Hey everyone! I just bought a 50-acre property in Texas and I'm looking for a way to set up WiFi for my front gate without running any power lines to it. I came across some point-to-point WiFi extenders, but I'm having trouble finding a solar and battery-powered option that supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) in my searches. Am I overlooking something? Any suggestions?
3 Answers
I'm curious, what exactly are you trying to power at the other end of the WiFi? Understanding that might help us get more specific with suggestions!
While it's not what you asked, I'd suggest considering an old-school 2.4 N router paired with a directional antenna. It's a much simpler solution and can easily reach half a mile if you have a clear line of sight to your gate! Just keep in mind you'll still need to power the receiving end.
A great approach could be to set up a small solar system with a pure sine wave inverter. You'd only need a single solar panel, a charge controller, a battery, and the inverter to get it all working. This should make it much easier to power your WiFi extender with the right setup!
Actually, you might not even need a pure sine inverter! For most WiFi devices, you can just go with a 12V panel and battery setup, along with a compatible barrel plug for your extender.
True, but don’t forget you'll need to set up some kind of power source at the gate to make the connection work, whether it's a wireless bridge or similar.