With the arrival of December, many people notice that their home Wi-Fi suddenly begins to slow down just as the lights on the Christmas tree come on. Video calls freeze, speed drops, and connection becomes unstable. The reason is often not in the operator, but in the holiday decorations themselves, which can create electromagnetic interference and make it difficult for the router to work.
Cheap LED lights usually contain poorly shielded cables and electronics that produce radio waves. Those signals overlap with the 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi band, which is also used by Bluetooth devices, baby monitors and microwaves. When the lights are turned on near the router, a kind of electromagnetic smog is created, so the devices have to constantly repeat sending data. The result is lag, connection drops and higher ping, especially noticeable in games and video calls.
Christmas lights, decorations and cables can create zones of strong Wi-Fi interference
Interference does not only come from electronics. Metal decorations, glitter and even the branched structure of artificial Christmas trees can reflect or block the signal, while on the other hand, natural Christmas trees absorb part of the energy due to wet branches, which additionally weakens the Wi-Fi signal if the Christmas tree is located between the router and the device.
When the lights often change colors or the light pattern, short interference “peaks” are created, so the network starts to “hiccup”. Users then notice that pages sometimes load immediately, sometimes very slowly, while certain devices occasionally lose connection and reconnect.
Android tutorialsThe most problematic is the 2.4 GHz band, which is overloaded in many apartments. Switching the main home devices: TV, console or computer to a 5 GHz or 6 GHz network can significantly improve the situation. However, even this will not solve the problem if the router is surrounded by cables, extension cables and the Christmas tree itself.
The most effective solution is to move the router physically away from the lights at least two to three meters. You should avoid placing extension cables and control boxes for lights right next to the router, as they create additional interference and heat. A better position of the router, at a higher and more central point in the apartment, also helps.
The quality of the lamps is also important. Models with better insulation and European certificates create less electromagnetic interference and are safer for long-term use. Arranging the electrical environment: turning off unnecessary devices, using switches on sockets and Ethernet cables for fixed devices, further reduces the load on the network.
If the Wi-Fi starts to have problems just as the lights and decorations go up, it’s very likely that the holiday decorations are affecting the stability of the wireless network. With a few simple steps, it is possible to preserve the festive atmosphere and a reliable Internet connection at the same time.