I sort out everyday computer and Wi-Fi problems for homes and small businesses in Horwich: signal that will not get through a stone terrace, mesh setups on the newer estates, slow laptops, new machines set up and files moved across, printers and email. Remote where it is possible, a visit where it is not.
Based in Bolton. You deal with me directly, not a call centre.
Horwich has two quite different halves and they produce two quite different problems. There are the old stone terraces around Winter Hey Lane and Lee Lane, built solid, with walls a Wi-Fi signal struggles to cross and rooms stacked over three narrow floors. Then there are the newer estates spreading out around Middlebrook and the old Loco Works, big open-plan layouts where the router ends up at one end of the house and the office at the other.
In a stone terrace the signal dies going up. In a new build it dies going across. Either way the answer is the same in principle and different in practice: work out where the coverage actually falls over, then put the right kit in the right place rather than stacking extenders and hoping.
The rest is ordinary household and small business technology. A computer that has slowed to a crawl, a new laptop still in its box, a printer that has gone offline, an email account locked out, photos with no backup, and the occasional scam pop-up that has given somebody a fright.
Machines that take five minutes to wake up, freeze on ordinary jobs, or have quietly got worse every year. Usually fixable rather than replaceable.
Weak or dropping Wi-Fi diagnosed properly, routers and access points repositioned or replaced, mesh set up so the coverage reaches the whole house.
New laptops and PCs set up, files, photos and emails moved across from the old machine, your software installed and a backup in place before the old one goes.
Printers that will not connect or have gone offline, scanning to email, mail that stopped arriving, accounts locked out and passwords sorted safely.
Malware and fake warning pop-ups removed, and an honest answer about whether that phone call or email was a scam. It usually was.
Photos and documents backed up automatically rather than in theory, so a failed drive or a lost laptop is an inconvenience and not a disaster.
To be clear about what this is: computer and laptop help, setup, networking and support, including upgrades like SSDs and memory. Not screen replacements or board-level repair. If that is what yours needs, I will tell you straight and help you work out whether it is worth doing.
Dead spots, dropouts and rooms the signal never gets to are the single most common reason people in Horwich get in touch. There is a full page on how that gets fixed, what it involves and when mesh is worth it.
Wi-Fi and home networkingYes. Horwich is a short run west from Bolton and I am out there regularly, so visits are usually same or next day. Where something can be fixed remotely over a secure connection I will offer that first.
Yes, and it is a very common Horwich job. Solid stone walls and a narrow three-storey layout mean a single router in the front room simply cannot reach the top floor. Repositioning it, replacing an old one, or adding a mesh point on the right floor usually sorts it. I check the coverage room by room first so you are not buying kit that will not help.
Often, yes. Open-plan new builds cover a wide footprint and frequently have foil-backed insulation and plasterboard that block signal more than people expect, so the far bedrooms and the office get very little. A properly placed mesh system fixes that. I will tell you if a repositioned router would do the job on its own, because sometimes it will.
I do computer and laptop help, setup, networking and support: slow machines, software, viruses, upgrades like SSDs and memory, and getting everything working again. I do not do screen replacements or board-level repair. If that is what yours needs I will tell you straight, and help you weigh up whether it is worth doing at all.
Both. Some people ring when something breaks. Others prefer knowing there is someone to call whenever the technology plays up, at home or in the business. There is no lock-in either way.
Everything I cover, and how it works, is on the main tech support in Bolton page. Businesses with staff, shared files and a network to look after are covered on IT support for small businesses. If it is your website rather than your computers, there is a page on web design in Horwich too. That includes Blackrod, Lostock and the Rivington side as well.
Describe the problem in your own words, in whatever detail you have. I will tell you what is likely going on, whether it can be sorted remotely, and what it would cost, before anything starts.