those plug-in "Wi-Fi extenders" from the supermarket can help a little, but they often halve the speed they pass on. They frequently create a second network name too, and phones and tablets tend to cling to whichever weak signal they joined first. Lots of people buy one, find it makes things worse, and give up.

What actually works

• Mesh Wi-Fi. Two or three units placed around the house that work together as one network with one name. Your devices quietly switch to the nearest unit as you move around. For most homes this is the answer.
• A cable where you can. Joining the mesh units, or a TV or computer, with a network cable gives the best speeds of all. It doesn't have to mean drilling everywhere; there's often a tidy route.
• Powerline adapters send the connection through your home's electrical wiring. They're brilliant in some houses and poor in others, so it's worth testing before you rely on them.
• Garden offices and annexes usually need either an outdoor access point or a cable run. Trying to beam Wi-Fi through two brick walls rarely works.

Where I come in

My whole-home Wi-Fi survey and fix is £99. I'll measure where the signal actually drops, sort the router's settings and position, and fix the dead spots. If you need extra kit like mesh units or cabling, you'll get a quote before you commit, and I'll only suggest what your house actually needs. Plenty of times the fix turns out to be "move the router and change one setting".

Written by Rich, Cumulus Technologies, Bournemouth.