How to extend Ethernet cable to another room

Wired connections offer faster and more reliable internet connectivity despite Wi-Fi providing a convenient and flexible means to connect various devices to the internet. Let us discover how to extend an Ethernet cable to another room.

Nowadays, people cannot get enough of the internet. More so, there are many more devices, including smart TVs, computers, gaming consoles, smartphones, laptops, and tablets, that need a good and steady internet connection to perform their functions. Wi-Fi connectivity is definitely a useful and flexible way to offer internet access to several devices. However, it is also susceptible to various issues, like lag, dropped connections, interference, and slow speeds, causing a great deal of frustration.

Wired connections offer better performance, especially when you are playing online games, streaming high-quality videos, or transferring large files. Using an Ethernet cable is also more secure and reliable for a wide range of internet activities. More so, you do not need to call in a contractor to extend the Ethernet cable to various rooms in your home. You can easily extend such wired connections through the use of hubs, adapters, and switches. Let us delve more in-depth on how you can extend Ethernet cable to another room.

How to extend Ethernet cable to another room

Using long and straight Ethernet cables

Even if you are using wired internet connections, your connected devices are most likely spread out all over your house. Getting a long and straight Ethernet cable to connect all these devices is possibly the cheapest and fastest means to ensure all your devices are connected.

If you have a knack for arts and crafts, you can creatively display your wires or simply run the cables beneath the floor by tapping it down and running it under your floor carpets or rugs. There is a wide range of accessories available in the market that can help you hide your cables without busting your wall open.

Powerline adapters

If you are not into the unsightly view of Ethernet cables running through various rooms in your home, you can wire up your devices using powerline adapters. By plugging these adapters into your wall, you can use your electrical wiring to transmit data conveniently to all rooms in the house.

Although these devices are not as fast as the regular Ethernet cable, they can transmit a data rate of 200-500Mbps, giving you enough bandwidth to comfortably stream high-quality videos, play online video games, and transfer large files with ease. As a result, they are much faster and more reliable than wireless routers.

Plug a power line adapter into the wall of the room with the router, connect the Ethernet cable on your router, and connect the other end in the wall next to the devices far from the router. Take note that you need to plug them into the wall and not into an extension cord or a powerstrip.

Use fiber optic cable with media converters

You can safely extend your Ethernet cable by using a fiber optic cable with media converters. Media converters are an economical and popular way of converting the regular copper Ethernet cable to fiber. They are usable with Ethernet switches or in pairs, like the far-end or near-end.

Furthermore, media converters range from compact, simple, managed to unmanaged ones. There are also hose that is explicitly for commercial and industrial applications, depending on their intended use. An excellent example of an industrial media converter is one used with PoE capabilities to backhaul and power the signal of an IP camera over fiber optic cables.

Generally, fiber optic cables provide the best performance when looking for long-range network extension. They are widely used by cable and telephone companies for the same function. These cables offer a range of up to 60km for 1000/100/10 Ethernet links from the single-mode fiber and 550 meters for 1000/100/10 Ethernet links for the multimode fiber cables.

Another benefit of using fiber optic cables is that they are highly immune to spikes, electromagnetic interference (EMI), ground loops, and surges. As a result, these cables are ideal for use when connecting buildings in industrial environments, rooms across the house, and various areas in a town.

Using Ethernet extenders

You can also use your existing equipment to extend your Ethernet cable using a pair of Ethernet extenders. Connect the extenders to each end of the cable to convert it to a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) and back to Ethernet again. Extenders are known to deliver approximately 10Mbps across 1400 meters and about 50Mbps over 300 meters.

You may also use existing twisted-pair cabling to upgrade the checkpoint of an analog phone by connecting the Ethernet extenders (far-end/ near-end). As a result, the checkpoint will support an IP camera, A VoIP phone, and an Ethernet LAN connection. It is also possible to use existing coax cabling with Ethernet extenders on each end when upgrading your security network. Not only does it save plenty of labor costs and installation time, but it also extends such connections to a maximum of 1000 meters.

Wireless Ethernet extension

If you want to extend your Ethernet cable to another room in the house, you can use a wireless Ethernet extension by creating a wireless bridge from two wireless access points. You can achieve configuring these two access points by making one of them the source (SDS AP), and the other one the destination (SDS Client).

Wireless Ethernet extenders offer wireless extension, which is convenient as it does not use any unsightly wires. Such an extension requires the networks to be unobstructed and in the line of sight to ascertain optimum performance. As a result, wireless Ethernet extension provides long-range connectivity for several miles long, making it ideal for home, industrial and enterprise environments. However, it is vital to know that wireless Ethernet extenders are quite susceptible to interference from infrastructure and adverse weather conditions.

Cellular wireless routers are another alternative to wireless Ethernet extensions. With mobile wireless routers, you can easily set up a network anywhere with cellular phone reception. As a result, you can extend your Ethernet cable using cellular networks in industrial environments, factories, traffic control, or gas/oil field drilling operations. Likewise, cellular routers get rid of any interference caused by physical obstructions or distance that you may experience when using wireless radio extensions.

Conclusion

It is impossible to go completely wired in your home, but you can definitely plug in all the essential devices to give you basic internet access to perform a variety of functions. Using the methods stated above, you will have the fastest speed and most reliable connection in all rooms in your home. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you extend your home network by using another router?

It is possible to extend your home network using another router, but it will create another separate network. However, it is more efficient to use a network switch as it is easier to configure.

Is it possible to use an old Wi-Fi router to extend my network?

Yes, you can use an old router as an access point to distribute the internet signal to various rooms in the house.