How to Set Up Your Parents' Tech Before You Leave Town

You're visiting family. You notice the WiFi password is written on a Post-it note stuck to the router. The TV remote has eight buttons' worth of tape holding it together. The streaming app they've been complaining about for months takes 45 seconds to load. And you're leaving in two days.

This is one of the most common situations I hear about from homeowners in Maple Grove and Plymouth — adult children who fly or drive in, realize how much has piled up, and try to fix everything in a weekend. Sometimes it works. Often it doesn't, because there's not enough time to do it carefully and explain everything as you go.

This guide gives you a realistic checklist for what to address before you leave, what to document, and what's worth calling in a professional for so you're not getting frustrated phone calls at 10pm asking why the TV isn't working.

The Goal: Make Things Simpler, Not Just Fixed

There's a difference between fixing a tech problem and making tech less likely to cause problems. When you're visiting, it's tempting to focus on the broken thing. But the better investment of your time is reducing the number of things that can go wrong in the first place — and leaving clear instructions for the things that might.

WiFi and Internet

This is always the first thing to address because everything else depends on it.

• Find out the WiFi network name and password and write it somewhere sensible — not a Post-it on the router, but in a small notebook kept in a kitchen drawer
• Restart the router while you're there (unplug 30 seconds, plug back in) — this clears a surprising amount of slowness
• Check if the router is more than 5 years old — if so, it may be worth replacing or renting a better one from the provider
• Walk through the house and note if there are dead spots — a mesh WiFi extender in the right spot can eliminate 80% of "the internet isn't working" calls
• Make sure all streaming devices are connected to WiFi, not just one TV

TV and Streaming

Streaming setups cause more confusion than almost anything else in the home. A few things to standardize:

• Make sure there's one primary streaming device they understand — Roku or Fire Stick are usually the most intuitive
• Label the inputs on the TV with a label maker or small piece of tape ("Roku," "Cable," "Apple TV") — switching inputs is the #1 source of "the TV isn't working" calls
• Walk through how to get to Netflix, how to search, and how to get back to the home screen
• Check whether any streaming subscriptions they're paying for are actually being used
• Set up Autoplay if they like it, or turn it off if they find it annoying

Phone Basics

Phone problems are among the most stressful for families at a distance because they cut off the main line of communication.

• Make sure storage isn't close to full — a full phone causes all kinds of mysterious problems
• Confirm automatic software updates are on
• Set up your contact as a Favorite so you're easy to call
• Walk through how to video call you — FaceTime on iPhone, or Google Duo/Meet on Android
• Make sure the phone is charging correctly every night — low battery is behind more "my phone isn't working" issues than anything else

Video Calling Setup

If video calling isn't already set up and working, this weekend is the time. The easiest setups depend on what devices everyone is using:

• Everyone on iPhone: FaceTime works great, no extra setup needed
• Mixed iPhone/Android: Set up the Alexa app on their phone, or use Google Meet — both are free
• Best hands-free option: An Echo Show on their counter (see our Echo Show for Families guide)

What to Document Before You Leave

This is the part most people skip and then regret. Spend 20 minutes creating a simple one-page reference sheet with:

What to Leave for a Local Pro

Some things are genuinely hard to fix remotely or in a rushed weekend visit — not because they're complicated, but because they take time and patience to do right. Things like setting up an Echo Show with Drop In, doing a thorough WiFi coverage check, or helping someone get confident with a new phone aren't quick fixes. They're conversations.

If you're in the northwest Twin Cities area, that's exactly what I do. A single visit can often knock out the whole list — and I'll make sure the person in the home understands how things work when I leave, not just that they work.