I wanted to work from my backyard. The WiFi signal made it about fifteen feet past the back door and then died completely. A mesh system costs $200 minimum. An outdoor access point requires running Ethernet through the wall. I just wanted to check email on the deck.

I fixed it for $22.

The Window Trick Nobody Mentions

WiFi passes through wood and drywall reasonably well. It passes through glass badly. It passes through low-E coated windows — the energy-efficient kind with a metallic film — almost not at all. If your router is behind a low-E window, the signal is dying at the glass before it even reaches your yard.

Test this: hold your phone against the window near the router. Check the signal strength. Now open the window and hold the phone outside. If the signal jumps dramatically, the window is your problem. Move the router to a different interior wall — one without a metal-coated window between it and the yard.

The $22 Extender

Buy a basic WiFi range extender — the TP-Link RE105 or similar, currently $22. Plug it into an outlet on the wall closest to your backyard, inside the house. Set it up with the app — it takes five minutes. The extender picks up your existing WiFi and rebroadcasts it. The signal through the wall is significantly stronger than from your router across the house.

I placed mine in the kitchen, which shares a wall with the deck. Full signal outside. I have been working from the backyard for three weeks now, and the only downside is sun glare on the laptop screen.