Security Camera Thread - Home Solution Write Up

[NYGuns]

@NYGuns .. you have any input using cell phones to monitor a area ..?? i have a older 1/2 smart phone .. i would like to put in my shop with camera on
and plugged in to charger .. cast to my desktop or my new phone ? ..

There are some apps in the market that I have used with Blue Iris just playing around - IP Webcam - Android Apps on Google Play

NYGuns, have you used this system before? NSDV-208Q 8 Channel 1080/720P Tribrid HD-TVI DVR - Nelly's Security

What do you think of it? I already have a Geovision pc setup but its older and would like to upgrade, the Geovision card I have now is the GV800

Thanks for the thread very informative

I'm assuming you have siamese cable run which is why you are looking at a Hybrid system? If so, then TVI is the way to go. Hikvision has a good TVI line. Go on chat w/ Nelly's Security, ask for Ryan and tell him Mike sent you. He'll hook you up.

 

[Fenucho]

I hate to recommend specific cameras without knowing much more of what you want to do.
Do you want to be able to recognize faces of people you know at 50 yds (easier), or strangers?
Or, do you need to be able to recognize people both near and far?
As far as battery systems, your looking at a deep cycle boat type battery around 180Ah and a way to secure it to the install location.
Figure an average of 5 watts for the camera... even at that it will only get you about 3 weeks of use.
How would you charge the battery without solar?
Either way, I don't see you getting it done for less than a grand. (unless you know a guy named Rube Goldberg )

 

[freddy]

I hate to recommend specific cameras without knowing much more of what you want to do.
Do you want to be able to recognize faces of people you know at 50 yds (easier), or strangers?
Or, do you need to be able to recognize people both near and far?
As far as battery systems, your looking at a deep cycle boat type battery around 180Ah and a way to secure it to the install location.
Figure an average of 5 watts for the camera... even at that it will only get you about 3 weeks of use.
How would you charge the battery without solar?
Either way, I don't see you getting it done for less than a grand. (unless you know a guy named Rube Goldberg )

I was hoping for lithium ion batteries to keep weight and size small, and duration long.

Identify strangers at 30-50 yards would be preferred.

I don't need any bells and whistles - no real time viewing on smart phone, no home system integration. Just a high power lens, recording onboard, battery power. Even just still photos are acceptable.

Thanks for any ideas.

Also, is there a Buds/Midway/Brownells of the surveillance camera world I should look at for the types of cameras we are discussing?

 

[Fenucho]

I think your way over thinking this. 150 feet is an easy distance for most cameras.
Why not run a POE cable to a camera there, or a couple of good trail cameras.
I think a picture of the area would make recommendations much better.

 

[freddy]

I think your way over thinking this. 150 feet is an easy distance for most cameras.
Why not run a POE cable to a camera there, or a couple of good trail cameras.
I think a picture of the area would make recommendations much better.

I have new high end Bushnells and Reconynx trail cams. The lenses are not long enough to ID a person, especially under night vision.

 

[Fenucho]

Facial recognition at night at 50 meters? Not happening.

What's the budget? Or is this all hypothetical?

Figure 100lbs for the battery system and metallic conduit to go up to camera,
if the area is remote, how will you secure this from the people you are recording.

A picture of the area is really needed to be helpful. (unless you don't want us to know where the plants are located )

 

[CaseHardened]

I want a system to record possible crimes (after the fact, duh), but also just to see who (or what) is at the end of my driveway.

This seems like a good system at the right price to me:

Night Owl $249.99

Costco Wholesale

 

[4excal]

Got my old iPhone 4 set up with Manything running in the corner of the condo on vacation..catch any thieves and whoop they ass! Lol.

 

[livingston]

My nephew was involved in a drunk driving death in Florida . Served 10 years got out in may. Warden said he was one of the best prisoners he ever had . Has a girlfriend and the hurricane was about to hit. Her parents are wealthy and had a strong home . They stayed out the storm with them . His girlfriends co-worker needed a place to stay with boyfriend . ... They come also. .. Everything was fine and all parties left after the storm . Up comes missing a Rolex watch and other jewelry .... Now when the cops come and take down names who will be the suspect.... The guy 4 months out of prison ?
EXCEPT ..... the girls father is paranoid .. Has a security camera in all rooms ... Caught on tape co-worker and boyfriend doing the five finger discount... ... life is sweet

 

[CaseHardened]

My nephew was involved in a drunk driving death in Florida . Served 10 years got out in may. Warden said he was one of the best prisoners he ever had . Has a girlfriend and the hurricane was about to hit. Her parents are wealthy and had a strong home . They stayed out the storm with them . His girlfriends co-worker needed a place to stay with boyfriend . ... They come also. .. Everything was fine and all parties left after the storm . Up comes missing a Rolex watch and other jewelry .... Now when the cops come and take down names who will be the suspect.... The guy 4 months out of prison ?
EXCEPT ..... the girls father is paranoid .. Has a security camera in all rooms ... Caught on tape co-worker and boyfriend doing the five finger discount... ... life is sweet

Wow.

