[jrref]

Originally Posted by Range Rider

I, too, have a designer home with over 2,500 SF and have my Quantum equipment in my front "office" since last April 2024. They originally had extenders in my living room and master bedroom and all work great. Quantum came back later and removed all the extenders and put one main in the front "office". It is so strong that I have no problems in all rooms including 'streaming' on front room, since I stream YouTube TV, as well on my lanai. Thank you Quantum Fiber!

This is great but the reason why the signal seems "stronger" is because these newer WiFi 7 devices have more sophisticated antennas and amplifiers so you will get a stronger signal with them. They also use the 2.4Ghz, 5Ghz and the newer 6Ghz bands so if you have a new iPhone for example, the speed difference will be very noticable.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by rsmurano

A couple of things, 1 router doesn’t provide the coverage you need in a designer home. I use 4 mesh routers both wired and wireless and I’ve helped friends with bigger premier homes that needed 5 mesh routers. Never use a wap. Plus not all mesh networks are good.

There are 2 outlets above the cabinets. I don’t use the switched outlet. I have a smart plug for my LEDs so my automated house automatically turns on the lights at sunset and off at a specified time.

Keep making that claim and I will keep saying you are wrong - I have the t-shirt to prove it.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Ski Bum

There is a very simple 2 minute procedure to make one outlet live and one switched. There is a brass tab on the outlet that needs to be removed. Of course, you should have an electrician, or someone very knowledgeable help you with that. Here's a link to a Google search, "switched outlet wiring diagram".

switched outlet wiring diagram - Search

Breaking that tab PLUS ADDING WIRES will allow you to convert both outlets working the same to the outlets working differently. Breaking the tab without adding wires will make one outlet unusable.

[jrref]

Originally Posted by Bill14564

Keep making that claim and I will keep saying you are wrong - I have the t-shirt to prove it.

It really depends on the home. I agree, more than three or even four mesh devices seems a little much but i'm sure there are some very large homes that may require them do to their room layouts. And again, it depends on where you place them.

As far as using access points like from Ubiquiti, after thinking about it, for our homes here in the Villages, even the very large Premier homes, I think it's overkill. The problem becomes the lack of smooth switching between points if there are too many and if they are installed too close. I just don't see the advantage over modern mesh systems that have dedicated backhaul channels in a residential home. Also, most anyone who can read and follow directions can install a mesh system. Just my opinion.

[MorTech]

WiFi 6 and 7 use the OFDMA protocol and Beemforming for better throughput reliability with low signal strength. Upgrade all your WiFi devices to 6 or 7

[Nana2Teddy]

Originally Posted by jrref

After observing many Quantum Fiber installations I'm convinced, if you have a Designer Home expecially a larger one meaning 2,000+ sqft, the best place to put the Quantum Fiber WiFi 7 pod is on top of the kitchen cabinets.

Why? Because it's in a central location that's as high as you can get so there are less obstructions for the WiFi signal to travel and in most Kitchens, there is an ethernet jack and power that goes to the data cabinet in the garage. In addition, in most kitchen cabinet arrangements there is a space beween the cabinets to run the ethernet and power wires so you don't need to drill through the cabinets. This makes a very clean and easy installation where you won't need an extender pod.

If you sign-up for Quantum and want this installation show the tech these pictures and I'm sure he will install it this way for you since it's not any more difficult to do than the standard install and the results are consistently the best. In most installations using this method I'm measuring almost full speed both upload and download in every room and the lanai where some have a TV set.

That first photo with the cords and box visible right above the kitchen countertop would never be okay with me. It’s super ugly. I’m very fussy about how my kitchen walls/counters look.

[JMintzer]

Originally Posted by metoo21

One side plug in on the outlet is switched and the other should be live all the time. Designed/wired exactly like bedrooms where a wall switch controls half of the outlet behind the bed - unless you repurpose that switch to control the light on the fan making both plug ins live all the time.

Nope. Both plugs are switched...

And I agree. One -should- be switched and the other -live- all the time, but that's just not the case. Seems somebody screwed up when wiring the house...

