Wireless printing.

[Vectraat]

I have an EPSON ET-2850 WiFi Printer which is located across the other side of my house from the router. 

From what Epson tells me, the printer should ideally be no more than 15 feet from the router and definitely under 20. This strikes me as a bit odd because my laptop can connect to my router from the same distance (although, It's not an exceptionally strong connection, it can still connect). I certainly don't see my router via the printers networking configuration settings so obviously the printer and router are too far apart.

Is there a solution to this aside from moving the printer into my bedroom where the router is located? I don't want people having to enter my room just to print stuff off. 

[NikolakiH]

If you have a combined 2.4GHz/5GHz network from your router, you could try separating them and connecting to the 2.4GHz network on your printer.

 

If you have a Wifi 6 router, you may have set the network password encryption to be WPA3 only, which many printers still don't support. In which case, you should set it to WPA3+WPA2 or just WPA2 and see if the printer can see the network.

 

If that doesn't work and you're willing to spend a little money, you could also try a cheap powerline ethernet adapter.

[Vectraat]

4 hours ago, NikolakiH said:

If you have a combined 2.4GHz/5GHz network from your router, you could try separating them and connecting to the 2.4GHz network on your printer.

 

If you have a Wifi 6 router, you may have set the network password encryption to be WPA3 only, which many printers still don't support. In which case, you should set it to WPA3+WPA2 or just WPA2 and see if the printer can see the network.

 

If that doesn't work and you're willing to spend a little money, you could also try a cheap powerline ethernet adapter.

I prefer not to mess around with networking stuff very often because I find it to be a very frustrating experience almost every time. The router is a Telus - T3200M.

I don't know what you mean by "separating them" 
How do I know if It's 2.4/5 or WiFi 6? 

Even if it were possible for me to connect to it, I doubt it would be a reliable connection since my laptop sometimes struggles to stay connected from that far away and Epson even said the printer is too far away from the router. 

This kind of powerline ethernet adapter or do you have something else in mind? 

Edit: With the powerline solution it says to connect an ethernet cable from the powerline adapter into the router. If I have a switch, can I plug it into the switch instead? And I guess I need to directly wire the printer into the second powerline adapter? Problem is, I don't see an ethernet adapter on my printer. 

[Vectraat]

Is a Wifi extender maybe a better idea?

[NikolakiH]

My bad, apparently the et-2850 doesn't have Ethernet.

 

1 hour ago, Vectraat said:

I don't know what you mean by "separating them" 
How do I know if It's 2.4/5 or WiFi 6? 

If you only see 1 network name that you connect to on all your devices, then you most likely have a 'mixed' network where both the 2.4GHz network and the 5GHz network are named the same thing, but I suppose it's not worth messing with in this case. I also looked up your Telus router, and it is Wifi 5 / 802.11ac, so you don't have to worry about the network password encryption thing.

 

1 hour ago, Vectraat said:

Edit: With the powerline solution it says to connect an ethernet cable from the powerline adapter into the router. If I have a switch, can I plug it into the switch instead? And I guess I need to directly wire the printer into the second powerline adapter? Problem is, I don't see an ethernet adapter on my printer. 

Basically just treat the powerline adapters as one long Ethernet cable, but with extra steps. Most people don't have a switch, so that's why they would say to plug it into your router, but you can just plug it into your switch, which is connected to your router. Even though you don't have an Ethernet port on your printer, you can still use a powerline Wifi extender if you want, instead of a straight Wifi extender. You just plug the one end that doesn't have Wifi into your switch, and plug the other one into an empty wall socket near your printer, and then set it up as you would a normal Wifi network (you could just copy/paste the name and password of your current network, or make it different). I'm suggesting this instead of a normal Wifi extender because having a wired connection between your extender and your router is usually more reliable, especially on older Wifi standards.

