UPDATED !!!! Cheap and easy WIFI antenna signal booster that is better and quicker than the paper ones !!!

A new swing on an old idea for improving your WIFI signal!

Step 1:

I call this WIFI booster ad on the POPtenna because you make it from a plastic pop bottle.
First get a clean plastic 2 liter pop bottle.

Step 2:

Strip off the label if there is one and wipe down with a cleaner that does no leave a residue.

Step 3:

Using a large sharpy pen, mark a ring around the bottom and a window that takes up just half of the diameter of the bottle as shown.

Step 4:

Cut out the window first so the bottle will have stiffness to help with the cutting and then cut off the bottom of the bottle.

Step 5:

After doing all the cutting, you must clean out the bottle's inside with windex or an equivelent cleaner.
The as you see by the photo.... get out your tin foil and glue stick and get ready for the next step of lining the inside face of the bottle with tin foil and making it as smooth as possible.

Step 6:

As you can see by the photo, it is only the back of the inside that gets the tinfoil. This is to make a vertical dish to focus the signal beam back into your vertical omnidirectional antenna.

Step 7:

Now this may be one of the most important parts of the antenna dish. I hope you save the cap because we are going to make an adjuster ring from it. Mark an X on the cap and make a clean cut though both lines. When finished, replace it onto the bottle neck.

( UPDATE)

Upon a few peoples suggestions..... It has been noted that if you make the cut at the edge and not the center the signal will be much higher. I totally re-did the cap as they suggested and my signal went up from 76% to 90. OK GUYS POINT TAKEN !! So having said that....

Adjust accordingly to follow RIMAR2000's suggestion to move it at least an inch or so closer to the reflector. You were right and I was wrong.

Also if you get a chance, follow the link that RIMAR2000 has on his comment and you will see where he got his information, granted, you will have to translate it, but, if you look at the diagrams... It all makes perfect sense !

Thanks RIMAR2000!

Step 8:

Now you are ready to place the reflector onto your antenna. Slide the antenna into the center of the X you made in the cap and then force the bottle down over the antenna until the top of the antenna is level with the top of the reflector. Now you place your antenna in a high place and experiment with it by turning it until you see a boost in the signal strength on your computer. This reflector is good because it covers the entire length of the vertical antenna and is very adjustable both right to left and in and out too.

Step 9:

As you can see I have a very strong signal pick up! Before I had a 30 percent signal and now look at it!
Up to 76% and running great!

Funny thing is to about this is the router is over 100 yards away in our office at the place I live!
They offer free WIFI in the clubhouse and office, but, I can use it from a long ways away now!
Have fun and I hope this helps with any signal issues you may encounter in your WIFI network.

P.S. the antenna that I was using before was a 7dbi antenna and now it is on steroids!

Comments

[ChinaMike]

really nice photo of a box of foil. I am so glad you took that photo or I would be lost...

[talhaijaz]

how ican make wifi with greater speed

[talhaijaz]

how ican make cheap wifi with greater speedge

[WIFIENGINEER]

A very creative use for the heavily discarded 2 liter bottle.

However, any flat metal surface spaced about 1/4 wavelength behind the same antenna would likely produce similar results
IE 3 db of gain

But for being green I give it 4 stars!

[e5frog]

How far away in this particular example is a 1/4 wavelength?

I'm guessing something around 3 cm?

[mgalyean]

Yep. A full wavelength is just under 5 inches. A 1/4 WL is 3.125 cm (websearch "rf wavelength calculator; or try this http://www.csgnetwork.com/freqwavelengthcalc.html) .

The main issue with this antenna is it isn't a parabola. WIFIENGINEER is correct, a flat panel 1/4 wl behind it would work just as well. A real parabola, with 180 degrees of "surround" could get into double digits of gain however.

[Daniel Morales]

Hi, I ordered a Alfa 100mw adapter on Ebay, and am thinking of biulding this!, hmmm how mucho signal would I get with the included 9dbi 15" antenna? will post results! ;-p

[bird8898]

Hi, what is the result?

[wintergoat]

Yeah, what IS the result?

