How to Extend Your Wireless Range Using an Old Router

Watch this video to learn how to configure an old router to extend the wireless network in your home, garage, barn or greenhouse. I have used this process for many years, both professionally and personally. This is a great use for that old router that you may have replaced with a new one or picked up at a yard sale or resale store. Routers have become almost disposable after a few years and are therefore cheap. Newer routers will offer better wireless extension and also better security, so if you can find one that is at least 2007 or newer, that's preferable.

Using an old router to extend your network is a simple and inexpensive way to at least double the wireless range in your home. It's also a great way to wirelessly access outbuildings or other areas outside of your home's wireless signal. This method requires that you have an Ethernet cable running from your main wireless router in your home to the location where you want to configure the second router (access point). In our house, I have a wireless access point set up on each floor and spread from one end of the house to the other. This means that no matter where I am in the house, I can always connect to a nearby access point and benefit from full signal strength. No buffering, no lag, and in most cases speeds as fast as a wired Ethernet connection.

Here are the basic steps to follow, but I recommend watching the accompanying video to fully understand the process.

1. Reset the router to factory default settings
2. Take note of your current network configuration (192.168.1.X
3. Create a new IP address for the hotspot 192.168.1.220 (example)
4. Plug a computer into the newly reset router
5. Log in to the router using the default IP address – normally 192.168.1.1
6. Configure the wireless network name and security
7. Disable DHCP (remove the router's ability to assign IP addresses)
8. Configure the router to the previously chosen IP address – 192.168.1.220 (example)
9. Connect the router to an Ethernet cable coming from your main router.

Tip – Do not use the /"WAN/" port on this new access point at all.

Now I know someone is going to say this, so I'm going to answer this question up front. Yes, you can simply plug the router into your existing setup using the second router's WAN port without changing any settings on the router. This will work in most cases, but you're setting yourself up for problems later because it's not the right way to set up a second wireless router on an existing network. This is called double NAT or network address translation and it's like having a double firewall. This will not allow computers connected to the secondary router to communicate with wireless printers, other computers, block many gaming sites, VPNs and other connections. While this is simpler and may work for basic Internet browsing, it will be slower and cause other problems later.

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Recommended Powerline Ethernet Adapter – http://amzn.to/29GrZB8

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