 

You may find a better deal than this, but this is a sensible option I found after a quick look:

https://www.amazon.ca/TP-Link-Powerline-Extender-TL-WPA7517-KIT/dp/B08YFLJCL3/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1V7YNBV46FCYI&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hSp7m6t6U47IMCd31GpeyqlQGcE-KGOfFZCA7K2vizDAXpypcaiJFrmlmHFhIvyzU93QPdyTkpA-wiOWfS46wDLDxQtccBKTB4mhyMvwxKl6kbVJ71u7F85AUvhH7lQi05cn3WkmfayWj7zhvKwT1a18NxTwzAmaTIqhozeHePl3kRegZCKVH5g6FgLocdfUOzO1KsqZxNJtg1OlU4-oJxriGHC2o5BDKBF0bKLRIvjHYwnaQMfedeklqyCwZfuEKv3faUgZGlcRjstyG40aqL4Osim6aguRSDLWGk10w30.8MzgkTVO2SpfhN5aqMQXeIlbqAH6_Uv-ZOXIrJx6NJs&dib_tag=se&keywords=powerline%2Bwifi&qid=1711598008&sprefix=powerline%2Bwifi%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-3&th=1

 

P.S. If you do find a better deal on a regular Wifi extender, or just want to use one for whatever reason, it'll probably still be fine.

[Vectraat]

On 3/27/2024 at 9:03 PM, NikolakiH said:

My bad, apparently the et-2850 doesn't have Ethernet.

 

If you only see 1 network name that you connect to on all your devices, then you most likely have a 'mixed' network where both the 2.4GHz network and the 5GHz network are named the same thing, but I suppose it's not worth messing with in this case. I also looked up your Telus router, and it is Wifi 5 / 802.11ac, so you don't have to worry about the network password encryption thing.

 

Basically just treat the powerline adapters as one long Ethernet cable, but with extra steps. Most people don't have a switch, so that's why they would say to plug it into your router, but you can just plug it into your switch, which is connected to your router. Even though you don't have an Ethernet port on your printer, you can still use a powerline Wifi extender if you want, instead of a straight Wifi extender. You just plug the one end that doesn't have Wifi into your switch, and plug the other one into an empty wall socket near your printer, and then set it up as you would a normal Wifi network (you could just copy/paste the name and password of your current network, or make it different). I'm suggesting this instead of a normal Wifi extender because having a wired connection between your extender and your router is usually more reliable, especially on older Wifi standards.

 

You may find a better deal than this, but this is a sensible option I found after a quick look:

https://www.amazon.ca/TP-Link-Powerline-Extender-TL-WPA7517-KIT/dp/B08YFLJCL3/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1V7YNBV46FCYI&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hSp7m6t6U47IMCd31GpeyqlQGcE-KGOfFZCA7K2vizDAXpypcaiJFrmlmHFhIvyzU93QPdyTkpA-wiOWfS46wDLDxQtccBKTB4mhyMvwxKl6kbVJ71u7F85AUvhH7lQi05cn3WkmfayWj7zhvKwT1a18NxTwzAmaTIqhozeHePl3kRegZCKVH5g6FgLocdfUOzO1KsqZxNJtg1OlU4-oJxriGHC2o5BDKBF0bKLRIvjHYwnaQMfedeklqyCwZfuEKv3faUgZGlcRjstyG40aqL4Osim6aguRSDLWGk10w30.8MzgkTVO2SpfhN5aqMQXeIlbqAH6_Uv-ZOXIrJx6NJs&dib_tag=se&keywords=powerline%2Bwifi&qid=1711598008&sprefix=powerline%2Bwifi%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-3&th=1

 

P.S. If you do find a better deal on a regular Wifi extender, or just want to use one for whatever reason, it'll probably still be fine.

Would the product you linked really be better than this Wifi extender? 41k ratings nearly 4 and a half stars vs 4/5 stars 802 ratings. Though, maybe Amazon ratings mean nothing. 

https://www.amazon.ca/TP-Link-AC1900-Range-Extender-RE550/dp/B08TLT65WM/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1E5QHA6SZR8ED&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FmYnZZENPNoiAsi6FUVWVqIDVhiUR_RDYJocwAfxPCk_D89JrJsGFvAIw7OzLAncnmp7vGhs8vul5OgEvX6rH7saFUxM0O7h9B_FPkxpGUaoxHC4bcWhCCJQMLMeF5weFj7BhcXahWH8Q05IahXzF4UGt1k0xVckrRAD5WnPjx7lODM9Zc6b7Ezwm8gKkRLZNpwebkuMWRaX3cgYD2r5yqx8_rM9nWgr8uuDgbCanK1T6RRx_qM400SDRFFWWt7y26a_7HRrXcGb1J3e8ASbPA73eRZ_GAahk7nb7Fs_fp4.y4c1-BkZR8VKlomPxYnfEKaXnVYyvFXsr1teiQBIuOw&dib_tag=se&keywords=wifi%2Bextender&qid=1711687798&sprefix=wifi%2Bextender%2Caps%2C137&sr=8-5&th=1

