Wondering why Xfinity internet goes out every night? Well, there could be quite a few causes for such predictable outages and we’re about to explore all of them in the upcoming guide!
When the Xfinity internet goes out every night, we need to check for planned outages that could be scheduled for the entire week.
If that’s not the case, then we can test the reliability of our internet, switch the WiFi channel or simply factory restore the router.
Let’s next unwrap the top reasons why the Xfinity internet goes out every night!
Why Comcast Internet Shuts OFF at Night?
- Planned or unplanned service maintenance!
- Wireless network congestion (high-traffic).
- Temporary Xfinity equipment bug or glitch.
- Xfinity router overheating and restarting.
- Extreme weather conditions interference.
- Too great distance between network devices!
- Overwhelmed WiFi channel interruptions.
How To Fix When Xfinity Internet Goes Out Every Night?
Tip: Follow the correct order of the steps below for the fastest results in troubleshooting!
1. Check for Comcast Maintenance!
Your Comcast (Xfinity) internet could be going down every night, even during the same time frame due to planned maintenance.
Internet providers try to schedule the planned outages during the low traffic hours, hence late at night or early in the morning.
How to Check for Outages?
To verify whether there are announced maintenance, go to Xfinity Outage Map and insert your service address in the search bar.
Then you’ll be provided with information related to the most recent outages, their location, and expected renewal time.
Xfinity Internet Congestion?
Another reason why your Xfinity internet goes down at night, at the same time might be due to internet congestion.
Such an issue appears during the high-traffic hours in the late PMs, when all people are using the network at once, typically between 7 PM and 11:30 PM in the evening.
2. Test Xfinity Internet Consistency!
This is a quick exercise that you can do every time you are concerned that your internet is lagging, dropping or completely offline.
You only need a Windows-operated computer and a few minutes of your time, to justify whether your internet actually goes out.
When your Xfinity internet goes out at night, do the following:
- On your Windows machine, open the CMD.
- Tip: Start Menu > “Command Prompt”.
- Type “ping 8.8.8.8 -t” and hit “Enter”.
You will shortly start pinging Google’s DNS from your Xfinity internet. In case you’re not seeing a response or any of the requests “timed out”, your Xfinity internet is dropping & inconsistent.
Tip: The image above shows pinging Google’s DNS (8.8.8.8) without any lag or lost packets!
3. Power Cycle the Xfinity Equipment
A good approach in identifying late-night Xfinity outages would be to perform a power circulation on your equipment.
The best way to do so is to turn off the Xfinity modem and unplug the power cable from the wall for at least 3 minutes to fully discharge and cool down.
In addition, re-plug the Ethernet cable from the back of the Xfinity modem and make sure to secure all cable connections.
When you’re ready, check whether the Xfinity internet will go out.
4. Prevent Xfinity Router Overheating!
The reason for the outages every night could be due to the Xfinity router overheating, rather than a problem with the Comcast internet
. The reason why we assume this is because at night we often use the A/C or light the fireplace warming our home up, and increasing the heat.
- When routers overheat, they restart all functionality!
This is why if the internet goes down every night when it’s warm inside, we better relocate the Xfinity modem and clean the ventilation openings.
We recommend using a vacuum and also cleaning the surface of your router, to prevent dust build-up and decrease the heat.
Tip: Avoid installing the Xfinity router on the floor!
5. Check the Weather Conditions!
To know why your Xfinity internet goes down, you might need to check the weather conditions in your town or city.
In cases of extreme weather such as hurricanes, heavy snow, fast wind, and thunderstorms, it’s likely for internet and cellular services to temporarily drop.
Tip: You can check the local weather conditions from the weather app on your smartphone!
6. Switch the Xfinity WiFi Channel
One of the reasons why your Xfinity internet goes down could be due to congestion on the WiFi channel that your wireless network uses.
There are many free channels to select from and they are available by logging into the Xfinity router as administrator and reaching the settings.
WiFi Analyzer!
We strongly recommend downloading a “WiFi Analyzer” app on your smartphone, which uses the device’s WiFi receiver to check the available WiFi and channels.
In addition, you’ll be able to see which channels are free, less used, and which are overloaded to avoid.
Switch WiFi Channel:
- Connect a computer to the Xfinity router.
- Open a web browser and insert 10.0.0.1.
- Sign in using “admin” and “password”.
- From the Xfinity GUI clock on “Gateway”.
- Then select the Connection tab and WiFi.
- Next to the 2.4 or 5 GHz, tap “Edit”.
- Select a free WiFi channel to connect to.
In case you weren’t able to find a free WiFi channel with the analyzer, simply test several channels on your 2.4 GHz thread. With a bit of luck, you would find an empty channel.
Note: There are free WiFi Analyzer apps available in the (Android) Google Play or (iOS - Apple) App Store.
7. Close the Network Proximity!
It’s likely that the Comcast internet goes down same time every day only on a few of your devices and not all of them.
More specifically, on devices that support the 5 GHz broadband of the Xfinity router due to long-distance proximity and weak connection.
- The 5 GHz WiFi on the Xfinity router does not work well from distance!
For example, if you go to bed every night at the same time and only then do you notice that your internet is dropping, it’s more likely for your device to disconnect.
This is why we strongly suggest checking whether the Xfinity internet will drop when you’re close to the router.
Tip: Test whether the 2.4 GHz WiFi goes out every night as well!
8. Use a Wired (Ethernet) Connection
Well, even if this workaround is not a solution, it’s a good way to guarantee stable internet flow at least on one of your devices.
One end of the Ethernet cable goes into the Xfinity router as well as the other end straight into your computer/laptop/TV/console and more…
The wireless connection often drops, it’s a subject of interference and much more, while the wired connection guarantees reliability.
In case, however, the internet supply goes out every night at the same time, proceed further to unwrap what’s left to attempt.
9. Factory Reset the Xfinity Router!
The final solution would be to ultimately factory reset the Xfinity router, which will reset all settings and configurations to default.
Hence, you’ll be able to start fresh and reconfigure the features, which will most likely help in restoring the Xfinity internet services during the night.
This is how to reset the system of your Xfinity router in quick steps:
- Ensure that the Xfinity router is plugged in and working.
- Find the reset pinhole, located on the back router’s side.
- Use something sharp such as a needle or paperclip.
- Reach inside the pinhole and press the reset button.
- Hold for about 10 seconds or until the lights go out.
The reset shouldn’t take longer than 3 minutes, during which you shouldn’t interact with the device in any way.
In case you’re facing difficulties configuring the Xfinity router after the reset contact your internet service provider for assistance!
Need More Help?
In case your Xfinity internet still goes down every day, it’s best to contact Xfinity Customer Support for further troubleshooting.
It’s possible that there is a limitation on your subscription or another issue that is on their side and not yours. Good luck!
Reminder: Don’t forget to share what you’ve already attempted in this guide to save time!
Quick Recap:
We now learned that Xfinity’s internet goes out every night because of planned outages or issues with your network equipment.
We now know that we can track the consistency of our internet and switch the WiFi channel or reset the router in case of identified issues.
Read Next: Why Does Xfinity WiFi Keeps Disconnecting? – Fix Guide
Kevin has over five years of experience working in various Tech startups and providing Technical solutions. He has contributed to many Tech publications and websites. Check out more about him here.