[ourjobasparents]

Still no result?

[bradpugsley]

Could you possibly show a picture of the cap cut on the edge... Sorry I just want to be sure I do it right. Thanks!

[nickolaiisoe]

ya dono what u mean!

[macrumpton]

I don't know how much a thickness of plastic bottle would diminish the signal, but it occurs to me that you could just leave the bottle whole, and attach the foil on the outside of the bottle. Having the foil on the outside would make it a lot easier to get it smooth, and instead of gluing you could just tape the edges (or even just the corners). Another possibility is to hunt down one of those giant 1 gallon soda bottles (or maybe they are 3 litres) or even a 5 gallon paint bucket for even more gain. One of the cool side effects of leaving the bottle whole is that it would be weatherproof for exterior mounting.

[Phoghat]

Been done. They call it a http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantennacantenna

[macrumpton]

I don't think you understand a cantenna. A cantenna is more like the radio equivalent of a telescope, while this design is more like a concentrating dish.

[Phoghat]

cantenna works BOTH ways, receiving and broadcasting

[doo da do]

I did not see how it was connected to the item looking for a stronger signal

[macrumpton]

"I did not see how it was connected "

What is "it"?

[rimar2000]

Very cool instructable. But the focus of the reflector is not in their curvature center as you suggest, but approximately halfway the distance. That is to say that approaching the antenna to the reflector approximately one inch, that should enlarge the profit.

[BadMonkey63]

RIMAR2000.... Thanks and take a look at the updated instructions noting your suggestions. the signal went from 76 to 90 upon the information you sent. It took a long time to translate that page, but, it was worth it in the long run. Thanks! Consider yourself a co-designer of this project.

[e5frog]

What if you took the cut away piece, put foil on that and mounted it on three or four distances?

[rimar2000]

Bueno, no es para tanto... (well, isn't for so much... ) Thanks for your info.

[BadMonkey63]

(removed by author or community request)

[dmachek]

Your antenna is in the center of the cap, which puts it in the center of the curvature of the bottle, but the waves are not focused at the center of the bottle. He's pointing out that if you move the antenna closer to the focal point, you'll get more gain. Of course, that's a much more involved project.

[BadMonkey63]

(removed by author or community request)

[rimar2000]

Bueno, peor es nada (well, worse is nothing). I expected that the enhancement would be of more than one 20%. Thanks for the advice.

[lasersage]

My intuition said that you were wrong, but I just ray traced it and you're right. Much closer to the edge than centred. I should know better myself being an optics man (same behaviour as radio waves in this circumstance). I'm sure it is just a case of imprecise science masking the effect here.

[rimar2000]

In the following link you can see some drawings where they show this:
EspejoEsferico

[dmachek]

I suspect it has to do with the imprecise nature of coke bottles!

[paulomichael]

nice ! the bottle could also be used as a candle holder&reflector.

[macrumpton]

and a solar cooker for cocktail wienies!

[dickiejoe]

has any one else noticed trendnet cant spell?

[Derin]

yes

[Katjusa Roquette]

This totally didn't work for me. Maybe I did something wrong?

[tlc4u03]

anyone please I have an recreational vehicle RV and I have wife build in my laptop and I have 4 years of warranty don't want to do anything to the laptop it self but I sometimes get a week signal can't not be always near the antenna can some one help me please thank u

[kea]

The only proven way to get lots of gain are a Yagi or parabola these have typical gains of around 20 Db. John M

[shadowspydre]

I'm not seeing all your tools and parts needed. What is the white "antenna" made of and how is it connected? Is it connected to a router or a card?

[BadMonkey63]

White antenna is a standard 12dbi wifi antenna that is connected to your wifi card in your computer. Tools would be skisors and a pocket knife to cut the "X" in the cap. Use elmers or any other glue to glue the tin foil to the plastic bottle.

[jhowen1]

I made this today, while it is not the most pleasing thing to look at it sure works great, I noticed a huge improvement thanks. (I moved it out of sight now)

[BadMonkey63]

Cool glad it worked for you!