[silencer12]

30 minutes ago, Vectraat said:

Would the product you linked really be better than this Wifi extender? 41k ratings nearly 4 and a half stars vs 4/5 stars 802 ratings. Though, maybe Amazon ratings mean nothing. 

https://www.amazon.ca/TP-Link-AC1900-Range-Extender-RE550/dp/B08TLT65WM/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1E5QHA6SZR8ED&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FmYnZZENPNoiAsi6FUVWVqIDVhiUR_RDYJocwAfxPCk_D89JrJsGFvAIw7OzLAncnmp7vGhs8vul5OgEvX6rH7saFUxM0O7h9B_FPkxpGUaoxHC4bcWhCCJQMLMeF5weFj7BhcXahWH8Q05IahXzF4UGt1k0xVckrRAD5WnPjx7lODM9Zc6b7Ezwm8gKkRLZNpwebkuMWRaX3cgYD2r5yqx8_rM9nWgr8uuDgbCanK1T6RRx_qM400SDRFFWWt7y26a_7HRrXcGb1J3e8ASbPA73eRZ_GAahk7nb7Fs_fp4.y4c1-BkZR8VKlomPxYnfEKaXnVYyvFXsr1teiQBIuOw&dib_tag=se&keywords=wifi%2Bextender&qid=1711687798&sprefix=wifi%2Bextender%2Caps%2C137&sr=8-5&th=1

You have to look at the reviews from actual accounts. If the review is not someone with an avatar on their profile or lots of information in the review, then ignore it. Most reviews are fake.

[Vectraat]

On 3/27/2024 at 9:03 PM, NikolakiH said:

My bad, apparently the et-2850 doesn't have Ethernet.

 

If you only see 1 network name that you connect to on all your devices, then you most likely have a 'mixed' network where both the 2.4GHz network and the 5GHz network are named the same thing, but I suppose it's not worth messing with in this case. I also looked up your Telus router, and it is Wifi 5 / 802.11ac, so you don't have to worry about the network password encryption thing.

 

Basically just treat the powerline adapters as one long Ethernet cable, but with extra steps. Most people don't have a switch, so that's why they would say to plug it into your router, but you can just plug it into your switch, which is connected to your router. Even though you don't have an Ethernet port on your printer, you can still use a powerline Wifi extender if you want, instead of a straight Wifi extender. You just plug the one end that doesn't have Wifi into your switch, and plug the other one into an empty wall socket near your printer, and then set it up as you would a normal Wifi network (you could just copy/paste the name and password of your current network, or make it different). I'm suggesting this instead of a normal Wifi extender because having a wired connection between your extender and your router is usually more reliable, especially on older Wifi standards.

 

You may find a better deal than this, but this is a sensible option I found after a quick look:

https://www.amazon.ca/TP-Link-Powerline-Extender-TL-WPA7517-KIT/dp/B08YFLJCL3/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1V7YNBV46FCYI&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hSp7m6t6U47IMCd31GpeyqlQGcE-KGOfFZCA7K2vizDAXpypcaiJFrmlmHFhIvyzU93QPdyTkpA-wiOWfS46wDLDxQtccBKTB4mhyMvwxKl6kbVJ71u7F85AUvhH7lQi05cn3WkmfayWj7zhvKwT1a18NxTwzAmaTIqhozeHePl3kRegZCKVH5g6FgLocdfUOzO1KsqZxNJtg1OlU4-oJxriGHC2o5BDKBF0bKLRIvjHYwnaQMfedeklqyCwZfuEKv3faUgZGlcRjstyG40aqL4Osim6aguRSDLWGk10w30.8MzgkTVO2SpfhN5aqMQXeIlbqAH6_Uv-ZOXIrJx6NJs&dib_tag=se&keywords=powerline%2Bwifi&qid=1711598008&sprefix=powerline%2Bwifi%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-3&th=1

 

P.S. If you do find a better deal on a regular Wifi extender, or just want to use one for whatever reason, it'll probably still be fine.

