“If I can do it, you can too!” That’s what one customer said after she installed a cell phone signal booster.
Can a 70-year-old person install a cell phone signal booster? If that person is Betty, the answer is yes. Betty’s daughter bought her a cellphone so Betty could see pictures and video of her grandkids. Unfortunately, the reception inside Betty’s condo wasn’t the best, probably because of the metal construction and weather-proof windows. A Solid Signal rep recommended the right cellphone booster for Betty. With some guidance from us, and a helpful handyman, she was able to install it in her home.
Betty’s Cell Phone Booster Is…
…A refurbished weBoost Home Room kit. There are a few reasons why our customer service reps recommended this for her. First, Betty lives alone in a small condo. This booster improves cellular signal in rooms up to 1,500 square feet, which was plenty for her. Secondly, it’s easy to install, which you’ll read about soon.
Most importantly, she was able to save some money on this booster. That’s because it’s a refurbished model, meaning someone returned it to weBoost. The company’s tech team poured over the device and made the necessary tweaks to get it working again. They certified the device before sending it on to us so we could sell it to Betty.
Betty the Booster Installer
The best person to tell Betty’s cell phone booster story is Betty herself. “I don’t know much about cellphone boosters, but the person at Solid Signal explained it all to me. It made sense for me to get one.” Betty added that the rep asked her if she had anyone to install the device when it arrived. “I said, ‘Yeah. Me!” Betty added. “Then I said, ‘How do you do that?’”
Betty asked the right person. The Solid Signal customer service reps have access to the brain trust here at the Solid Signal blog. Resident blog master Stuart Sweet knows a lot about cell phone signal boosters and other consumer electronics. Betty’s rep told her that she could install her cell booster in these five easy steps:
-
Find the best Signal outside.
-
Install the outdoor antenna.
-
Connect the antenna to the amplifier.
-
Install the indoor antenna.
-
Turn on the booster.
Let’s see how Betty handled it.
Step 1: Finding the Outside Signal
For this step, Betty had to walk around her house with her phone in her hand. She recalled, “They told me to look for the best signal. I got the most bars behind the house, facing west.” Using the bars on your cell phone is a decent way to find peak reception. A better way is to use a smartphone app or your device’s field test mode.
Step 2: Installing the Outside Antenna
For this step, Betty called in a little help. Thomas is the groundskeeper at her condo association. He’s helped Betty out with a variety of things, so he had no problem climbing up on her roof to install the antenna. “I told him I got the best reception behind the house, so he pointed the antenna facing west,” she explained. To stay safe, Betty waited inside while Thomas worked outside. “It didn’t take him very long to get it done,” she added.
Step 3: Connecting to the Booster
“Since Thomas was already on the roof, he was kind enough to run the cable inside,” Betty explained. Betty’s Solid Signal rep told her to make sure she had at least 50 feet of horizontal space between the outside and inside antennas. This prevents oscillation, which can cause signal boosters to automatically shut down. “I passed that information to Thomas and he took care of it,” Betty added.
To help keep Betty safe, Thomas fed the cable into the house from outside. Betty pulled it through and connected it to the booster. “It was easy,” she added. “And since I mostly use my cellphone in the living room, that’s where I put the booster.”
Step 4: Installing the Indoor Antenna
Betty’s cell phone booster comes with a panel-style indoor antenna. Some people recommend mounting these antennas to the wall, but Betty came up with another solution. She said, “I just sat it down on the highest shelf on my bookcase. It almost looks like I pulled out one of my books and left it sitting there.”
Step 5: Power Up the Booster
These last few steps are so easy that we just list them together. Betty plugged the power supply into the booster and the wall outlet. This activated the booster and made it sync up. She said, “I saw all the green lights go on, just like the person on the phone told me it would. I immediately picked up my cellphone and called my daughter.” Betty’s daughter put the kids on the phone so Grandma could enjoy an uninterrupted conversation with her “babies.”
Take it Away, Betty
Normally, this is the part of the blog post where we encourage you to call Signal Connect for your cell booster. We decided to let Betty handle this one. She said, “Don’t let setting it up keep you from getting one,” she said. “If I can do it, you can do it.” We couldn’t have said it better, so we leave you with this. If you need to improve the cellular connection in your home, give Solid Signal a call at 888-233-7563. You can also fill out the form below and email it to us.
