Ideas for improving cellular reception IN my truck box.. (living space)

[Fredricksen]

I drive a retired ambulance.. a 1994 Ford E-350.
The issue I have is when I am in the back (in the box), my cell signal drops to nil. Even when I am in an area with good coverage.

This makes working on a laptop, using my phone as a hot-spot, problematic..

The box is aluminum skin around steel framing...a faraday cage of sorts, I suppose.

Short of getting a signal booster, is there any way to improve reception in the box?
Even better if it doesn't require a lot of power..

Thanks!

 

[Winterpeg]

Sounds like you already know the answer....

Cell booster.

Weboost has some good products. The truck version has an internal antenna that removes the requirement to place your phone on a cradle.

 

[WRONG_WAY_DAVE]

The cell phone booster are the only way to go, TTBOMK. And they only work if there is a signal. You may need to even go with hard wiring, or play around with where the thing should be mounted. Let us know what you choose, please?

 

[Fredricksen]

hrrmmpf. It's one thing to open the back doors, or sit at a camp table..
but now that the cold weather is coming. Looks like I have another project.
Thanks for the insights..

 

[sonoronos]

Since you're getting very poor cell reception in your van, I would think you'd be a good candidate for a repeater

Technically, repeaters and boosters are somewhat different animals, although people often use the terms interchangeably.

 

[Jacobm]

I've heard of passive signal boosters that are basically two antennas connected by a wire, one outside and one inside. No idea if they actually work or not, but likely cheaper than a repeater or booster.

 

[Mtn Mike]

I have the same problem in my cargo trailer conversion camper. It's got aluminum skin around a steal frame which does create a faraday cage. My solution has been to put my cellphone/hotspot in the space within the roof vent above the "skin" of the roof. I have a plastic roof vent cover which keeps it out of the elements. The phone receives the outside 4G signal but can still send a wifi signal into the box. This is definitely not as sophisticated as a booster but the system works pretty well for me.