[TriLUG] OT: Powerline networking recommendation

[Scott Chilcote via TriLUG]

On 09/11/2015 03:40 PM, Ed Blackman via TriLUG wrote:
> I'm trying to get network connectivity to a corner of the house that's
> not reliably covered by wifi, without going into the walls to run some
> Cat 6.
>
> Does anyone have good or bad experiences with powerline networking? 
> If good, favorite brands/models?
>
> I've learned enough to know that whether two outlets can be connected
> is dependent on whether they're on the same "leg".  Is there an easy
> way to determine whether the outlets I'd use are on the same leg
> before buying the adapters?
>
> The application is streaming video, so the powerline bandwidth doesn't
> have to be very good to beat my cable modem, but I'm tired of flaky
> connections so if it drops a lot of connections it won't be much
> improvement.
>

I reached for the same solution when we moved into our current home
about five years ago.  There's a great spot for a desk upstairs that is
out of reach from the WiFi router.  I bought a pair of powerline
adapters and they worked great for a bit under two years.  Then they
were taken out by an electrical storm. 

Whether they work well or not, they are front line troops when it comes
to electrical spikes because they do not work well if there is a UPS or
a powerline filter between them and the wall outlet.

I experimented with boosting the WiFi signal after that, including
setting up a wireless bridge.  It didn't work well enough to continue. 
Then I bought another powerline adapter setup, a Phicomm FPA-201 that
got good ratings online.  This was a major disappointment, I could
barely get them to talk to each other.  I still have the package if you
want to try them.

I wound up doing what you are avoiding, after about four years of
fighting it.  If you decide to run your own twisted pair, take a close
look at where your cable TV wires go.  I was able to piggyback the cat 6
cable through the same places that the coax ran, and even used the coax
to help snake the cable through some tight spots.   Except for one
incident involving a malicious squirrel*, the results have been well
worth the pain.

   Scott C.

______
*True story.  Grey squirrels are evil, vindictive wiring predators.


-- 
Scott Chilcote
scottchilcote at ncrrbiz.com
Cary, NC USA