Home CCTV what type to buy?

[edwinchester]

Hi, wifey would like to put up three or four security cameras around the outside of the house.

Looking for advice as to a reasonable system to install, preferably by myself.

I like the look of the ones with their own memory card rather than having to have a hard drive box.

WiFi and being able to monitor through a smartphone app sounds good.

Anyone have any experience they want to share?

Thanks for reading.

[scorecard]

Nice idea, my Thai son thinking of doing the same.

 

But just wondering about "... the ones with their own memory card rather than having to have a hard drive box."

 

I mentioned this thread / comment to my Thai son, his comments:

 

- But do you have to get a ladder or whatever and climb up to the camera if you want to take the memory card out?

 

- Or it this set up to automatically send the pictures to a central storage 24/7, or perhaps on demand?

 

- If professional thieves see that the camera has it's own card then they would very likely smash the camera and ensure that the card is smashed too.

 

 

[delanoalvis]

I have used the YI Dome camera at my house. It does have a memory card but in fact you can download pics, videos to your smartphone or laptop. Connects to wifi and can be controlled from anywhere in the world with your device. Comes in 720 and 1080p versions. Good value for money. Recommended. Easy to install however, it is not waterproof and needs to be installed appropriately.

Edited January 18, 2019 by delanoalvis

[VocalNeal]

17 hours ago, edwinchester said:

Hi, wifey would like to put up three or four security cameras around the outside of the house.

 

They are not "security" cameras. They are surveillance cameras. Best you will achieve is a picture of the back of a hooded man carrying your TV.

[English Engineer]

  I never quite understood why these cameras are called security cameras. They simply provide a photo of the intruder at best. If there is a need for security, then an electric fence is the best option. There are systems available which stun any intruder and provide an alarm. They also stop snakes.

[VocalNeal]

4 minutes ago, English Engineer said:

There are systems available which stun any intruder

 

The word stun is a bit erroneous bit they certainly give a nasty jolt. Not something one would suffer voluntarily.

[Dexlowe]

6 minutes ago, English Engineer said:

  I never quite understood why these cameras are called security cameras. They simply provide a photo of the intruder at best. If there is a need for security, then an electric fence is the best option. There are systems available which stun any intruder and provide an alarm. They also stop snakes.

Best for security is a komodo dragon. Friend tried it once, but then he let his kids play outside ....

 

Yeah, nah. Good topic that needs an update. Look forward to hearing the opinions of others. I've been a bit slack on this for my house, so can't contribute much, sorry to say. Perhaps that YI dome camera is worth it -- will check out prices. Would be good if it was bluetooth so that images could be sent to a hidden PC or laptop.

[cornishcarlos]

They do actually provide "security" in the fact that exterior areas can be checked before leaving the house. 

We installed a system at our place and one at my sister in laws. The ladies find it very useful to check if anyone is around outside, either before leaving the house or when returning from being out. Can check on our TV, phones and laptop.

I think our system with 8 cameras was in the region of 30k.. Not cheap but included hard drive storage and UPS. Peace of mind is priceless but above comments are correct, it won't prevent a break in but it will deter the casual thief.

[VocalNeal]

2 minutes ago, cornishcarlos said:

Peace of mind is priceless

 

Yes I know some "little old ladies" who can't sleep if they think their electric fence is not working

[scorecard]

4 minutes ago, VocalNeal said:

 

Yes I know some "little old ladies" who can't sleep if they think their electric fence is not working

How do they check if their electric fence is working?

 

- Maybe touch the fence or grip the fence hoping for an all empowering  'zap' or 'jolt'?

 

 

[JulesMad]

Please keep also the following in mind:
- surveillance camera's are increasing status...
- it means you have valuable things in your house (simply put: you are rich, and therefor worthwhile to rob)
- Are you living in a 'robbing' area?
- Do you really believe the police is going to catch a hooded thief from a vague picture at best?

Maybe it is better to invest that money in better locks and such...

[matador007]

I am doing the setup now for myself.  If you want to DIY, can follow some/all of my steps.

 

I am in the process of ordering some HikVision original with upgradeable English firmware off a certain Ali wholesaler.  They are all PoE of course (Power over Ethernet).  I haven't tried Dahua, but they might be good too.

Then sourcing a TP-Link PoE switch to power them, and the Cat6 cable from Lazada.

I have my own crimper already for ends, otherwise you order that too, along with ends (RJ-45).

You will need keystone jacks, and a punchdown tool for them, to complete a proper setup.  I would also terminate them to a patch panel.
So you have a keystone jack inside a (weather proof) box near camera, then from that your standard ethernet cable to camera inside a small conduit (flexible?).

 

Run the Cat6 cable inside a conduit along your perimeter wall or under grass as is available and preferable to your setup.  Paint conduit same color as wall if visible, then will be hardly noticable.

 

To power it all, put switch and all your internet, router, etc.. on a decent UPS/power backup.

 

I love Linux, but for monitoring it all, get a small computer and put Win 10 on it.  As most good monitoring software uses that.  I like Sighthound as far as simple interface, but you can research others or some others may reply.

 

And as to your original idea of having each camera monitor, I personally am not in favor of that.  I prefer to have the computer do monitoring, and record on motion.

 

If anything else, can ask me.

 

Cheers and Good Luck!

Edited January 18, 2019 by matador007

[tifino]

9 minutes ago, matador007 said:

I am doing the setup now for myself.  If you want to DIY, can follow some/all of my steps.

 

I am in the process of ordering some HikVision original with upgradeable English firmware off a certain Ali wholesaler.  They are all PoE of course (Power over Ethernet).  I haven't tried Dahua, but they might be good too.

Then sourcing a TP-Link PoE switch to power them, and the Cat6 cable from Lazada.

