Most of the time, you are unaware of the things that are interfering with the Wi-Fi signals at your home. Certain things in your surroundings interfere with electromagnetic signals like Wi-Fi and you cannot get rid of them, unfortunately. Mirrors are one of these things. Wondering to know how mirrors interfere with Wifi signals?
Do mirrors affect Wi-Fi signals? Yes, mirrors can affect the strength of Wi-Fi signals by reflecting or re-directing them. It is because of metal or silver backing that mirrors interfere destructively with Wi-Fi signals. Like metals, mirrors can reduce the strength of Wi-Fi signals by up to 50%.
Wi-Fi signals are interrupted in the presence of mirrors. But the effects of mirrors on your Wi-Fi are based on the size and distance of the mirror from the router. You have lots of mirrors installed at various locations in your house and they unknowingly affect your Wi-Fi connection. Your Wi-Fi cannot work at its best capacity when the EM signals emitted from the router come in contact with certain materials such as mirrors.
Can a Mirror Interfere With Wi-Fi
Can a mirror interrupt or block your Wi-Fi signals?
Definitely, a mirror can interfere with the Wi-Fi signals because the shiny surface of the mirrors can reflect all types of electromagnetic waves including Wi-Fi. Reflected signals then obstructively interfere with the Wi-Fi router and reduce the strength of Wi-Fi signals up to 50%.
However, a mirror is not the only culprit. Many other things can also interfere with your Wi-Fi signals such as metal objects, concrete walls, water pipes, humidity, etc.
Can Mirrors Reflect Wi-Fi Signals
Like metal surfaces and sheets, all kinds of mirrors also reflect Wi-Fi signals and make them weaker too.
The mirrors have a thick layer of metal such as silver or aluminum on their backside. This bright metallic layer is highly reflective which not only reflects light but also the Wi-Fi and other EM signals.
Despite most of the signals being reflected in the mirror, you can still have good signals if your room is spacious and the signals have enough space to move around.
How Do Mirrors Affect Wi-Fi Signals
Mirrors are manufactured with a reflective coating at the back that is made to reflect light. But that reflective coating not only reflects the light but also interferes and reflects the Wi-Fi or other electromagnetic signals. Now the question is does the Wi-Fi lose its strength due to this reflection? Well, not exactly. When the Wi-Fi signal is reflected it does not lose its strength, but, how is the Wi-Fi signal affected then?
After reflecting from the mirror, the Wi-Fi signal interacts with the core signals originating from the router directly and that is where all the problem happens. When the reflected signals interact with the core signal from the router, the Wi-Fi signals lose their strength, hence hindering the speed of the Wi-Fi. Just like signals originating from two routers placed closely, emitting signals using the same channel lose their strength.
In the case of mirrors, it happens mostly due to the thick silver or aluminum coating at the back of the glass. This entire loss of strength of Wi-Fi connection or affecting of Wi-Fi due to mirrors can vary depending on the size of the mirrors and the distance of the mirror from the router. The smaller the mirror, the greater the distance, and the lesser will be the problem.
Read Also: Why Are Mirrors Green?
Does Wi-Fi Go Through Glass or Walls Better?
Generally, electromagnetic signals of your Wi-Fi routers are vulnerable to many types of obstacles found in your homes. Do you think Wi-Fi goes through glass or walls better? Or these are the barriers affecting the speed of Wi-Fi.
It’s only speculation that Wi-Fi signals can pass through glass, walls, and other building materials. It’s not true.
In reality, the glass or walls can either absorb or reflect Wi-Fi signals. The signals get weaker or absorbed when going through tinted glass, thicker or concrete walls. Tinted or Low-E glass with transparent metallic films contains metal oxides and metal impurities that are highly reflective and can bounce back or slow down the Wi-Fi signals.
Concrete walls, energy-efficient glass windows, and metallic blinds all are semi-permeable to electromagnetic signals, particularly 5GHz. Glass and walls both can kill the quality of your Wi-Fi signals.
How To Check If Mirror Is Affecting Wi-Fi?
Mirrors are most definitely going to affect your Wi-Fi connection. However, routers are designed to mitigate these interruptions at most but still, your Wi-Fi signals will not be able to exhibit full-fledge power in the presence of reflective surfaces. Almost all metallic surfaces reflect Wi-Fi signals. These signals are then bounced back by windows, mirrors, and other EM radiating appliances.
Wi-Fi Analyzing App
How to check if Wi-fi signals are affected by the mirrors or not?
If you want to check the extent to which mirrors are affecting the Wi-Fi, get your hands on a Wi-Fi analyzing app on your device. Check the Wi-Fi signal strength near the router in both the presence and absence of the mirror. You’ll see the difference for yourself.
How To Avoid Interrupted Wi-fi Signals?
It is most likely that your Wi-Fi connection will become slow due to the presence of mirrors or any other metallic objects on the premises of the router.
Choose The Correct Location
The first thing you can do to avoid this nuisance is to place your router in a location that is not very much surrounded by reflective surfaces. If at all, a mirror is located around it, try to keep the router at a distance from the mirror. Greater distances between the mirror and the router will not affect Wi-Fi strength very much.
