Wireless connection

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cyellen

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 27, 2011
Messages
87
Is anyone else having issues with the wireless connection? I cannot seem to get my Blink to stay connected to (or even "see") my home wireless network. The router is located in the bedroom almost directly above the garage and I have really good signal strength in the garage itself. I did manage to get it connected once, but it needed a firmware update (actually two of them) and after the first one it rebooted and now I cannot get it connected again.

Ecotality says I may have to resort to a wired connection - which I'd really like to avoid for obvious reasons.

Any tricks? I thought about getting a wireless repeater that I could install in the garage itself or somewhere closer to the Blink, but I am not really sure that is the problem.
 
smkettner said:
Can you plug it in just for the update? Then maybe it will connect on its own?
I would try that before I spent money on a repeter

That's a good idea.

Our Blink is working fine over wireless. We did have a problem at install time with an obscure default firewall setting on our Belkin g router, not something I had set up. The Blink was able to obtain an IP address, but could not get further than that. Its connection attempts were logged in the router, which given the default setting interpreted them as a DoS "attack", which was how we eventually discovered the problem. After toggling the router setting (which again I was not aware existed to begin with), it connected fine and has been working since (about 250kWh of charging), aside from a couple of apparent reboots (based on the uptime being reset), from which it seems to recover on its own. We have firmware version L2R.1.2A, which was put in place by our installer before they brought the unit out. As noted it polls for new firmware every 15 minutes.
 
My Blink gave me lots of fits when I had a special character in my wireless SSID name. I took out the "&" character and went to straight alphanumerics and stability increased.

I haven't had any "failed to charge" incidents, but I WAS seeing the screen in 'calibrate' mode a lot and saw a lot of lost wifi symbols (black wifi symbol in lower right corner) even after I removed the "&" character from my SSID. SO, as a test to see if these problems are wifi related (and I'm assuming they ARE), I hardwired my Blink this morning. It's now up and running on the LAN, so we'll see if I see any more of those random 'calibrate' screens.

I was able to run 50' of CAT5e cable plus associated jacks, etc., for just under $50. For me, it is worth the time and effort if I can help Blink put out a better product. I shouldn't HAVE to do this, but I think the Blink unit is head and shoulders above the Clipper Creek unit and I want to see this type of EVSE become the standard, not something that is brushed aside because it was too buggy.

I'll report back here as time goes on regarding the stability of my unit on the LAN. I can already say that the intranet connection data runs MUCH faster. I'm guessing the Blink designers took an 'off-the-shelf' wifi setup and threw it in, not fully understanding all the intricacies that go along with it. (shrug)

IMG_1104.jpg
 
cyellen said:
Is anyone else having issues with the wireless connection? I cannot seem to get my Blink to stay connected to (or even "see") my home wireless network. The router is located in the bedroom almost directly above the garage and I have really good signal strength in the garage itself.
If the antenna on your router is vertical, being directly under or over it can be a problem. Doubly so if the Blink's antenna is configured the same. You might try rotating the one on your router more horizontal as a test.
 
I installed a wireless extender to the garage, and then connected the blink to the extender via a wired connection. It's been working fine since, save one crash during the violent rainstorm 2 weeks ago.

cyellen said:
Is anyone else having issues with the wireless connection? I cannot seem to get my Blink to stay connected to (or even "see") my home wireless network. The router is located in the bedroom almost directly above the garage and I have really good signal strength in the garage itself. I did manage to get it connected once, but it needed a firmware update (actually two of them) and after the first one it rebooted and now I cannot get it connected again.

Ecotality says I may have to resort to a wired connection - which I'd really like to avoid for obvious reasons.

Any tricks? I thought about getting a wireless repeater that I could install in the garage itself or somewhere closer to the Blink, but I am not really sure that is the problem.
 
I used a couple of ethernet-over-powerline modules to get mine "hard wired" enough to update its firmware. After I did, I noticed that the Blink could see my wireless (it failed to before). Haven't tried reconfiguring to use the wireless yet.

Might go to an E4200 (new) router soon, it's supposed to have twice the 2.4GHz range of the Valet I'm using now.
 
Update:

Hardwired my Blink this morning. I didn't see a 'lost internet connection' all day, so I was hopeful everything was A-OK. Blink charging timer set for 11pm-7am 7 days a week.

I plugged my Leaf in just before 9 tonight and the unit automatically started charging. (even though the screen said "next charge will occur at 11pm")

:mad:
 
At least your on Level2. My Blink is still dark and my Leaf won't be charged fully on Level 1 by morning. I just hope it's enough.

