Your Christmas Decorations Could Be SLOWING Down Wi-Fi - The 5 Worst Offenders

YOUR Christmas tree and several common decorations could be slowing your Wi-Fi down by up to 88 per cent, new research suggests.

Everyday household items are known for disrupting the signal strength from your hub and Christmas bits can be a problem too.

Sophie from Cambridge said she noticed a big difference in her speedsCredit: Broadband Genie

A test conducted by Broadband Genie found that the tree and pieces on it can have an effect.

Fairy lights, tinsel, and baubles and even pine needles and branches can absorb and deflect the signal, the firm claims.

A researcher for the company found that their download speed dropped from 193Mbps to 134Mbps.

That’s a drop of 31 per cent.

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But the upload speed is said to have suffered further.

It fell from 26Mbps normally to just 3Mbps, an 88 per cent decrease.

The tester, Sophie from Cambridge, has a 6ft Nordmann Fir.

“I was shocked to discover just how much of a difference it can make,” she said.

“I first noticed when I couldn’t receive signal in some parts of our home and my video calls for work became jittery.

“Our house isn’t massive, so there is nowhere else for the tree to go.

“I’ve moved it away as much as I can from the router, and it has since made it a bit better. I just wish I knew this before we decorated it!”

However, it’s important to note that the findings are only based on one reported experience and not a wider study.

But it is well-known that position is everything when it comes to routers.

For example, it’s generally not advised to put it away in a cupboard or down in a cellar, as this makes it harder for the signal to spread.

And there are plenty of other items around the home that can cause issues all year too, from mirrors to metal beams in kitchen extensions.

The impact of a Christmas tree can vary on several factors, such as how close the router is to the tree, how old the router is – and even the types of fairy lights you’re using.

As ISPReview notes, older blinking lights using blown glass bulbs with a carbon or tungsten filament are known to be a problem.

The general rule for the best possible connection is to keep your router in a central, open and elevated location as much as possible.

“If you feel your internet is running slow, before anything else, run a speed test and compare this to what you should be receiving,” explained Alex Tofts, broadband expert at Broadband Genie.

“The key takeaway here is you don’t have to compromise on your Christmas tree and decorations to enjoy fast broadband over the festive period. You just need to give them both enough room for the Wi-Fi signal to avoid interference and lag.

“If you’re still finding it’s considerably slower to what you were promised at the start of your contract, and adjusting the position of your router (or tree!) isn’t doing enough, there may be an issue at the provider’s end, which only they can fix.”