Install Wi-Fi Extenders
If you do not want to alter the location of either the mirror or the router, install Wi-Fi extenders in the required locations.
Wi-Fi extenders are little devices that hold the capacity of increasing the strength and range of a Wi-Fi signal. If the Wi-Fi signals are interrupted due to reflection from the mirrors they can be strengthened with the help of these extenders.
Moreover, the installation of a Wi-Fi extender isn’t much of a task. So you can easily solve the problem of weak Wi-Fi signals due to mirrors.
What Can You Do More?
Your Wi-Fi signals can also be affected by various types of walls, windows, and tiles. That doesn’t mean you’ll go on breaking those walls down or get rid of the windows. You can find solutions to get the best out of your router strength.
Does Metal Affect Your Wi-Fi Signals
Metals cause interruptions in the Wi-Fi connection because they are generally good conductors. They alter the magnetic field due to the presence of free electrons which is why when Wi-Fi signals that are electromagnetic signals come in contact with the metal incorporated at the back of the mirror, they lose their strength as a result of the dispersion of waves in the magnetic and electric field.
The best solution is to keep your router at a suitable location and if that’s not feasible, get your hands on Wi-Fi extenders.
How To Solve Mirror Wi-Fi Issues
Mirrors are an essential commodity in our homes. It is a serious problem if your mirror is reflecting the Wi-Fi signals and are bouncing back to their source and not reaching their intended destination.
Some of the simple Ways To Boost The Strength of Wi-Fi Signals are given below:
- Firstly, check for the objects that can interfere with the Wi-Fi signals.
- Mount the Wi-Fi router in a preferably high position. For better signal coverage, it’s best to mount or positioned the router as high as possible.
- Don’t hide your router. Instead, place the Wi-Fi router in the center of your home and open space. It can help Wi-Fi signals reach all the corners of your home efficiently.
- Add two or more Wi-Fi access points for better signal strength for better coverage or if you are living in a big house.
- Buying a Wi-Fi repeater is good but it can lose its power and speed with time.
- Mesh router networks are excellent to cover all dead zones in your home. Select a good brand to get optimum Wi-Fi signals.
More Aesthetic Ways to Get Rid of Wi-Fi Signal Issues
What to do if your elegant mirrors are interfering with your home Wi-Fi signals? Should you remove all the mirrors and other objects that can affect your Wi-Fi signals? Certainly not. Here are simple and more elegant ways to get better Wi-Fi signals. Few are listed below:
How do deal with a large mirror? If you don’t want to change the position of your large mirror then you can place fabric or a piece of tape over the center of the mirror. It looks odd but will help to reduce the absorption of Wi-Fi signals.
How to adjust small mirrors? If you have multiple small mirrors everywhere in your home, change their location and mount them closer to your router. It can reduce the reflection of Wi-Fi signals.
What is the best place for a new mirror? The best location for hanging a new mirror is not near the window or in front of your router as it can disrupt your Wi-Fi signals. The mirror should be placed in an empty corner and away from your Wi-fi router.
Lastly, don’t forget to turn off Wi-Fi at night for better sleep and avoid EMF exposure. Wi-Fi signals can also interfere with your brain during sleep at night.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do Mirrors Affect Wi-Fi?
The mirror affects Wi-Fi signals due to the bright metal layer on its back. This metal layer causes an interruption in electromagnetic waves by reflecting or re-directing the Wi-Fi signals. The intensity of this interference depends on the size of the mirror and its distance from the router.
Does Glass Reflect Wifi Signals?
Though transparent glass should not reflect Wi-Fi signals. In reality, a glass can reflect or even absorb Wi-Fi signals and make them weaker. Especially tinted, double-glazed, and low E glass doors and windows are more vulnerable to reflect electromagnetic waves. However, the clear and untreated glass reflects a few Wi-Fi signals.
Does Glass Affect The Wifi Signal and Reduce its Strength?
Yes, glass can affect the speed of Wi-Fi signals. The tinted glass is more likely to affect the strength of your router as it may contain metal additives and other impurities that can reflect or absorb Wi-Fi signals. So, you can face a drop in Wi-Fi signals if you have tinted glass panes or doors almost everywhere in your home.
Conclusion
Indeed, many household objects can interfere with your Wi-Fi signals, and the mirrors are one of them. In modern homes, mirrors extensively affect Wi-Fi signals. No need to ditch your exquisite mirrors, rather adjust them in a better position as they are not solely responsible for Wi-Fi blockage.
Besides mirrors, building materials, metals, tinted glasses and windows, home appliances, electronic gadgets, water reservoirs, devices operating on the 2.4 GHz frequency, and even your neighbor’s Wi-Fi can affect your Wi-Fi signals.
To combat this, move your router to a more suitable place where the obstruction is less. Use range extenders, signal boosters, add more Wi-Fi access points, or mesh networks to make your Wi-Fi signals strong and bypass any possible interruption in the Wi-Fi network.