[JMintzer]

Originally Posted by crash

Most likely only one of the receptacles is switched usually the other is live. Try plugging into the other receptacle.

This was done for under cabinet lighting thus switched.

That's the first thing I tried... No go...

[JMintzer]

Originally Posted by Janie123

Are you sure both sides are switched? Probably put there for above cabinet lighting like for Christmas or just upward pod lights.

Yes, I'm sure. I plugged in a small lamp into each side and the wall switch turned the lamp on/off on both plugs.

My wife sometimes (okay, more than sometimes) calls me an idiot, but that was the first thing I checked...

[JMintzer]

Originally Posted by Lancer

It makes sense if you want to install led light strips above your cabinets and have the ability to turn them off and on. Or you can add a smart plug and control it with your smart device.

Yes, we used one of the plugs and ran wires behind the cabined for under cabinet LED lights. They SHOULD be controlled by the wall switch (and they are). Problem is, the remaining plug is ALSO controlled by the same wall switch...

[Altavia]

Originally Posted by JMintzer

Nope. Both plugs are switched...

And I agree. One -should- be switched and the other -live- all the time, but that's just not the case. Seems somebody screwed up when wiring the house...

Another place to pickup power might be the microwave outlet. Might need to drill a hole in the top of that cabinet.

[jrref]

Originally Posted by Altavia

Another place to pickup power might be the microwave outlet. Might need to drill a hole in the top of that cabinet.

I forgot to mention that at one installation, they did just that. See the attached picture. In most cases you can paint the wire molding the same color as the wall to blend in. If you still don't like seeing the ethernet cable, you can remove the ethernet cable from the back of the RJ45 jack in the box behind the outlet and use a special ethernet connector to run an extension through the wall and come out on top of the cabinets. This is pretty easy to do and you don't see any wires.

The microwave technically is supposed to be on it's own circuit which it still would be and the WiFi device draws such low power that it should be a non-issue.

Are there any electricians out there who can "weigh-in" on this?

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by jrref

I forgot to mention that at one installation, they did just that. See the attached picture. In most cases you can paint the wire molding the same color as the wall to blend in. If you still don't like seeing the ethernet cable, you can remove the ethernet cable from the back of the RJ45 jack in the box behind the outlet and use a special ethernet connector to run an extension through the wall and come out on top of the cabinets. This is pretty easy to do and you don't see any wires.

The microwave technically is supposed to be on it's own circuit which it still would be and the WiFi device draws such low power that it should be a non-issue.

Are there any electricians out there who can "weigh-in" on this?

Not an electrician but still know that if you plug something into the circuit the microwave is on then the microwave is no longer on its own circuit, technically or in any other way.

That said, most countertop microwaves are not on their own circuit and the router should draw much less power than a toaster.

[jrref]

Originally Posted by Bill14564

Not an electrician but still know that if you plug something into the circuit the microwave is on then the microwave is no longer on its own circuit, technically or in any other way.

That said, most countertop microwaves are not on their own circuit and the router should draw much less power than a toaster.

I agree. Using the microwave outlet should be fine. At the end of the day I feel jumpering the switch or removing it and putting a blank plate in its place to make the existing outlet over the cabinets live is the best solution because in all the installations I've been at, most use an wifi switch so they can turn these lights on and off either with Alexa or Google.

[jrref]

I just want to point out that the recommendations in this thread are suggestions for best placement of the WiFi device no matter if it's from Quantum, Centric, Cable, or even if you use your own WiFi system. There are other placements in the home that will also work fairly well. Again the coverage you get will depend on the type of building materials used, block, tilt wall, or stick built, plus the size and room layout of your specific home.

I was also reading a couple of studies done concerning wireless vs wired internet in your home and the studies show with the newer WiFi mesh devices available today, depending on your specific needs, the devices are so good and easy to install by the averager consumer that there is no need to wire your home with ethernet any more. I agree with this from my experience but if I have an ethernet jack by my desktop computer or TV, I would probably connect it hardwired just because it's there for any extra reliability. If not, wireless would be fine.