Over the last month or so I've been
trying to extend our Wi-Fi signal out of my “man cave,” around a
corner into the living room so we could watch You Tube, Hulu, and
streaming video on the big screen TV.
I bought a “Wi-Fi Extender” on
the internet which turned out to be a complete waste of plastic, time
and money.
Discouraged, but not defeated I
turned to Google and started digging. I found a lot of Do-It-Yourself
articles about extending Wi-Fi signal strength, one of which showed
how to make a “parabolic reflector” out of cardboard. There was a
printable template included on the website and I started to download
it but I canceled it when I had a brainstorm (as opposed to a 'brain
fart' which is usually just the opposite, but not always.)
I remembered cutting up a 5 gallon
plastic bucket to make a higher back rest in my kayak and it was
shaped pretty much like a parabola. It was a failure as a kayak seat
but with a little help it might make a dandy parabolic reflector.
I dug through the piles of good
stuff in my workshop until I finally spotted what I was looking for.
It wasn't easy because I had painted it with camouflage paint to
match my kayak, making it almost invisible. If it had been in the
forest I never would have found it!
I cut a couple of inches off of one
end and covered it with some aluminum foil that Carol had set aside
for something. (She'll never miss it!)
I put my creation on the shelf
behind the router and took my laptop into the living room to check
the signal strength. I was happy to discover that it had increased
from “poor “to “excellent!”
Now I can sit in the recliner with
my wireless keyboard and mouse and do email, write, play PC games,
and watch streaming video.
There was an episode of the Simpsons
where Homer built a custom recliner for watching TV with a built in
beer cooler and Porta Potty. Maybe that could be my next project?
