Reversing split of 2.4GHz and 5GHz plus using powerline adaptors with NOW broadband

[ABale]

When we first installed our Now Broadband, it worked fine throughout the house but would not reach my garden office. It was suggested we split the broadband into the 2.4GHz and the 5GHz and an engineer talked me through doing this. However it did not help the supply to the office and now I find the 2.4GHz works but the 5GHz connection, which was given a different name, does not. Can I put the two back together again? 

Secondly, does anyone have an experience of using a powerline adaptor to extend the wifi to a garden office? I bought one from TP-Link about a year ago. It worked fine for six months but is now really glitchy. Sometimes won't work at all, or only works for part of the day. Any idea if this is anything to do with the router/internet? Or is it more likely a TP-Link problem?

Thanks in advance. 

[chilli2]

What model of powerline do you have, are they on the same circuit  in the house on the consumer unit? have you had any electrical work done?

[ABale]

Hi Chilli2, 

@chilli2 the powerline is a TP Link AV 600. They are on the same circuit, one in the house, the other in my garden office. I have not had any electrical work done except removal of some garden lights and I was assured this would not impact the supply to the office. 

[RoyB · Accepted solution]

@ABale 

While Now routers have the broadband range of a thrown anvil, reaching a garden office is a big ask, and was too big an ask for my powerful BT router.

As the garden office was on a spur added to the main electricity supply, it was a simple matter to use PLAs, TP-Link as it happens, with WiFi served by the garden office end. They were rock solid for two years, and I stopped using them only because we moved.

For glitchy, try a flight of reboots; router, router-end PLA, garden office-end PLA, letting each one settle before moving on to the next.

Splitting the bands, the way Now present it, is pure snake oil; there are very marginal benefits, in very restricted circumstances, if it is done carefully and correctly, but normally it just worsens things. 

To merge them back together, simply set the same SSID and password on both.

[ABale]

Hi Roy, thank you. Being a bit technophobic, can you direct me a bit more regarding SSID and password. Where do I do this? And I agree about the need for a PLA, it's just that mine worked for six months and is now glitchy and it's hard to work out why. 

[RoyB]

@ABale 

Work through Step 4 in the link, in order, this time checking Synchronise in sub-step 5 not unchecking it, and making the SSIDs the same again by removing the added suffixes (if that is what you did) in sub-steps 6 and 7.

It may be that sub-step 5 needs to wait until after 6 and 7; suck it and see.

https://help.nowtv.com/article/improve-broadband-speed

[ABale]

Thank you very much @RoyB. That worked. Next to sort out the powerline!