I have my own crimper already for ends, otherwise you order that too, along with ends (RJ-45).

You will need keystone jacks, and a punchdown tool for them, to complete a proper setup.  I would also terminate them to a patch panel.
So you have a keystone jack inside a (weather proof) box near camera, then from that your standard ethernet cable to camera inside a small conduit (flexible?).

 

Run the Cat6 cable inside a conduit along your perimeter wall or under grass as is available and preferable to your setup.  Paint conduit same color as wall if visible, then will be hardly noticable.

 

To power it all, put switch and all your internet, router, etc.. on a decent UPS/power backup.

 

I love Linux, but for monitoring it all, get a small computer and put Win 10 on it.  As most good monitoring software uses that.  I like Sighthound as far as simple interface, but you can research others or some others may reply.

 

And as to your original idea of having each camera monitor, I personally am not in favor of that.  I prefer to have the computer do monitoring, and record on motion.

 

If anything else, can ask me.

 

Cheers and Good Luck!

Is this going to be a totally offline.. .hardwire... to hard drive setup? 

Is WiFi involved?

Are three 3rd party dyndns type subscriptions involved? 

 

Just having a free to download app on a smartphone won'the be the be all and end of it... 

 

Just mentioning these angles,  as there's plenty of interest to smartphone users wanting to link cameras to viewers. ..

 

Edited January 18, 2019 by tifino

[Vacuum]

OP should just keep his Winchester loaded, much more security than some cameras.

[KhunHeineken]

Do you own your property, or is it rented?  If you own it, you can go for a hardwired set up.  If you are renting, I would go with a wireless set up.  A wireless system is easier when it comes time to move, and doesn't involve drill holes and running cables in someone else's property. 

 

Swann Security have a lot of DIY kits. 

[honu]

Although I work in IT I'm not really a "tech guy," but I can pass on a little about our experiences with putting in a CCTV system.  We had an issue with something going missing that was probably related to our maid / housekeeper, and the system was as much to keep the help honest as to limit risk from an intruder.

 

We looked into three different options, a Samsung CCTV system (seemingly a standard option), a Chinese version of such a system (relatively inexpensive for comparable coverage and features), and a wireless communication based independent camera option.  The last comes with some degree of drawbacks; although it's an inexpensive solution there are risks related to someone else being able to hack into seeing the camera feed.  In actual practice that risk may be low but it's something to think about.  Related to that version being easy to monitor from a phone app it worked really well.

 

We bought the Samsung system and a couple of wifi cameras to test those out.  In the end reliability became a main issue.  Those two independent cameras lasted awhile but then failed (3 years or so).  It might be possible to buy a better version but per our experience they didn't last all that long.  The Samsung system had problems too, and past the warranty period you're paying for resolution of any issues, probably adding up to the initial cost of the system before all that long (within 5 to 8 years).

 

Nothing lasts forever but a lot of electronics goods seem to be designed to fail these days.  It might be a reasonable approach to buy the Chinese system solution and plan to completely replace it every 5 years or so.

[VocalNeal]

5 hours ago, scorecard said:

How do they check if their electric fence is working?

 

- Maybe touch the fence or grip the fence hoping for an all empowering  'zap' or 'jolt'?

 

 

If it is on and not alarming.

[khunPer]

On 1/17/2019 at 9:03 AM, edwinchester said:

Anyone have any experience they want to share?

I use a 4-channel recorder package from HIK Vision – which you can buy from for example Lazada, and install yourself – I however bought it from a local company including installation. Cannot remember the price, but all together less than 20k baht fully installed in my house with 500 GB hard drive (might not be included in price for a recorder) and four cameras, of which two are outdoors. Have worked very well for several years. Remember to include a UPS for recorder and live-feed for cameras...????

[Cricky]

I've been using this model for years, it has an SD card and you can download the video online.

Great item

 

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/d-linkcctvsmartipcameradcs-942l-i224816605-s343516634.html?spm=a2o4m.searchlist.list.3.56677fccyGglcc&search=1

[Stocky]

On 1/18/2019 at 1:10 PM, JulesMad said:

Please keep also the following in mind:
- surveillance camera's are increasing status...
- it means you have valuable things in your house (simply put: you are rich, and therefor worthwhile to rob)
- Are you living in a 'robbing' area?
- Do you really believe the police is going to catch a hooded thief from a vague picture at best?

Maybe it is better to invest that money in better locks and such...

That was my wife's reaction to the idea of adding a couple of security cameras, it just makes the house look more like a promising target, better to spend the money on making sure they can't get in.

[SAFETY FIRST]

3 hours ago, Stocky said:

On 1/18/2019 at 1:10 PM, JulesMad said:

Please keep also the following in mind:
- surveillance camera's are increasing status...
- it means you have valuable things in your house (simply put: you are rich, and therefor worthwhile to rob)
- Are you living in a 'robbing' area?
- Do you really believe the police is going to catch a hooded thief from a vague picture at best?

Maybe it is better to invest that money in better locks and such...

That was my wife's reaction to the idea of adding a couple of security cameras, it just makes the house look more like a promising target, better to spend the money on making sure they can't get in.

I’m as poor as they come, but for a small price, I can give the bad guy an option.

 

He may see the camera and think how many more cameras has he, best I go to the next house.

[edwinchester]

Thanks very much for the replies and suggestions.

[BrandyBurkhardt]

we're happy with our wireless security so far, the arlo. I like how it can be easily set up by a non tech-y person like me. I think one of its edges is the 2way communication, it's just amazing.  We get to talk to whoever is on the other side through the mobile app. Although its battery life can be a bit of a problem, since it's wireless. I remember this, i hope it can help? We use to charge the cam every 5months, now we're down to 2months maximum. Glad it's replaceable tho.