Troubleshooting WiFi

The distance between the router and your device has a major impact on your WiFi connection speed and performance. In some cases, the location of your router and of your computer or other devices weakens your wireless connection. 

Fix: Find a place for your modem that's as centrally located as possible. Places that are higher up (e.g., bookcase, shelf, upstairs) will typically get you better coverage.

Physical obstructions can also slow down your WiFi. Look out for brick or concrete walls, large containers of water (such as fish tanks), large metal appliances, thick windows, and heavy furniture standing between your router and your connected devices. As you can see in the table below, refrigerators and concrete walls are the biggest culprits in dampening your WiFi reception. 

Fixes: 

• Try moving your modem or wireless device(s) to avoid the major barriers listed, particularly the ones in the lower part of the table.
• If moving isn't an option, try opening the door between rooms to get as clear a path as possible.

Signal interference from other WiFi networks is very common and can cause an unstable connection. WiFi travels over what is called an "unlicensed band," which means any number of other wireless networks may interfere with yours.

Fix: On most newer Brightspeed modems, there is a way to find the best WiFi channel for your environment. 

Other devices in your home can produce electromagnetic interference (EMI) that can further slow down your WiFi connection. This can include microwaves, some cordless phones, bluetooth devices, TVs, dimmer switches, fans, fluorescent lights, copy machines, treadmills, wireless security systems, wireless speakers, baby monitors, garage door openers, and more. Some of these generate short-range interference that can affect your WiFi even when the device is turned off. 

Fixes:

• If you have a newer modem, opt for a 5 GHz frequency signal to get a stronger connection and avoid some congestion from surrounding devices, many of which use the 2.4 GHz band.
  
• Turn off and unplug any devices from the list above that may cause a problem, and test your internet connection. If that fixes your issue, but you still need to use any of those devices, put at least 5-10 feet of space between each device and your modem to reduce interference.

Modems periodically get bogged down, and all digital devices can perform more poorly over time if not maintained and kept updated.

Modem fixes:

• Make sure your modem is in a place that has good air circulation, and is away from heat sources. Excessive heat can cause it to work poorly or malfunction.
• Reboot your modem manually or using the Brightspeed Internet app.
• Make sure your modem is updated with the latest firmware version. 
• As a last resort, try resetting your modem to factory defaults. If you have custom settings that you want to keep, you can backup and restore your modem settings before doing the reset.

Device fixes:

• Restart your device. This can fix many problems with software, memory and a slow connection. 
  
• Shut down other apps/programs and browser tabs while streaming video or doing other high-bandwidth activities to free up memory and processor power on your computer. 
  
• Scan your computer with updated antivirus or security software. Malware such as a virus, trojan horse or worm can cause problems with your browser and/or internet connection.
  
• Make sure your browser (such as Firefox, Chrome, Safari, etc.) and all web plug-ins are updated. You can use a third party website to help you do a browser check. Deleting browsing cookies may also help. You can search your browser's settings or help menu on how to "delete cookies" or "clear cache."

If you have both landline phone and internet service from Brightspeed, you could experience interference if you don't have filters on your phones.

Fixes: 

• Make sure you have a filter on all phone equipment and alarm systems using the same phone line.
• Do NOT put a filter on the modem.
• If you are using a cordless phone, test it by unplugging it from the power outlet and answering an incoming call on a traditional corded phone. If the problem does go away, replace your old cordless phone with a new one that uses special wireless technology that does not interfere with WiFi — DSS is one example.

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