Using wireless bridges to get that signal from A to B

AlbertK · May 2020

Hi Folks...

Plan to post an article on the KUwfi wireless bridges that I have had up and running now for a week.

Was faced with the stark choice: DIG UP the drive way to run an underground CAT6 rated cable.... or chicken out and go the wireless route. As the total world output of Chocolates, Red Roses and Diamonds would not have been sufficient to please: "She who must be obeyed" I went the wireless route. Boy....Am glad I did.

Works a treat but it is not for raw novices...and requires some basic understanding of LAN & WAN.

Should have the article up in a week or so.... COVID19 is still causing massive problems to us.

Albert.

pwmeek · May 2020

I'll look forward to it. I have a 100' (30m) run across the back yard to my shop. I was planning to bury two Cat7 ethernet cables (one for ethernet, and one for phone (and any other signalling that could use the other three pairs). I'd have to find another way to get a phone out there and give up any other signalling capabilities if I went wireless though. I had also been worrying about ground differential and wondering if I would need to put an optical isolator in the ethernet line (and maybe the phone line). There are pros and cons for both methods.

AlbertK · May 2020

Pete..... it will be a while before i get the article done. in the meantime... this is what i have up and running for the last week.

KuWFi Outdoor Wireless Access Point, 2-Pack 900Mbps Long Range Indoor&Outdoor Point-to-Point Wireless CPE Supports 1KM Transmission Distance Solution for PTP, PTMP

As I am in Ireland mine came from Amazon in the UK.

I am bridging about 100 feet, both units running at the absolute minimum pwr level. signal strength varies a bit.... mine tend to swing between -46 and 52 dbi. They are running in the 5GHz band with their default channel set to 5.180 GHz. The units are running 24/7 and have been thru their first rain storm 2 days ago. NOTE: they come pre-set with an unusual IP address. To get them onto your LAN you will temporarily have to modify your PC NIC ip address to a matching address to allow you to reach their main menu. Once that is done... you have full control over all settings. The accompanying leaflet is rather useless but setup is doable once you get their IP addresses sorted.

What i do like about them is that they are very unobtrusive and auto pair their channels. They can run point to point (what I am doing) or multi-point. Their SSID's can be switched off which might be of use to you IF you have close neighbors.

My advice Pete.... READ THE COMMENTS on Amazon and watch the YouTube videos BEFORE YOU BUY.... but sofar.. I am happy as Larry.

NOTE: my master unit is INDOORS AND works fine thru double glazing !! Units are POE af powered.

@pwmeek @Marc @kltaylor

AlbertK · May 2020

AlbertK · May 2020

Pete..... damm it.. my long reply to you has vanished !!! instead now onlty the photos show.

albert

AlbertK · May 2020

Pete.... DO NOT USE CAT 7.... ABSOLUTE OVERKILL. see Truecable academy resource for the reason. Use AWG 23 solid IF you are still thinking od doing cabling.

@pwmeek

AlbertK · May 2020

Pete... will try to redo the long reply. for now..... here are the units. See amazon.

KuWFi Outdoor Wireless Access Point, 2-Pack 900Mbps Long Range Indoor&Outdoor Point-to-Point Wireless CPE Supports 1KM Transmission Distance Solution for PTP, PTMP

AlbertK · May 2020

Pete,

See https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/

@pwmeek

pwmeek · May 2020

Thanks for all the input. I still hope to bury as I also want some other signalling. Too bad there isn't a pair of somethings that connect to a network and behave as if there is(are) solid copper wire(s) running between the two locations. (For less than $100

)

AlbertK · May 2020

Pete, @pwmeek

NOTHING beats cabling. Your choices are:

1) Direct buried cable, see the link: https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy

2) Standard Cable running in cheap agricultural conduit.

Do not fall for the "the higher the CAT # the better the cable" trick. For what you want to do.... If it were me... I would use Cat6 in agricultural conduit. I use that extensively here. At the large animal sanctuary that I run... I've tried everything so speak from hard won experience.

Running in conduit also allows you to run some additional signaling wires in the conduit. Pete..... from bitter experience I have learned the hard way that running a few extra pairs of "whatever" can save a huge amount of future work. You might want to even think of running in some RG59 coax cable. Analog CCTV cams can be picked up cheaply these days.

I would suggest that 3/4" or 1" internal diameter conduit would be more than ample. I tend to use 1/2" for single cable runs. Pete... another thought. IF (God forbid), at a later time you need to run in another cable, the larger internal diameter will allow you to run a "fish tape" in the pipe, thus allowing you to run that extra pair of wires in. If there is even the remotest chance that this might happen... when running your cables in.... run a strong NYLON rope in too. That will allow you to pull new cables into an existing run far far easier than "fishing" them in. Again Pete..... I speak from bitter experience... but had to learn the hard way.

Pete... one final note: IF you are going to run mains voltage carrying cable in..... use armour shielded cable. It will avoid crosstalk and interference problems. I am running cat 5e right on top of SWA (Steel wire armoured) cable here over 300 (three hundred) feet with zero problems. The SWA cable carries 240 Volts AC !!!

Good luck Pete.... hope you found some of this helpful.

