Maximize your WiFi speed at home
This spring, many people began schooling and working at home. Lots of us still are. That’s why having reliable, fast internet is more important than ever. With COVID-19, more and more consumers are buying groceries online, taking advantage of telemedicine and being virtually entertained.
If you’ve had any issues with your internet, here is some information that might help.
“When customers experience slow internet speeds, router issues are often the cause,” said Michael Reid, EPB Field Services Senior Supervisor. “The router is the piece of equipment in your home that provides WiFi connectivity.
Here are three tech tips to make sure you’re getting the most from your equipment.
- Be sure your router is up to date. It’s best to have a router than can deliver 802.11 AC dual band or a tri-band router.
- Once you have a good router, the trick to getting the most from your wireless router is location, location, location. Place your router in the center of your home and up high. The best place is in an open space away from large electronics and point any external antennas upward.
- If you’re still having problems, you may need to re-boot. Simply unplug it, let it sit for 5 seconds and then plug it back in.
The bandwidth of your internet service is also important.
“One of the benefits for customers who use EPB’s 100% fiber optic network is that it provides ample capacity as their needs increase and shift,” said Ryan Keel, EPB VP of Technical Operations. “In the weeks since many customers began working and learning from home, we’ve seen more internet traffic earlier in the day, but peak internet usage continues to occur around 9 p.m.”
As it turns out, the internet peak in the evening is similar to what it was before the crisis began.
“From our data, it appears the applications people are using to work and learn from home are not as data intensive as video streaming for entertainment,” said Keel. “All of these internet uses remain well within EPB’s ability to serve them.”
For more tech tips about WiFi or other technologies, go to youtube.com/epbofchattanooga where you’ll find a number of how-to videos to help you with your technology needs. EPB is also available 24/7/365 to serve customers with technical issues or other questions. You can live chat with a rep at EPB.com or call (423) 648-1372.
