Does The Weather Affect Your Wireless / Wi-Fi Connection?

It seems that almost everyone uses the Internet these days. What many of them don’t understand, however, is how the Internet works, especially when it comes to wireless and Wi-Fi connections.

One of the most commonly asked questions is “does the weather affect my wireless/WiFi connection?” To keep things simple, the answer to this question is yes, and this is because weather does affect various frequencies.

Understanding WiFi Signals

Wireless and WiFi signals operate in much the same way as radio waves. Because of this, it makes perfect sense that whatever can affect radio signals will of course affect wireless and WiFi connections. In fact, because WiFi signals operate on a higher frequency than radio signals, they are easier to disrupt.

Best Conditions for Best Transmission

Precipitation can play a large role on the wireless connection that you are able to establish. The further you are away from the host of the WiFi signal and the worse the weather conditions, the lower quality your connection will be. When it comes to establishing the best connection possible, this will take place on dry and cloud-free days. When it is very humid, you will likely notice a difference is your wireless connection, and not a good one.

Weather and WiFi Signals

The weather will often cause WiFi problems, but not because it directly interferes with the signal. For example, during an ice or snow storm, your WiFi connectivity may become interrupted because snow and ice build up on your Internet equipment. Wind storms can also cause problems by blowing over satellite Internet dishes. There are even some circumstances in which the wind will completely uproot a signal tower, which can lead to full loss of an Internet connection. During lighting storms, if a power outage occurs, this could also lead to a loss of Internet connectivity.

Improving Your Signal Strength

Even though the weather can affect your wireless and WiFi connections, there are certain steps you can take to ensure you get the best connection possible. For starters, you can start by purchasing and using a high-gain antenna; this will go a long ways in being able to strengthen your WiFi signal.

Some people think that a high-gain antenna won’t be of any help because it only transmits and receives signals in one direction. What they fail to realize is that such an antenna allows for signal strength to be carried over a longer distance, and this in turn lessens the negative affects that weather plays on Internet connections.

Another step that you can take is installing an uninterruptible power supply, followed then by plugging all of your routers and Internet equipment into it. Lastly, to make sure you get the best WiFi signal possible, always try to connect to a router that is located in your home or the same building you are in. As said before, the further away you are from the router, the worse your signal will be; this is especially true when problematic weather conditions are taking place.

Guest Post: +Katrina Matthews is a product specialist and blogger for RackSolutions, manufacturer of custom racking solutions for businesses! She likes giving data center advice and IT tips on our blog.