Home Network

There are plenty of company’s trying to guarantee you will get great internet throughout your house offering you compensation if they don’t live up to their promises. The problem is that they use repeaters which picks up a Wi-Fi network signal from a router and forwards it on. If the repeater is at the fringe of the Wi-Fi router, it will only be able to receive a low internet speed so it can only forward a low internet speed.

Do without repeaters if you can

There may be times when you don’t have a choice but to use one or more repeaters however this web page is about using 1 or more wired Wireless Access Points (WAP) instead.

What is a wired Wireless Access Point?

This is a Wi-Fi device connected by a network cable directly to your router (or hub / Switch etc..) It is not relying on a variable speed Wi-Fi connection to connect to your router so it gets the MAX speed available.

Wall/ceiling mount or 1 Gang socket mount

All our current ceiling/wall mounted WAP’s are either Wi-Fi CAT6 or CAT7. Cat 7 doesn’t provide any additional features in a home network that justify its current high prices so we are not recommending them for now.

The 2 x wall mounted WAP’s below can easily be mounted onto a single gang wall socket.

Please ensure if possible that the socket is 35mm or higher as the network cable protruded form the back of the WAP.

The WAP on the left has 3 x 1GB outlets – useful if you have multiple devices to connect to the network with a network cable. The triple outlet is used behind a TV or in a space where there may be a computer, Game console and a firestick – just to name a few examples. All this along with a good Wi-Fi 6 signal.

The WAP on the right is physically smaller and has a single 1GB outlet. When we install these in a commercial environment (or other large scale deployment), we label the device with the last 4 digits of its MAC code for future maintenance.

Wi-Fi controller

A Wi-Fi controller merges and controls all the Wi-Fi devices in your home. It intelligently links your device to the best signal strength WAP as you roam from room to room decreasing the chance of a dropout.

For larger installations (with potentially between 1,000 and 5,000 users) we use the OC300.

Power for the WAP’s

Each WAP connects to a POE switch which provided power along the network cable. It’s always a good idea to get a switch with spare capacity. The WAP’s and teh controller can be powered by teh POE switch. If you have IP cameras and VoIP phones – you can power them from the switch as well.

The network cable

The norm now is CAT6 network cable but for short runs, cat 5 will be fine. When wiring the one gang socket – try to make sure there is about 20cm cable slack for the RJ45 connector. All 4 pairs (8 cores) are used. For long runs (25M to 50M) where there may be mains interference, use shielded CAT6 and if there is any chance of the cable getting wet or exposed to direct sunlight – use exterior grade CAT6 cable.

Installing the single output WAP

This just screws into a single gang socket. Make sure there is 35mm or more to allow for the network cable sticking out the back of it. The pic below shows how the WAP is wired through the one gang socket.

Installing the triple output WAP

The triple WAP has a mounting bracket which first screws onto a single gang outlet. The WAP simply mounts onto the bracket. One of the RJ45 outlets is a POE socket so you can connect a POE phone or a POE camera etc.

The pic below shows the mounting bracket screwed to the one gang socket and the cable routing.

The pic below shows the triple WAP connected to the one gang socket. This is the standard WAP for behind a TV or a game station.

The ceiling / wall mounted WAP may be mounted on a one gang socket as shown below. However, the bracket may be screwed directly to a ceiling or wall.

We can help you develop a network and Wi-Fi system plan for your premises, please contact Megganet.

Prices

All the devices are fully Omada compliant and may be cloud managed. Prices include VAT.

TP-Link high end (entry level business) router (non wireless).	£49.00
Single socket, wall mountable Wi-Fi CAT6 WAP with 3 x RJ45 sockets, one socket has POE. AX3000 with a Max speed of 2976 Mbps.	£122.00
Single socket, wall mountable Wi-Fi CAT6 WAP with 3 x RJ45 sockets, one socket has POE. AX1800 with a Max speed of 1775 Mbps.	£94.80
Single socket wall mountable Wi-Fi CAT6 WAP with a single RJ45 outlet. AX3000 with a Max speed of 2976 Mbps.	£105.00
Single socket wall mountable Wi-Fi CAT5 WAP with a single RJ45 outlet. Max speed of 300 Mbps.	£45.00
Ceiling or wall mounted WAP – no additional RJ45 sockets. AX3000 with a Max speed of 2976 Mbps.	£76.00
Wi-Fi controller.	£69.99
5 Port POE Omada managed switch. 65W. POE on 4 ports. Port 5 is the network input and POE is not required on it. Fanless.	£68.00
9 Port POE Omada managed switch. 123W. POE on 8 ports. Port 9 is the network input and POE is not required on it. Fanless.	£130.00
16 (+ 2 non POE) Port POE Omada managed switch. 230W. POE on all 16 ports. There are 18 RH45 sockets in total on this switch required on it. Fanless. May be rack mounted.	£165.00

There are numerous options, many of which cost less, (eg, a 16 port switch with 8 POE ports and 8 non POE ports, larger switches etc) – call for pricing.

All devices have a full 1GB (not 100GB).

Prices correct at time of updating this web page.

POE switches

POE stands for Power Over Ethernet. This means that only a single cable is needed to connect your WAP’s to the switch. All WAP’s listed above, require POE. When ordering a POE switch, remember, the router will need a socket and if ordered, the OC200 will also need a RJ45 socket.

Alternative hardware

If you don’t need Omada control, we can provide alternate non Omada compliant equipment with all the other functionality at a lower price.

Delivery and installation

Delivery and installation as per usual callout and time fees.

Prices include VAT.

Cloud management

Cloud management means that all devices may be managed and maintained up to date with security fixes and additional features as they become available. Once cloud management has been configured, we will take you through the relevant procedures and we will send you the login credentials by email and the password by TEXT or WhatsApp.