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TP-Link EAP225v3 Postioning

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fozzie bear

Occasional Visitor
I have a very long 4 bedroom single storey bungalow with a number of wireless access points including some old routers acting as AP's. I have decided to replace these with a set of TP-Link EAP225v3 adapters.
I have purchased three EAP 225's and aimed to install them on Cat5E backhaul to a single TP-Link gigabit POE switch connected directly to my router. All other ethernet traffic is handled by a 24 port switch also directly connected to the router. I assume that if I connect each EAP 225 by ethernet then this is not a true mesh system but three separate AP's?
I would like some advice on positioning.

  1. Device 1 will be located at the bedroom end of the bungalow on a vertical wall in the bedroom corridor. I assume vertical orientation is not majorly detrimental to signal strength? This should cover all 3/4 of the bedrooms.
  2. Device 2 can go in my study at the extreme opposite end of the bungalow furthest from the bedrooms. This will cover wireless printers scanners and devices in the study and adjacent lounge.
  3. Device 3 ideally needs to go equidistant between 1 & 2 above, however its about visual aesthetics. It could go in the entrance hall on the ceiling and will be visually hidden by a large wooden beam. I can then disable WiFi on the router which is also in the entrance hall. This location however is further away from device 2 than device 1. An alternative position would be in the kitchen between the entrance hall and Study/lounge. However we have just refurbished the kitchen and I cannot "hide" it on the ceiling above one of the units.
Can one of these ceiling mounted devices be located above the plasterboard ceiling without major impact on signal strength? If so does it need to be correctly orientated so as to be in the same plane as if mounted below the ceiling.
Dividing walls are 4" (100mm) lightweight concrete blocks cement rendered and plastered with the exception of wall between entrance hall and kitchen which is 9" and extends up to roof line. All ceilings are 1/2" (12.5mm) plasterboard.
Any advice would be appreciated. I can upload a layout plan if it helps (if I can work out how to upload and image :))
 
Ceiling is fine as long router cover hall . Also you can get yourself see the coverage by uploading plan in Omada . As long the router is assigning ip it’s should be fine . Better wired if you can wire only mesh if wired is not possible.

Possible position on ceiling or place above say above wardrobe with open space.


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Ceiling is fine as long router cover hall . Also you can get yourself see the coverage by uploading plan in Omada . As long the router is assigning ip it’s should be fine . Better wired if you can wire only mesh if wired is not possible.

Possible position on ceiling or place above say above wardrobe with open space.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thanks for reply. Did you mean "Above Ceiling" is fine? Unfortunately I cannot position above kitchen cupboards as too small a gap. Good idea about Omada software. I think I'll install the two easiest APs and then see what Wi-Fi network coverage gaps I have left. I might be able to attach a long ethernet cable to one EAP 225 and move it around to find the best location.
Fozzie
 
At the ceiling as if you can see visibility and position central in the room if big if only small then any uplift position should be fine


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For most any "saucer" style omni AP, ceiling orientation is the best (ie. saucer parallel to the ground, "top" facing the floor below). This is because broadcast elevation is typically 2/3 above the top of the AP, 1/3 below, and the azimuth "donut" extends farthest outward in the same plane at the saucer. Second most optimal would be top facing the ceiling (ex: set on a shelf), but elevation spread will be weaker down to the floor and stronger up through the ceiling, so not quite as desirable, but still workable. Least favorable would be a wall mount, as you'd be spreading the azimuth up and down the wall, and elevation would then be "across" the rooms -- with a very wide/long building, I would recommend against wall mounting if you can help it.

Regarding the idea to lay an AP(s) above the plasterboard ceiling (top facing downward), that should work just fine and any attenuation drop should be negligible (versus a ceiling mount directly underneath). Presuming you can run ethernet to that location(s), I would select that option and position the middle AP as equidistant from the other two as possible.

Also, consider converging the small PoE switch and 24-port into a single 24 or 48-port managed PoE switch. Added cost aside, it will make your network faster, more bottleneck-free, less loop prone and more efficient from less broadcast overhead. Just something to think about in the future. There are several low-noise/silent options out there for 24-port PoE web/CLI managed (UniFi USW-24-POE Gen2, Cisco 2960L-24PS-LL or Zyxel GS1920-24HPv2 being three of them).
 