So I did end up buying the TP-Link Powerline WiFi Extender

For testing purposes, I positioned a laptop halfway between my router and the printer. The laptop was able to see the printer and successfully print.

However, my desktop PC (which is across the other side of the house from the printer in a room near my router) can't detect the printer. My desktop is wired, not on WiFi but I don't imagine that should make a difference?

I also tested a second laptop in my room and it could not see the printer either....BUT when I moved this laptop closer to the printer (where the other laptop is), I was able to detect the printer, I can now successfully print from my room. So this seems to indicate a range issue upon establishing an initial connection? 

Any idea how I can get my desktop PC to detect the printer? 

[NikolakiH]

3 hours ago, Vectraat said:

So I did end up buying the TP-Link Powerline WiFi Extender

For testing purposes, I positioned a laptop halfway between my router and the printer. The laptop was able to see the printer and successfully print.

However, my desktop PC (which is across the other side of the house from the printer in a room near my router) can't detect the printer. My desktop is wired, not on WiFi but I don't imagine that should make a difference?

I also tested a second laptop in my room and it could not see the printer either....BUT when I moved this laptop closer to the printer (where the other laptop is), I was able to detect the printer, I can now successfully print from my room. So this seems to indicate a range issue upon establishing an initial connection? 

Any idea how I can get my desktop PC to detect the printer? 

 

Were you able to connect the printer to your Wifi network? If it's on your wifi network, then the desktop should be able to pick it up; it could depend on how you set up the Wifi extender, though. See if you can find the IP address of your printer in the printer's network settings, and then type that into your desktop after you click "My printer isn't listed" in your printer finding settings.

 

[Vectraat]

52 minutes ago, NikolakiH said:

 

Were you able to connect the printer to your Wifi network? If it's on your wifi network, then the desktop should be able to pick it up; it could depend on how you set up the Wifi extender, though. See if you can find the IP address of your printer in the printer's network settings, and then type that into your desktop after you click "My printer isn't listed" in your printer finding settings.

 

Yeah, someone else recommended that I try to find my Printers IP so I'll go do that now. I don't know if I can find it via the printer itself or if I need to look through the software on the computer. 

The WiFi extender isn't that complex. I just pressed the routers WPS button and the extenders "WiFi button" to get them on the same network. The WiFi printer does see my routers username since adding the WiFi extender and since my desktop PC is directly wired to the router I don't understand why I can't connect to the printer. 

Edit: I actually got it to work by just going into "Printers & scanners" > Add a printer or scanner and it detected the printer. Strange that I had to do this on my desktop PC but I never needed to do this on either of my laptops and they are all running Windows 10. I did recently update the printers firmware though so maybe this had some kind of impact. 

[Vectraat]

On 4/2/2024 at 6:13 PM, NikolakiH said:

 

Were you able to connect the printer to your Wifi network? If it's on your wifi network, then the desktop should be able to pick it up; it could depend on how you set up the Wifi extender, though. See if you can find the IP address of your printer in the printer's network settings, and then type that into your desktop after you click "My printer isn't listed" in your printer finding settings.

 

Do you know if I have to reserve the printer's IP in my router? E.g. if there's a power outage is there gonna be a new IP assigned to the printer, then I have to set up the wifi printing on my computers again? Because I have the IP and a MAC address. 

[NikolakiH]

8 hours ago, Vectraat said:

Do you know if I have to reserve the printer's IP in my router? E.g. if there's a power outage is there gonna be a new IP assigned to the printer, then I have to set up the wifi printing on my computers again? Because I have the IP and a MAC address. 

Yeah you should go ahead and reserve the printer's IP in your router; it'll be pretty easy to do since you've got the MAC and IP already. If you don't, it will eventually get a new IP address for various reasons, and then you'll have to re-connect again.