We've gradually accumulated enough new WiFi gizmos that can use the 5 GHz WiFi frequency that it made sense to convert our primary WiFi network to use that frequency. The higher frequency (vs. the typical 2.4 GHz one) is less commonly used so there's less interference from our neighbors. It also supports faster data speeds and decreases latency just a touch, which are always nice benefits as well.
However, this left several older devices in the cold, so I pulled an old Airport Express out of the closet and configured it as a separate, WiFi b-only network for them. Easy enough to do, but its network kept disappearing from view every couple of days and only a power-cycle of the Airport Express would bring the network back. This quickly got pretty tiresome for me, and very aggravating for M—especially if I was out of town and unable to fix it for her. (Her phone gets such poor signal from AT&T that WiFi is about the only way she can use apps on her phone with any reliability.)
Of course I did the requisite Google search to see if this was a known problem, and while I didn't find any conclusive discussions, I did see a couple suggestions to try changing WiFi channels. So I downloaded iStumbler, a nifty little free app (donations accepted) that listens to all the WiFi activity going on around you and shows you what networks are operating on which frequencies and with what signal strength.
It turns out that my Airport Express had picked channel six, but that channel was also being used by two other networks. There were a couple other networks down around channels one and three, but no one up in the higher channels, so I manually set my Airport Express to use channel 11. I'm not sure why the Airport Express wasn't able to find a clear channel when set to the "Auto" channel mode.
It's been a little over a week now, and the network has remained visible and reliable the entire time. So, if you're having trouble with your WiFi network's reliability, take a moment to scan the airwaves around you and see if there's a less congested channel available. You might be pleasantly surprised with the results.
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