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[Aurora_J]

I’ve been trying to get my head around a persistent issue with my home network setup, specifically concerning my **wireless router** placement and its impact on my smart home devices. My house is a two-story with the office, where the router logically sits, in a far back corner downstairs. The problem is my smart lights and thermostat upstairs keep dropping their connection, creating a real headache for automation routines. I’ve tried using a basic extender, but it just created a separate network with its own problems, and running Ethernet through the walls isn’t an option in this rental. I’m stuck weighing the cost of a premium mesh system against trying to reposition this single **wireless router** to a more central but awkward location, which would mean dealing with a long, unsightly cable run from the modem. Has anyone else dealt with a similar layout and found a reliable solution that doesn’t break the bank or require major renovations? I feel like I’m constantly rebooting devices just to keep things running.

[LaylaB]

Yes—two-story layouts are rough. My fix wasn’t expensive: add a single central AP as a true backhaul, fed by a powerline adapter, keeps one SSID and avoids a second network. Put the AP roughly halfway up and upstairs, then move your Zigbee/Z‑Wave hub closer to devices. If you upgrade, choose a mesh that supports seamless roaming.