Can’t stop your microwave from interfering with your WiFi? Don’t Be angry! We have a fix for this common microwave oven problem.
Microwave ovens have undoubtedly been the best kitchen innovations that have ever happened in history. Since the first Radarange model in a Boston restaurant in 1947, the oven has become a household necessity.
A microwave oven is endorsed by homeowners as a must-have in your kitchen with its uses ranging from heating leftovers to fixing a snack to cooking a meal.
The very first models did not have intelligent features like internet connection and functioning remotely. But the 21-century tech gurus have brought smart innovations to our kitchens. Besides the kitchen appliance, the innovators have gone ahead to incorporate internet connectivity in our homes.
WiFi, the most recent wireless connectivity technology, enables you to get into the internet world. It even operates your appliances without touching any button.
With your baby monitors and mobile devices like tablets and phones, you can track your microwave oven and other appliances as you do other things.
In general, WiFi is part of your life. Officeworks, entertainment, communication, name it, are all possible through a WiFi connection. These two technologies are a blessing, but they also come with a few hiccups.
Read below to understand why and how microwave ovens interfere with your WiFi connections.
Why Does My Microwave Interrupt My WiFi?
Both the microwave and WiFi technologies operate with waves. Like the radio and TV waves, a microwave oven has electromagnetic radiation waves, and your WiFi too. The WiFi has radio electromagnetic waves. The WiFi waves are 10,000 times less than the microwave and thus weak. That’s why you can’t warm food with your WiFi!
Microwave oven releases radiation waves in one direction, while WiFi releases waves in an omnidirectional way. A microwave oven’s waves can disrupt Wi-Fi signals and leave you with a loss of internet connectivity.
If you are observant enough, this happens when you run your microwave. You get low/weak signals on your PC, laptop, or smartphone.
This disruption is very annoying, especially if you are in the middle of an assignment or loading a page. So, what can you do to stop this issue?
How Do You Fix Microwave WiFi Interference?
Microwave WiFi interference is a very annoying experience that you don’t have to put up with. Here are the ways to solve the interference;
1. Keep your WiFi device away from your microwave oven.
The first solution that you will try is to unplug your WiFi router device and plug it in the farthest corner away from your microwave oven. We have mentioned above that electromagnetic microwaves from your oven move in one direction while the WiFi is multi-directional.
Leaked waves that hit your WiFi radio waves can interfere essentially with the frequency and block your devices from receiving data from your home router.
The farther the device is from your kitchen or your microwave oven’s position, the better the WiFi reception. You can place your router device in the living room and shift your microwave to the farthest section of your countertop. That way, your devices utilize the WiFi waves before the “mix up” with your oven’s electromagnetic radiation waves.
2. Keep your devices away from operational microwave ovens
If you experience frequent WiFi interference in your home, it is time you keep your devices away from active microwaves. If your computers, TV, or phones are near the microwave, try to shift your work area away from the appliance.
Just like you did on number one above, relocating your microwave to the farthest corner of your countertop, shelf, or cabinet will be the same with your devices. You will find the WiFi reception better than when you work or place your device near the microwave oven.
3. Shift to 5 GHz
Many microwave oven appliances match up with Wi-Fi routers in terms of frequencies. The waves operate at 2.4 GHz frequency, thus the interference. If you didn’t check your router when purchasing, you would be surprised that it is also 2.4 GHz.
The above frequency matchup is disastrous in your home internet connectivity. You will always experience network interference unless you change your router. You can upgrade to a 5 GHz frequency router to solve this problem once and for all.
Interestingly, a 5 GHz frequency does not experience interference from microwave ovens. The upgrade will be a better route than changing your microwave oven since most of them in the market are 2.5 GHz.
You can discuss changing the device for you with your provider, but you have to be mindful not to compromise on the area coverage and device stability. But the action will go an extra mile to improve your network interference from electromagnetic waves.
4. Minimize Router devices
Many routers within your microwave oven’s proximity can be disastrous to WiFi connectivity. If you have multiple routers in your home or the neighborhood in proximity, that could be why you have frequent WiFi interference.
