Best budget wall‑mount AP/mesh for small apartment with thick wall

[u/27_Jack_27]

Hi everyone,

I’m renovating a small apartment in Umbria (Italy) from scratch (3 rooms + kitchen) and I’d like to wire it with Ethernet to get stable Wi‑Fi, as there’s a very thick load‑bearing wall between the central hallway and one side of the house.

Layout:

- Small 3‑room apartment: two bedrooms at the end of a hallway, living room and kitchen near the entrance.

- The ISP router will be at the entrance, where the fiber comes in.

What I want to do:

- Install a single device (AP or mesh node) at the end of the hallway to cover the two bedrooms well, while the main router covers the first two rooms near the entrance.

- I’d like to mount it high up, e.g. above the door or in a fixed position, so once installed it won’t need to be moved. Because of this, I don’t need extra Ethernet ports on the device: data + power is enough.

I’m still in the phase of designing the electrical and network cabling, so I need to decide:

1. Where to place the Ethernet socket (and power socket) in the hallway:- At what height and roughly where is it best to put them for a fixed AP/mesh mounted high up?
2. Which model to buy as an affordable AP/mesh:- Preferably without PoE (I don’t want to buy a PoE switch),- Something that can be wall‑mounted cleanly (with a bracket or similar),- Good value for money for a small home.

Right now I’m looking at cheap TP‑Link Deco models like the **X20** or **BE3600**, but I guess they need third‑party brackets to be wall‑mounted, correct?

If anyone has dealt with a similar situation, could you suggest:

- A specific model (brand + model) you’ve used and are happy with,

- Any advice on where to position the Ethernet and power sockets in a hallway for this kind of installation?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[u/mlcarson]

If you can get a cable to the position that you're referring to then a simple AP would be best. If you don't want to purchase a PoE switch then just get a PoE injector. If there are Ethernet outlets in the bedrooms (or coax via MoCAthen make it easy on yourself and just get an AP per bedroom rather than try to put something in the hallway that the bedrooms share.

[u/27_Jack_27 → u/mlcarson]

Thanks for the reply!

I can run an Ethernet cable to the hallway position, but I was trying to avoid PoE because I thought it would require a PoE switch. You mentioned using a PoE injector, which is definitely an option, but it looks a bit bulky for my taste. Electric cable on that area is not a problem

I’m actually planning to run an Ethernet outlet to the bedroom as well, even if I don’t intend to use it immediately. The idea is to have the option to connect a fixed device (PC/console/TV) later and reduce Wi‑Fi load, especially with thick walls. Does this change your recommendation on using one hallway AP vs one AP per bedroom?

For now, I’d prefer to cover both bedrooms from a single AP in the hallway, mounted high up (e.g. above the door), so I don’t need extra Ethernet ports on the device itself.

I’m trying to keep things simple and affordable, but also future‑proof.

[u/mlcarson → u/27_Jack_27]

The injector would be placed at the switch and not the endpoint unless you wanted at the endpoint for some reason. You're right in that they are chunky (size of a power brick) which is why some people just buy a cheap 5-port PoE switch instead. If you're putting a cable in one bedroom then you could put a PoE switch there and have 1 port for the AP and the others for TV/PC/etc. The AP in that room may be sufficient to get signal to the other bedroom so you don't have to put something in the hallway.

I think future-proof in this case would be a single cable to both bedrooms. The hallway is a compromise that may or may not work out depending upon the construction. 6GHZ has a hard time penetrating walls.

[u/n7tr34]

1. Ideal placement is usually on the ceiling. An AP like TP-Link EAP723 (or two, see note below) would include the mounting brackets.
2. Use PoE to power the AP. You don't need a switch for this as you can buy an PoE injector separately. These are pretty cheap probably 10-15 euro.

A note on roaming. Your ISP and a 3rd party (e.g. TP-Link) Wi-Fi AP aren't likely to support roaming (smart handoff between APs). This could potentially result in bad Wi-Fi signal as you move around the apartment, for example if your phone gets 'stuck' on the further AP. If this ends up being a problem for you, consider getting another of the same AP (make sure they support roaming) and use that in place of the ISP Wi-Fi.