--- title: Slow Internet Checklist for Wireless Customers url: https://hdiss.net/support/slow-internet-checklist/ business: High Desert Internet Services (HDISS) phone: 775-575-9593, 775-391-5660 email: info@hdiss.net mailing_address: Home base: 200 S Virginia St, Suite 760, Reno NV 89501 (dispatch office, not a walk-in store). Mail: Billing Dept., PO Box 11353, Reno NV 89510 hours: Office open 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, seven days a week. Network watched around the clock. type: Fixed wireless internet service provider (homes and small businesses), web hosting, customer email, domain registration service_area: Northern Nevada - Washoe, Lyon, Storey, Churchill and Douglas counties and Carson City; availability is checked address by address (line of sight to a tower) plans: Bronze $50/mo up to 500 Mbps down, up to 200 Mbps up; Silver $75/mo up to 800 down, up to 200 up; Gold $99/mo up to 1 Gig down, up to 200 up; ask about the up to 1 Gig / 1 Gig ultra-low-latency service no_online_purchase: true (check your address or call; existing customers pay at https://www2.fernley.net/hdiss/onlinepay/paymentform.cfm) since: 2002 --- - [Home](https://hdiss.net/) - [Help center](https://hdiss.net/support/) - Slow internet checklist Help center / Connection help # Slow internet checklist Run a speed test on a laptop plugged into the router with a cable, with nothing else using the connection, three times. Compare it with the up to figure for your plan and with how it looked at another time of day. If the wired result is far below your plan, restart in order and call 775-575-9593. [Call 775-575-9593](tel:7755759593) [Call 775-391-5660](tel:7753915660) [Webmail](https://hdissmail.hdiss.net/mail/) [Pay Online](https://www2.fernley.net/hdiss/onlinepay/paymentform.cfm) A router and a laptop. Stock photo: Adobe Stock. [Photo credits](https://hdiss.net/photo-credits/) Slow is a feeling, and a test turns it into a number you can describe. Most slowness lives in the last 30 feet of the path: the Wi-Fi inside the house. This checklist separates that from the wireless link outside. ## Steps - Write down what is slow A video that buffers, a page that hangs, a call that stutters. The same symptom on every device points to the connection. One device points to that device. - Run a wired speed test Plug a laptop into the router with an Ethernet cable, close other programs, and test. The page on [testing your speed](https://hdiss.net/speed-test/) gives the method, and the guide on [how to run a speed test](https://hdiss.net/guides/how-to-run-a-speed-test/) explains why wired comes first. - Test three times and at two times of day One test can be an outlier. Try a morning and an evening. Note the numbers; do not average away a pattern. - Compare with your plan Plans are sold as up to: Bronze up to 500 Mbps down, Silver up to 800 Mbps, Gold up to 1 Gig, all with up to 200 Mbps up. A result below the top number is normal; a result very far below it is worth a call. - Test over Wi-Fi in the same room If the cable test is good and Wi-Fi is poor, the router or its placement is the cause. See [Wi-Fi dead spots](https://hdiss.net/support/wifi-dead-spots/). - Look for a busy network Cloud backups, game updates, cameras and several streams share the line. The guide on [seeing what is using your bandwidth](https://hdiss.net/guides/see-what-is-using-your-bandwidth/) helps. - Restart in order Use [the restart steps](https://hdiss.net/support/restart-your-equipment/) once. - Call with your numbers Tell the person your wired results, the times and the plan. A person answers at 775-575-9593 from 9 to 5, every day. ## What counts as slow for my plan? Every speed we print is up to. What you see depends on the path from the tower to your roof, how many people are online and your Wi-Fi router. The FCC's measurements program publishes how it tests; the guide on [how the FCC measures broadband](https://hdiss.net/guides/how-the-fcc-measures-broadband/) shows why a single result is rarely the whole story. A video call usually needs far less than the plan top, so choose the activity that fails and read the matching guide on [how much speed a household needs](https://hdiss.net/guides/how-much-speed-does-a-household-need/). ## Is the data transfer limit involved? Each service level has a data transfer limit, and the service agreement says the size can be had by emailing info@hdiss.net, with a charge per gigabyte over it in a billing cycle. We do not print the size here. If slowness began in the same week as heavy use, ask for your figure. Read [data transfer limits and your usage](https://hdiss.net/guides/data-transfer-limits-and-your-usage/). ## Could weather or trees be the cause? A wireless link needs a clear path between the tower and the antenna, and leaves, snow or rain can matter at the edges. We do not promise how the link behaves in weather. If slowness comes and goes with the wind or a season, tell the person on the phone, since a technician can look at the path. Read [weather and a wireless link](https://hdiss.net/guides/weather-and-a-wireless-link/) for background. ## Should I climb up to look at the antenna? No. Leave the antenna, the radio and the cable that feeds it alone. From the ground you may notice a bent mount or a branch leaning on the line. Report what you see by phone and a technician comes. ## What if the speed is fine but video still stutters? Speed is one number; a video call also cares about how steady the connection is. A busy Wi-Fi channel, a device far from the router or a second upload competing with the call can cause stutter even when a test looks healthy. Read [why video calls freeze](https://hdiss.net/guides/why-video-calls-freeze/) and [bufferbloat](https://hdiss.net/guides/bufferbloat/) for the usual causes. We publish no latency figure for our service, so we cannot tell you a number to compare with. Safety: never climb to the antenna or touch the outdoor radio or its cable on the roof. If something outside looks loose or damaged, call us and we send a technician. ### Sources - [fcc.gov/general/measuring-broadband-america](https://www.fcc.gov/general/measuring-broadband-america) (FCC, how broadband speed is measured, read 2026-10-15) ### Talk to a person - Call [775-575-9593](tel:7755759593) [775-391-5660](tel:7753915660) Open 9-5 every day - Email [info@hdiss.net](mailto:info@hdiss.net) [Check my address](https://hdiss.net/check-availability/#check) ### Related help - [Speed test](https://hdiss.net/speed-test/) - [How to run a speed test the right way](https://hdiss.net/guides/how-to-run-a-speed-test/) - [Wi-Fi dead spots](https://hdiss.net/support/wifi-dead-spots/) - [One device is slow](https://hdiss.net/support/one-device-is-slow/) - [Restart your equipment in the right order](https://hdiss.net/support/restart-your-equipment/) - [Contact support](https://hdiss.net/support/contact-support/) ## More connection help [Restart your equipment in the right order](https://hdiss.net/support/restart-your-equipment/) [No internet: five checks before you call](https://hdiss.net/support/no-internet-five-checks/) [One device is slow](https://hdiss.net/support/one-device-is-slow/) [Wi-Fi dead spots](https://hdiss.net/support/wifi-dead-spots/) [After a power outage](https://hdiss.net/support/after-a-power-outage/) [After a wind storm: what to look at from the ground](https://hdiss.net/support/after-a-wind-storm/) ## Related questions ### What speed should I get? Up to the figure for your plan. Real results vary with the path, the time of day and the router. ### Why is Wi-Fi slower than a cable? Wi-Fi shares the air with walls, neighbors and other devices. A cable does not. ### Do you charge for a technician visit? We do not publish that. Ask when you call. ## Call us. A person answers. 775-575-9593 and 775-391-5660, 9 to 5 every day. Email [info@hdiss.net](mailto:info@hdiss.net). Never climb to the antenna or touch the outdoor radio; that is our job.