Ten Years.

I suppose justice was served, but damn.

With the Self-driving Automats soon to arrive, I can just see his GrandChildren checking out the Family Album: "Grandpa was in prison for WHAT ? People actually drove themselves back then ? So backwards."

 

[livingston]

Wow.

Ten Years.

I suppose justice was served, but damn.

With the Self-driving Automats soon to arrive, I can just see his GrandChildren checking out the Family Album: "Grandpa was in prison for WHAT ? People actually drove themselves back then ? So backwards."

The girl he killed was a pretty cheerleading captain just out of high school. Was told if he did not plea deal he could do 30 years. . Judge asked the parents what they would like to see ... They said the max ... He got 10 years and forever loose his driving rights. . The driving rights they fought and it was determined that it was a cruel and harsh punishment .So 5 years from now he can get a drivers license ... I think his parents spent over a 100,000 on lawyers . . Sentence would be the same if they spent 1000 . Lawyers prey on the downtrodden looking for any straw... or ray of hope.
On the upside of all of this .. if there was any . He is a small person weighs around 160-170 ... Sister says he lifts 300 lbs ... He is in top physical shape. . He worked on the road crew in prison ... Tough work in 100+ heat. .. But beats sitting behind gray walls all day. He liked it.

 

[CaseHardened]

The girl he killed was a pretty cheerleading captain just out of high school. Was told if he did not plea deal he could do 30 years. . Judge asked the parents what they would like to see ... They said the max ... He got 10 years and forever loose his driving rights. . The driving rights they fought and it was determined that it was a cruel and harsh punishment .So 5 years from now he can get a drivers license ... I think his parents spent over a 100,000 on lawyers . . Sentence would be the same if they spent 1000 . Lawyers prey on the downtrodden looking for any straw... or ray of hope.
On the upside of all of this .. if there was any . He is a small person weighs around 160-170 ... Sister says he lifts 300 lbs ... He is in top physical shape. . He worked on the road crew in prison ... Tough work in 100+ heat. .. But beats sitting behind gray walls all day. He liked it.

Well, I am assuming it was not his first offense.

I just pray it was HIS LAST !!!!

 

[livingston]

Well, I am assuming it was not his first offense.

I just pray it was HIS LAST !!!!

1st and only drunk driving offense .Had a few speeding tickets .

 

[CaseHardened]

1st and only drunk driving offense .Had a few speeding tickets .

Wow.

Terrible, terrible situation.

For everyone.

Yet Illegal Aliens drive drunk, kill people (also), and receive slaps on the wrist - and not even deported !

In Milford, Massachusetts, 23-year-old Matthew Denice (pictured) was killed when a drunk driving illegal alien smashed into his motorcycle and dragged the young man for a quarter mile as bystanders banged on the side of the perp’s truck trying to make him stop.

Family Protests Immigration Anarchy that Killed Matthew Denice | illegal alien crime | Limits to Growth

Ok, I might as cop to this:

 

[FrankenCub]

Finally decided I need some cameras. My wife is back in the hospital so I haven't been home, her son has been home and caught someone messing with my truck. He said the driver's door wasn't shut all the way. It doesn't lock because the PO lost the original military keys. The Troopers came up to check everything out and said they will start keeping an eye out in the area. I stopped home to look around and noticed the mirror was moved so someone was in it. We've been noticing a neighbor in areas he's not supposed to be and he's been a dick since I decided I didn't want anything to do with the back stabbing lier.
I can't afford a really good set up but found what looks like one that will work great with good reviews. It's a Swann, $250 at Best Buy. Will pick it up tomorrow and get it installed ASAP.
I can't wait to get moved to our new property!

 

[FrankenCub]

So far I'm really iking that Swann set up. Images are good and easily configured to trigger at the slightest movement, sometimes too sensitive lol.
A night shot from tonight. Looks better on the monitor, this was taken as a screenshot from the mobile app.

I still haven't cought that bastard trying to get in my truck yet, but we've been home a lot lately so he may get ballsy when we're gone half the night some time.

 

[Yeti]

Did you buy the wired Swan Camera or wireless and how do you like it so far.I was thinking of going Defender wireless model from Walmart for $420 but thinking just go wired for less problems and cheaper,and get same one from Best Buy..

