this post was submitted on 05 Jan 2026
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Meshtastic

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Hey folks, I'm totally new to the whole meshtastic thing, but I checked the coverage in my area and it is basically nonexistent. I'm not primarily interested in using meshtastic myself but I am super into the idea of deploying my own ~~repeater~~ node to expand coverage here for the folks who may want to use it or need to use it.

Does anyone have any recommendations? Ideally it would be solar powered and waterproof so it can be self sufficient out in the elements and just do its thing. Bonus points if it can be used from my phone via bluetooth so I can fiddle around with meshtastic as a user instead of just an extra node in the mesh.

I don't have access to a 3d printer or soldering tools, so I understand that limits the options

Edited to remove use of "repeater" as this has a defined meaning in meshtastic.

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Yeah, it's hard to know if people use the word "repeater" colloquially or technically, so I always repeat the Meshtastic warning about that role since it has a high likelihood of being detrimental to the mesh in the area.

Hope you find something suitable because it's a fun project. I only get a few hits each month (less in the winter it seems) but it's cool when you randomly pick up someone from miles away and have a chat.