One household item can slow down your internet – but it can easily be fixed

Is your internet slow? A household item might be to blame – but there’s an easy way to fix it

If you’re struggling with sluggish internet speeds, a simple solution could instantly boost your Wi-Fi. Tech experts suggest that one common household item could be interfering with your router’s signals and slowing down your connection.

Perhaps your TV is constantly buffering while streaming, web pages refuse to load, or your video calls keep disconnecting. While many are aware that microwaves can disrupt WiFi routers, another household gadget might also be causing interference: baby monitors.

This is due to some models operating at a similar frequency to the router, leading to signal clashes. Fortunately, there are straightforward solutions and an easy test to determine if this is the root of the problem.

Two types of baby monitors could potentially interfere with your WiFi. Digital baby monitors often operate on the 2.4 GHz frequency, which is widely used by devices such as microwaves, Bluetooth gadgets, and crucially, WiFi routers.

This means their signals can clash, reports the Express.

WiFi-enabled baby monitors could also affect your connection as they rely on the internet.

So, if you have a baby monitor at home and your WiFi is playing up, simply switch off the baby monitor as a test to see if the speed improves. You can verify the internet upload and download speeds using an online tracker.

If you notice an improvement, then you may have found your solution. The simplest remedy is to reposition devices; Babysense, a baby monitor retailer, recommends keeping the monitor and WiFi router at least 10 feet apart.

Avoid areas such as the kitchen due to the abundance of appliances and metal surfaces, and also avoid placing the router near thick walls.

The Babysense blog also suggests changing the WiFi channel to one, six or 11 for 2.4 GHz routers, and using a free WiFi analyser like NetSpot WiFi App UK to identify the best channel.

You might also consider low-interference baby monitors. This involves looking for FHSS technology, which continually changes the channel, and DECT 6.0 monitors, which operate on a different frequency to most WiFi routers.

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