Finally decided I need some cameras. My wife is back in the hospital so I haven't been home, her son has been home and caught someone messing with my truck. He said the driver's door wasn't shut all the way. It doesn't lock because the PO lost the original military keys. The Troopers came up to check everything out and said they will start keeping an eye out in the area. I stopped home to look around and noticed the mirror was moved so someone was in it. We've been noticing a neighbor in areas he's not supposed to be and he's been a dick since I decided I didn't want anything to do with the back stabbing lier.
I can't afford a really good set up but found what looks like one that will work great with good reviews. It's a Swann, $250 at Best Buy. Will pick it up tomorrow and get it installed ASAP.
I can't wait to get moved to our new property!

 

[FrankenCub]

Did you buy the wired Swan Camera or wireless and how do you like it so far.I was thinking of going Defender wireless model from Walmart for $420 but thinking just go wired for less problems and cheaper,and get same one from Best Buy..

I got the wired system, any thief that knows anything about WIFI can get into the signal. Not so with wired. I love it so far. It's easy to review previous days triggers and easy to set up. Took a bit of messing with the sensitivity of the trigger but it's ok, a bit too sensitive right now but I don't miss anything.
I'm leaving a couple expensive parts in my truck hoping the scumbag neighbor just can't leave well enough alone so I can lock his ass up. He was in my truck at least once, he'll do it again. Just a matter of time before he fucks up.

 

[Yeti]

I got the wired system, any thief that knows anything about WIFI can get into the signal. Not so with wired. I love it so far. It's easy to review previous days triggers and easy to set up. Took a bit of messing with the sensitivity of the trigger but it's ok, a bit too sensitive right now but I don't miss anything.
I'm leaving a couple expensive parts in my truck hoping the scumbag neighbor just can't leave well enough alone so I can lock his ass up. He was in my truck at least once, he'll do it again. Just a matter of time before he fucks up.

Got my Best buy wired Swan camera system in today,and loving it.Added it to my Walmart black Friday sale 39" tv for $125 and its working/looks awesome.I got the 8 channel 5MP one with 4 cameras ($399) so if needed I can add cameras.The 5MP is suppose to have a little better image,but would of been satisfied with the $249 IMO.I did notice sensitivity is real sensitive,still working on the selective blocking of areas to get it under control.Very easy to hook up and install,Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Camaro45th]

The cameras are a great addition to any home. I have a night owl set, and just this weekend installed a Ring Pro video doorbell.

If anyone is thinking about installing cameras on their home, don’t get the small set. Get something that can use
More cameras. You don’t have to use them all, but the expandability is good to have. I thought I only needed 8 cameras. I’m happy I bought the 16 channel, I’m using 15 of the 16 lol

 

[libertysnake]

I'd suggest finding a way to upload the camera footage at certain intervals to some place to archive it. If you're saving it to a hard drive, maybe set the intervals to small amounts, like 1-5 minute video chunks, and upload the chunks to something like S3 in Amazon using some sort of script to login and push information there.

I say S3 because Amazon's policy for storing files there is incredible cheap to put files into S3 -- it's just expensive to get them out of S3.

Also, if you decide to use a file service like S3, restrict the amazon user's permissions so it can only upload the files -- not delete, rename, etc. Just allow it to upload to a specific location, so if someone compromises your system they can't somehow remove the footage.

 

[Camaro45th]

A friend of mine just bought a 4K camera system. I just helped him install it yesterday. It uses Cat 6 cables (Ethernet) instead of the dated BnC cables. Clarity is unbelievable. But as you can imagine, it came with a hefty price tag. I’m hoping in the next year or so they drop in price and I’ll think of upgrading my system as well.

Here is a screenshot from the app last night.

 

[MikeyCNY]

A friend of mine just bought a 4K camera system. I just helped him install it yesterday. It uses Cat 6 cables (Ethernet) instead of the dated BnC cables. Clarity is unbelievable. But as you can imagine, it came with a hefty price tag. I’m hoping in the next year or so they drop in price and I’ll think of upgrading my system as well.

Here is a screenshot from the app last night.

DAMN! 4K seems like overkill but like you said that is crystal clear, even at night.

 

[FrankenCub]

@NYGuns Can one of the IP cameras be connected directly to a laptop via the Cat5 wire to be just used for viewing?

 

[NYGuns]

@NYGuns Can one of the IP cameras be connected directly to a laptop via the Cat5 wire to be just used for viewing?

As long as they are on the same ip range then yes. You will still need software (or a camera with SD slot) to record. Major brands have software that can record.

 

[FrankenCub]

As long as they are on the same ip range then yes. You will still need software (or a camera with SD slot) to record. Major brands have software that can record.