Having multiple routers in your room and a microwave oven does more harm than good by hurting your WiFi efficiency. A single efficient router is sufficient enough for your internet needs. Or, you have to do away with your microwave or vice versa.
Of course, this is not a solution. If you require additional WiFi strength, you can consider a booster or extender to improve your network.
How Do You Stop A Microwave From Frequencing?
Unless you are a tech guru, stoping your microwave from producing electromagnetic waves will be a complicated affair. The best and most straightforward solution would be to apply upgrade measures in your home. That will stop the frequent interferences with your WiFi connectivity.
Your WiFi equipment will be the number one stop. It is easier to upgrade from a 2.4 GHz to a 5 GHz band. Nowadays, things are more accessible as you can acquire the modern 802.11n router that operates in a 5 GHz frequency band.
The most significant most straightforward advantage of using a 5 GHz signal is that it bars interference with the 2.4 GHz frequency from the microwave oven.
In addition, the 5 GHz frequency comes with faster and higher connectivity of more than 1,000 Mbps. The wavelength may be shorter than the 2.4 GHz, but you are safer from frequent interruptions.
Besides the router upgrade, you can upgrade your house with a fish tank or an open. The water will absorb the electromagnetic waves if you position it near the microwave and away from your router.
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Does Microwave Affect Wireless Routers?
Whenever you put on your microwave to warm or cook your food, your devices lose Wi-Fi connection. Get the facts right that both your microwave and the wireless router have electromagnetic radiation.
Microwaves and WiFi (radio) waves are in the same category. When you operate both gadgets in the same room, the microwave rays leak and crash with the radio waves.
The result is network interference that, in turn, causes slow web page loading. But why does this interference happen?
As mentioned earlier, both the router and your microwave emit radiation. The microwave oven converts electric energy into electromagnetic waves. After emission, the waves stay in the appliance’s tightly sealed metal box.
But these waves can leak out, the reason for the frequency interruptions. The leaked waves overlap your WiFi waves, causing the WiFi signals to go down. That interference happens if the frequency is the same (2.4GHz), but the overlapping will not occur if your router’s frequency is higher.
Why Does Microwave Affect The Internet?
The problem happens when leaked electromagnetic waves of the same frequency as your wireless router overlap. Most microwaves come with a frequency of 2.4 GHz, whereas most routers are also 2.4 GHz.
The waves from the microwave head in a particular direction will hit and overlap on your Omni-directional WiFi waves. The result is a low signal on your devices when you are warming your food in your microwave.
How Far Should The Router Be From The Microwave?
One of the most effective ways to stop microwave interference with WiFi is keeping your router away from the microwave. Position your router ten feet away from your microwave.
If both gadgets have the same wavelength spectrum and are within proximity, the waves will always crash. If your room is too tiny to maximize the ten feet distance, you can use a dual-band router with a 5GHz band.
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Final Thoughts
Both microwave ovens and WiFi devices are great gadgets in our homes. None can substitute the other; you need them both. But the oven’s electromagnetic waves cause interference in WiFi connections.
The results are a slow loading of web pages. It could be unpleasant if you were in the middle of a task, say a virtual meeting.
You do not have to experience this lag. We have expounded on the various measures that you can adopt to stop microwave oven interference with WiFi.
Try out any of our tricks to get your WiFi connection back and solve the problem conclusively.
This article saved me lots of money! Thanks!!! Our router has Simultaneous Dual Ban that runs both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands at the same time. All I had to do was switch the WiFi connection from 2.4GHz to 5GHz on all of our devices. Previously I did not know what the difference was in the connection names (one ended with “-5G”). The internet provider rep. had recommended moving the modem connection to my new office location (I used to sit right next to the modem and router where it was not a problem). When the technician showed up, he recommended a mesh router system instead. I was about to buy one, but then I wondered – how do I know the microwave will not interfere with the signal of the mesh system if the modem and router are still in the same location? I didn’t, so I did a little more research, and your article solved the problem – without spending a penny! Thanks a bunch!
Welcome & Thanks for reading our article.