Who remembers the days of TV antennas (or rabbit ears as we used to call them) that sat on top of the TV? Do you also remember placing wads of aluminum foil on the ends of these “ears” to get better TV reception?
Well, what is old is new again. I used to have spots in my house where I couldn’t connect to Wi-Fi or had a slower internet connection. But I recently raided my kitchen drawer and upgraded to a better signal, and you can too!
How Wi-Fi Works
Wi-Fi signals are sent from your router’s antenna, spreading out like radio or light waves to cover your home and reach your smartphones, computers and other internet-connected devices. But natural obstructions, like walls or large appliances, can weaken or block the signals leading to dead zones.
How Aluminum Foil Helps
To amplify and direct your Wi-Fi signals to the areas where you need them most, such as your living room, office and bedrooms, simply fold a piece of tin foil into a curved sheet and place it around your router to direct the flow of the Wi-Fi signals more effectively. The shiny side of the tin foil reflects beams coming from the antenna and concentrates them in the direction where you most need them. Adjust the curve of the foil to help steer the signal toward the areas where you need a better internet connection or direct it away from spots where it is wasted. And you can use any extra tin foil to make a hat to ward off aliens too!
Shiny side towards the router or away from router?