I won't need to record with it, just be able to see what the camera is seeing. My Getac laptop has the usual port to hardwire internet, it has no wireless, and also has what looks like a network port. Cat5 size I think? A bit off topic though lol, I want to try using an IR bullet camera in the grill of my truck and run through the laptop with accessory IR lights. You know, the usual sneaking around at night on logging roads, maybe yote hunting

Poor man's NV

On another look, the first port looks like regular phone size, the other Cat5 size...

 

[SomeSoldier]

Ubiquiti makes a great camera and the nvr software can be installed on any computer. I have installed and used them at the last place of employment. If you want to go cheap, raspberry pi with camera, wireless network and network storage.

 

[Cleck]

@NYGuns Most of my neighbors in town want me to show them how to set up a wifi camera - if you absolutely had to, any you'd recommend, any you'd stay away from? I understand the concerns about power, but most of them have generators, and we don't lose power all that often (haven't in 10 years yet). I told them about the problems w/ power/Greenlight going out, they still want wifi.

Now for the wired route, I've been looking at various PoE cameras, but I've been thinking of just wiring to a NAS device. You recommended a NVR, but since I don't need a monitor to hook-up to it, are there any NAS devices you can recommend that won't break the bank? I was thinking of just sending all the logs to the NAS, and viewing everything on there. Wondering what your thoughts were on this. Still trying to do it budget, but expanding and wondering how effective I can be this route - both for the the project, and for my wallet, lol.

For reference, I was looking at the WD or Buffalo units on this page: The 10 best NAS devices | TechRadar Not really familiar with them, but was gonna start some research, if they're "usable"

 

[NYGuns]

@NYGuns Most of my neighbors in town want me to show them how to set up a wifi camera - if you absolutely had to, any you'd recommend, any you'd stay away from? I understand the concerns about power, but most of them have generators, and we don't lose power all that often (haven't in 10 years yet). I told them about the problems w/ power/Greenlight going out, they still want wifi.

Now for the wired route, I've been looking at various PoE cameras, but I've been thinking of just wiring to a NAS device. You recommended a NVR, but since I don't need a monitor to hook-up to it, are there any NAS devices you can recommend that won't break the bank? I was thinking of just sending all the logs to the NAS, and viewing everything on there. Wondering what your thoughts were on this. Still trying to do it budget, but expanding and wondering how effective I can be this route - both for the the project, and for my wallet, lol.

For reference, I was looking at the WD or Buffalo units on this page: The 10 best NAS devices | TechRadar Not really familiar with them, but was gonna start some research, if they're "usable"

Those are good questions and I'm glad you asked. Without a doubt if you're going the NAS route, grab a Synology and use the Surveillance Station software to record your cameras. When you purchase a Synology NAS they give you a license for 2 cameras, but more licenses can be purchased (I believe $50 per camera). There is also a good mobile app called DS Cam (Android / iOS) for Surveillance Station and it's pretty user friendly to use. I also use my Synology NAS for streaming videos to the TV, playing my music collection anywhere, a file server, I even mapped it to my computer so that it's a drive to work right off of. You can use it to automatically backup the pictures you take from your cell phone, backup your computer and much more. It's basically your own personal cloud. I suppose if you know what a NAS is though you already know all this, lol. However not all are created equal!

I would recommend something like this Synology 2 bay DS218+ (unless you feel like spending some more money and getting a beefier Synology unit). You will have to purchase hard drives for it which would probably come out to more than an NVR, but it does much more as well. I recommend the WD Red drives for NAS'.

As far as wifi cameras, are they looking for indoor or outdoor? Wifi cameras need a power source so will have to be plugged into an electrical outlet. Keep in mind that wifi cameras are not nearly as stable, not because of power but because of being wireless. If the router is loaded, the cameras can crap out, skip frames, etc. I always recommend running cat cable, you can always run it under vinyl siding if you get outdoor rated cable.

 

[Cleck]

Most could probably deal with something they have inside, and just aim it outside to watch the car doors they don't lock, or their mail/front door. They're not fussed. Some of them just want to watch walk/pathways near their house bc people hop fences or throw garbage around. For that last bit, I'm almost tempted to tell them to get a trail cam. They want cheap and "good enough." I wanna give them that, and options.

Some guys in the neighborhood let me scope their system today, but of course I didn't take notes. Said they were gonna email me details though. They got a couple cheap poe cams running to some cheap almost dvr looking thing. Showed me the storage, playback, phone use, night vision, and it's all hooked up to their TV. They've been using it over a year, no issues. When he shares details, I will too. I was very intrigued by this. Looked effective, and he said I could even upgrade the cameras a bit, and it wasn't a super expensive system.