When one router misbehaves you replace the router. When two identical routers in the same house both misbehave in different ways, the answer is usually not sitting inside either of them. This one took longer than most because there were several variables in play at once, and the thing that tied them together was a loose power socket.
The give-away was physical, not in any admin page: plugging the router's power into that socket briefly cut power to the NBN box next to it. Combined with the household's earlier report that a lightning event had already destroyed an NBN device, an unstable supply is the most consistent explanation for two matching routers failing in two different ways.
| Apartment | House | |
|---|---|---|
| Supply stability | Generally more stable | More variable |
| High-draw routers | Less exposed | More exposed — this pair ran at 19V 1.75A |
| Typical symptom | — | Intermittent faults that move between devices |
| What to do | — | Have the electrical side checked, not just the network |
Assessment: both ASUS routers showed faults — the main unit would not apply a WiFi band split at hardware level despite the admin page reporting success, and the second unit's LAN port cycled in and out of recognition. The common factor was the power side: the socket the router plugged into was loose, and plugging it in briefly cut power to the NBN box next to it, in a household that had already lost an NBN device to a lightning event. These are high-draw units at 19V 1.75A. A TP-Link router was fitted and used for an observation period with no further multi-device dropouts reported, and the client was advised to have the electrical risk in the house checked promptly.
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