Good news is..I'm leaving the A/C off in attempt to avoid the other issue so I'll have a bit more range :lol:
 
I have a Linksys wireless router I purchased a few years ago and it has two external dipoles. It's located in the office and we use our notebooks in the family room, which is about 60 feet and three walls away. I kept loosing signal and the throughput was horrible. My solution was to construct a couple 9 dBi gain parabolic reflectors to slip over the dipoles. After doing this my signal strength in the family room jumped to 90%! The Blink is 70 feet from the wireless router and is behind four walls. The signal strength at that location is presently 80%. It takes about 20 minutes to construct these parabolic reflectors. You just need some cardboard, aluminum foil, glue (spray glue is best), a printer to print the template and a pair of scissors. Here's a website with the template and directions. The beauty of this solution is that I didn't need to purchase and configure a range extender, your WiFi signal is focused where you need it, it's passive so there's nothing to fail, and it's cheap.
 
Thanks for all the tips! I changed the firewall settings (who knew I had one??!) and it stayed connected all night...this morning it was still connected and the firmware had been updated so it went through a whole boot cycle all on its own. Whew.

I was pretty sure it wasn't a signal strength problem since I have 80-90% signal in the garage. My router doesn't have an antenna - it is a Linksys/Cisco model that looks like a flying saucer (very technical, huh?) so unfortunately I couldn't do anything to adjust them.

Thanks again everyone...
 
cyellen said:
Thanks for all the tips! I changed the firewall settings (who knew I had one??!) and it stayed connected all night...
Please tell us what firewall setting you changed. That way others can more fully benefit.
 
I simply turned it off on the router. I have a firewall installed on each PC in the home.
 
On a hunch ... to anyone with trouble with the Blink ... try parking the LEAF as far away from the EVSE as possible (within limitations of the cord length/parking space, of course) while charging and see what happens. Also ... if you have anything other than a cable/DSL type internet access ( for example: I have wireless broadband. ) ... park the LEAF "far away" from your router/antenna.
 
LEAFer said:
On a hunch ... to anyone with trouble with the Blink ... try parking the LEAF as far away from the EVSE as possible (within limitations of the cord length/parking space, of course) while charging and see what happens. Also ... if you have anything other than a cable/DSL type internet access ( for example: I have wireless broadband. ) ... park the LEAF "far away" from your router/antenna.

Don't tell me the Leaf isn't FCC compliant ;)
On a serious note, didn't I read somewhere you shouldn't sit in the vehicle when charging? Maybe this is an RF interference when charging problem.
 
jcesare said:
On a serious note, didn't I read somewhere you shouldn't sit in the vehicle when charging? Maybe this is an RF interference when charging problem.
Here's what the manual says:

(Owner's Manual, page CH-2)

If you use any medical electric devices, such as an implantable cardiac pacemaker or an implantable cardiovascular defibrillator, check with the electric medical device manufacturer concerning the effects that charging may have on implanted devices before starting the charge operation.

If you have an implantable cardiac pacemaker or an implantable cardiovascular defibrillator, while the Liion battery is charging:

— Do not stay inside the vehicle.
— Do not go inside the vehicle, for example to remove or place an item in the passenger compartment.
— Do not open the rear hatch, for example to remove or place an item in the cargo area.

Charging may affect the operation of electric medical devices and result in serious personal injury or death.
 
By the way, for anyone looking for cheap/quality ethernet cables, I've been using Monoprice.com in CA for a long time. Picked up a 50ft Cat6 cable for like $10 shipped. They've got all sorts of various shapes and sizes...
 
Has anyone got their wireless to work? I just got my Blink EVSE installed today, all the tests pass on the wireless but the connect to blink network.
I have a Belkin Vision N1.
I am less than 30 feet away from my access point and my laptop in the garage right next to the blink gets an "excellent" signal strength reading.

For those who did get this to work, what brand of router are you using?
 
ENIAC said:
IYou just need some cardboard, aluminum foil, glue (spray glue is best), a printer to print the template and a pair of scissors. Here's a website with the template and directions. The beauty of this solution is that I didn't need to purchase and configure a range extender, your WiFi signal is focused where you need it, it's passive so there's nothing to fail, and it's cheap.

I tried this and found that it interfered with my tin-foil hat....... :shock:

(just kidding) (actually I have something like this and it does seem to work)
 
My blink unit on wifi was rather flaky (some days it would pass all network tests, some days it lost its network settings and some days it flat out wouldn't work), resulting in the occasional "calibrate" screen and once, just once, a complete lock-up of the unit where it wouldn't charge until I gave it a hard reboot. By luck, the very next day my refurbished Netgear powerline adapters from newegg showed up and the unit has had 100% uptime since then. Admittedly, there's also been a firmware update since then, but....
 
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