For most any "saucer" style omni AP, ceiling orientation is the best (ie. saucer parallel to the ground, "top" facing the floor below). This is because broadcast elevation is typically 2/3 above the top of the AP, 1/3 below, and the azimuth "donut" extends farthest outward in the same plane at the saucer. Second most optimal would be top facing the ceiling (ex: set on a shelf), but elevation spread will be weaker down to the floor and stronger up through the ceiling, so not quite as desirable, but still workable. Least favorable would be a wall mount, as you'd be spreading the azimuth up and down the wall, and elevation would then be "across" the rooms -- with a very wide/long building, I would recommend against wall mounting if you can help it.

Regarding the idea to lay an AP(s) above the plasterboard ceiling (top facing downward), that should work just fine and any attenuation drop should be negligible (versus a ceiling mount directly underneath). Presuming you can run ethernet to that location(s), I would select that option and position the middle AP as equidistant from the other two as possible.

Also, consider converging the small PoE switch and 24-port into a single 24 or 48-port managed PoE switch. Added cost aside, it will make your network faster, more bottleneck-free, less loop prone and more efficient from less broadcast overhead. Just something to think about in the future. There are several low-noise/silent options out there for 24-port PoE web/CLI managed (UniFi USW-24-POE Gen2, Cisco 2960L-24PS-LL or Zyxel GS1920-24HPv2 being three of them).
Many thanks Trip that's really helpful.
Thank you for a very detailed response and also the tip on combining the switch. However I may have one problem with this suggestion. I have a Genexis HGR 1000 router connected to my 50Mbps FTTP. The ISP say that I am flooding one of the ports on the router and this is the one currently connected to the 24 port switch.
I was going to spread the load with ALL WiFi traffic going via the smaller POE switch which would be connected to another port on the router therby hopefully spreading the load? Alternatively the ISP have suggested turning on Bridge Mode and using my own router that might better handle network traffic. (they offered me a Linksys Velop Mesh router but I dont belive this is compatible with the EAP225s unless someone can advise otherwise? I have an ASUS RT-AC66U sitting in my workshop that might do the trick but wonder if TP-Link do a router that combines Mesh with a cable router?
 
OK,so lots of time in Covid-19 lock-down has allowed me to catch up on lots of jobs including finishing CCTV installation and installing my EAP-245s. I have followed the advice above including making up a bracket to hold the EAP horizontal and so far I have reduced all my numerous APs to just three and stability has been great. I now only have three SSIDs, a main one for all my laptops and tablets that need to access local resources, a Guest network for visitors and finally one dedicated to IOT devices such as Amazon Echos, Smart switches Smart appliances etc.

I have noticed however there is a slight gap in coverage in one area. I incorrectly stated I had purchased EAP-225 however they are actually EAP245 v3. These as I am sure you are aware are AC 1750 as opposed to the EAP-225 which is AC 1350. As TP-Link have released a EAP-225 V3 which has uprated performance I was considering getting one of these instead of another EAP-245 which a a bit more expensive.

Will the EAP-225 co-exist in my existing EAP-245 Mesh network without any problems? I appreciate wireless throughput is not so great but that's not critical in the location I need extra coverage.

Finally is there a wall mounted version of the EAP245 similar to the wall mounted version of the EAP-225? I am surprised that TP-link haven't made one unless its to do with the number of external antenna?
 
Great news on cleaning up your network for max effectiveness.

Yes, the latest-gen EAP225v3 will co-exist perfectly with your EAP245 v1's, allowing the roaming capability and overall functionality. They share the same parent Qualcomm architecture and identical 2.4Ghz chips (3x3), with sister 5Ghz chips, the 245 having a 3x3 QCA9982 and the 225 having a 2x2 QCA9886. The 245 gains a bit of extra receive sensitivity for all clients due to the extra spatial stream, even if it can't use it (only 2x2 or 1x1 clients -- ie. most mobiles), but in all actuality the real-life effective throughput over range of both is very similar, as guys like @Val D. will attest to.

Just try to position your APs so that attenuation drops somewhere into the range of -60 to -75dB at the midpoint between APs, to encourage the cleanest roaming behavior. You'll want to strike that balance just right, while also hopefully placing APs close enough to the building edges to get the right overall endpoint coverage as well.
 
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