Albert

@marc @kltaylor

AlbertK · May 2020

pwmeek · May 2020

I too prefer conduit. At our old house, we had every single wire, power AND signal, in conduit.* Indoors and out. I even had a pair of 4" conduits running from the house to the road (1500' 460m). I was hoping to dodge the cost this time, but I think you are right.

For conduits where many changes or additions are expected, I like a pull cord which is a bit over twice the length of pull. I tie an alpine butterfly loop in the middle, and write "Do not remove this cord" on a block too big to pull through, tied to each end. That way I can pull in either direction without losing the pull cord. Having a permanent pull cord prevents "braiding" which can easily occur when pushing a fish tape through existing wires. All wires, new and old, will run parallel.
Some pics, too big to waste space in forum; couldn't find a good smurf tube pic

https://i.ibb.co/NV6RGx1/IMG-0231.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/xYCCRRX/IMG-1582.jpg

===========
* Funny story: When we were building, the smart house guys were at a convention, and their company logo-caps were noticed by the reps for "smurf tube" (flexible plastic conduit). The reps asked what they were building, and said that our project was using so much smurf tube that they had to add a shift in their factory to meet the demand. I can recall coming on site one day to find a 13' x 13' x 26' room (125 cu m) filled floor to ceiling with huge rolls of smurf tube in all sizes and colors (including smurf blue, the commonest color, which is where it gets its nickname).

ProTecK · May 2020

I don't agree that wired is the only option, not any longer. And I am a 3rd generation electrical, hardwiring everything is in my blood. At this point I setup wireless bridges for mission critical data links all day long. When they do go down it's pretty much for the same reason any wired link would have failed. Something got unplugged or a breaker was turned off or some animal got to the local wires. These bridges can handle Phones, alarms, audio, video, gaming, etc and never skip a beat. Any need for remote switching can be done over the datalink. Adding additional remote locations to the wireless bridge is always an option. Adding a video access device at your front gate a mile down the road or any place on the property could be done with as little as a solar panel/ battery. If you are running line of sight no storm short of a hurricane is going to Cause problems.

AlbertK · May 2020

@ProTecK True... you are making valid points here. Perhaps it shows my age ?? (at 75 its like teaching an old dog new tricks ! <Smile> But.... this requires i.m.o. properly professionally designed equipment which can cope with the environment. ( temperature swings... rain...storms... etc etc). Most "homeowners" might not want to go to that level of expense. I did not mean to imply that wiring is the only option...far from it. But yes, I do agree... if we can design equipment that can still reach the old Voyager spacecraft... doing a proper link for a straight mile is child's play. I would be very very interested in some company names and/or further info. At the animal sanctuary I run reliable communications are vital to me. The post I wrote is my first venture into running a wireless link to get a big PTZ cam back to the router without having to dig thru a driveway. I am aware of Ubiquty and their wireless links but there must be others. Any data and further info gratefully received. While MESH networking does go someway to provide better signal quality on the 2.4 GHz band and perhaps the 5GHz band... the new to come into use 6GHz band will help.... however... I still feel that "in-house" so to speak... its hard to beat a properly installed cable run.

Thanks again for your post... it is what makes this forum so useful.

Albert

@pwmeek @kltaylor

davidlusskin · May 2020

Set up a pair of these as point-to-point layer 2 bridge and you have the equivalent of a one gigabit ethernet cable.
https://mikrotik.com/product/sxtsq_5_ac

asadowsky · May 2020

https://mikrotik.com/product/wireless_wire
pre configured you just need line of sight. use shielded cat 5 outdoor rated for any outdoor installs

DavidWoody · May 2020

I use a wireless layer 2 bridge because the distance is almost half a mile. Both antennas are inside and I still get 200-300 Mbps throughout. I am using 2 Ubiquity m5 nanobridges. The radios are strong enough to go through the walls of the 2 buildings.

AlbertK · May 2020

David.... THANK YOU for that information. Very much appreciated ! Especially thanks for that screenshot. Impressive, especially since the unis are indoors ! @DavidWoody

Albert

AlbertK · May 2020

@davidlusskin

That looks impressive too. David, thanks for that info. Are the microtek units the ac protocol ?

Albert

asadowsky · May 2020

https://mikrotik.com/product/wireless_wire
60 ghz not ac. good for 200 m. used for p to p and p to mp not for phone and laptops

AlbertK · May 2020

Many tks.... probably safe to assume that this absolutely must be line of sight with no obstructions ? At that ultrashort wavelength line of sight should be critical?

@asadowsky

DavidWoody · May 2020

For my 5ghz half mile run there are only 2 exterior walls in the way, no other trees, terrain, or buildings. With any point to point wireless connection you want line of site with the fewest obstructions.

AlbertK · May 2020

Unbelievable... going thru 2 walls ! That is some going. Thank for the feedback !

Albert

@DavidWoody

DavidWoody · May 2020

The radios I have are designed to work over 15 miles!

Using wireless bridges to get that signal from A to B

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KuWFi Outdoor Wireless Access Point, 2-Pack 900Mbps Long Range Indoor&Outdoor Point-to-Point Wireless CPE Supports 1KM Transmission Distance Solution for PTP, PTMP