Christmas lights could be interfering with your WiFi

Picture the scene. You’ve just unwrapped your presents. You’ve got your nice shiny new tablet, while the kids are playing on their brand new smartphones and games consoles.

Suddenly, the shout comes … “Mum, Dad, the internet’s not working.” You try to load that webpage you need and… nothing.

Why is it that these things always seem to happen at the worst possible time?

Well, you might be surprised to learn that Christmas is a particularly common time for people to suffer from slow and intermittent broadband connections.

They do say, though, that forewarned is forearmed, and there are some preparations you can make in advance to ensure your internet connection is that little bit more reliable over the festive period.

Christmas Lights

At this time of year Christmas lights are everywhere – on your tree and dotted around your home. Unfortunately, however, these nice shiny flashy things also emit electromagnetic radiation which can be bad for your WiFi. A few lights might not have much impact, but when you have hundreds of them around your home their effects can be amplified, potentially causing interference with your WiFi signal and, ultimately, dropped connections.

The technical name for this type of problem is Repetitive Electrical Impulse Noise, or REIN for short, and no, it has nothing to do with the weather or Santa’s preferred mode of transport. It is a problem that can be particularly exacerbated by Christmas, however.

A simple method to improve your WiFi in these circumstances is to increase the distance between your router and your Christmas lights. Any electromagnetic field created by your lights will get weaker with distance, so with your router as far away as possible interference should be reduced. If your broadband uses a telephone line (such as with ADSL or Fibre to the Cabinet), it is also important to make sure that you have an ADSL broadband filter installed on your phone line to keep interference to a minimum.

The quality of your lights will also have an impact on how much interference they are likely to cause. Poor quality lights with unshielded cables will be profoundly more problematic than a good quality set. More modern LED lights should cause less interference.

Other electronic devices

Of course, your Christmas lights are likely to be only one of many electronic devices in your home. TVs, computers, speakers, etc. will all have an impact on interference with, and propagation of, your WiFi signal. Again, a good rule of thumb is to keep your router as far away from these devices (and electrical cables) as possible.

2.4Ghz congestion

Many WiFi networks still operate on the 2.4GHz frequency. When you consider that other household items such as microwave ovens, cordless phones, baby monitors, CCTV transmitters and Bluetooth devices also operate on or near this frequency, it is easy to understand how things can become congested very easily. Add to this the fact that your neighbours are probably also using many of these devices and also that, at Christmas, there are likely to be many more devices of this type being used at the same time.

These devices, operating at the same or similar frequencies to your WiFi network, can cause interference and even a slower internet connection.

Thankfully, there is a relatively simple solution to this problem. Most modern routers have the option to transmit your wireless signal at 5GHz, and most modern devices are compatible with this frequency.

By enabling 5GHz in your router if it isn't already you can help to overcome the problem of interference in the 2.4GHz range. This can be done in the WiFi section of your router’s settings. As all routers are slightly different, we would recommend checking your router’s user guide for more detailed information.

Too many users

The number of devices connected to and using your network can have a massive impact on the speed of your individual connection.

While your internet service provider (ISP) might promise to provide a connection up to a certain speed, this is shared by all the devices connected to your network.

So if you have a large family who are all trying to use the internet at the same time then, depending on what they’re doing (streaming video or downloading games will be more demanding than checking emails), you might find that your speed is actually much lower than you might expect.

Using the internet at a time when there are fewer people online is an effective solution to this problem. However, if this is inconvenient or not possible and you are continually suffering from slow connection speeds, then you may want to consider upgrading to a faster service from your ISP.

If you’re feeling a little adventurous, you could check out your router manufacturer’s website. If their device provides an option for prioritising certain devices or types of connection, you should find instructions on how to activate that setting there.

The weather

There is a common belief that various weather conditions can in some way adversely affect WiFi. While it is true that, for example, a rainy day might potentially cause problems for outdoors reception, as long as your WiFi network is inside there should be little impact.

There are two weather-related phenomena that can impact on your connectivity at this time of year however.

First of all, inclement weather can have an effect on the delivery network, that is the wires and other infrastructure that ensure your property is connected to the internet. Whether it is snow storms, heavy winds, floods or other extreme conditions, the weather can certainly play havoc at this time of year.

Another, indirect, effect of bad weather is that during a snow storm, for example, people are more likely to stay at home. With more people at home using the internet, networks can become more strained, potentially slowing the service for everyone.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do about either of these things, but it is at least nice to know why the internet might be running slowly when it’s snowing outside.

Other solutions

There are some other solutions you might want to try for improving the speed and reliability of your internet connection. For example, if possible, you should connect compatible devices to your router by a wired Ethernet connection, rather than by WiFi. This will help to avoid issues of interference and congestion on your WiFi network.

Wireless repeaters might also be handy for extending the range and strength of your WiFi network. They simply take the WiFi signal from your router and rebroadcast it, significantly increasing signal strength and ensuring that you can have a strong WiFi signal no matter where you are in the home. This can be particularly useful in large houses, or in old homes with thick internal walls. A wireless mesh network like Zen’s EveryRoom makes this process even easier and can help to keep your WiFi signal solid and reliable throughout the home.

While these tips have only included some of the many causes of slow and patchy internet connections, we hope that they can give you one less thing to worry about this festive period.

We hope that our advice is of use and would like to wish all our customers and readers a very merry Christmas and a happy new year!