Wi-Fi in the garage: how to cover it, attached or detached

Garages used to need nothing more than a light switch. Now there's a smart door opener, an EV charger that wants firmware updates, a freezer with a temperature sensor, maybe a workbench and a speaker. And the garage is often the worst-covered space on the property.

Why garages are hard

• The wall to the house is often the toughest one. In many homes it's solid masonry or a fire-rated wall, built specifically to separate the garage from living space.
• The door is a sheet of steel. An up-and-over or sectional steel door blocks the signal that would otherwise come in from the front or the side.
• Distance. Routers sit in the middle or at the front of the house; the garage is at the side or behind.
• Detached garages add the exterior walls of two buildings and the gap between them.

Attached garage

1. A node or extender inside the house, next to the garage. The hallway or utility room on the other side of the connecting door is usually the right spot: close to the garage, still in good range of the router. See where to put a mesh node.
2. Leave the internal door's path clear. A lot of signal enters through the door rather than the wall.
3. Wire it if you're wiring anyway. If an electrician is installing an EV charger, adding an Ethernet run at the same time costs very little and solves the problem permanently.

Detached garage or workshop

• Buried or overhead Ethernet to an access point inside the garage is the most reliable option. Use cable rated for outdoor or underground use, in a conduit.
• Powerline can work if the garage is on the same electrical supply and meter. Results vary with the wiring; see powerline: when it works.
• A point-to-point wireless bridge between the two buildings, with small outdoor units aimed at each other, covers longer gaps when cables aren't possible.
• An extender near a window facing the garage is the budget option and works for light use over short distances.

Devices in the garage

Many garage gadgets, door openers, chargers and sensors, only use 2.4 GHz and have small antennas. Mount them away from the steel door and large metal shelving where you can, and don't expect them to reach as far as your phone does. See 2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz by room.

Test with the door closed

The garage door changes everything, so test the way the devices live: door closed. With WiFi Heatmap run the connection test where the charger or the opener sits, and map the rooms on the garage side of the house to find where the signal is still strong enough to hand over. That's where the node goes.