My DIY Install a chronicle

[goodolick 0]

so I got into CCTV about a month and half ago. I started with a 4 camera in a box solution, which I thought would be more than enough to do the job. Boy was I ever wrong. Within a months time I was up to 8 cameras. I did not do enough research out of the gate, and went with an analog system. After having a new roof put on my house last week, I realized the errors of my ways. Having a whole crew of roofers running around my house all day, I could barely make out faces. I have made the decision to switch to an IP based solution. Yay for more attic time! Anyway, I figured I would post the pictures of my current setup, and update the post as I replace each camera. Please feel free to comment on my current work.

 

This is the placement of the cameras on my property, even with 8 cameras, there are plenty of blind spots to fill.

 

Here is the DVR view

 

Camera 1, Anran, I learned a whole lot about placement on this one the first time it rained

 

Camera 2, GW Varifocal

 

Camera 3, GW Varifocal

 

Camera 4, Zosi $22 dollar amazon special... I was shocked at the quality for being so cheap

 

Camera 5, one of the Defender cams that came with system

 

Camera 6, another one of the Defenders

 

Camera 7, another Defender

 

Camera 8, another Amazon $20 special I got to replace one of the defenders that went bad

 

 

All of this is going to be replaced over time. Thanks to everything I have learned from this forum, I am getting a Dahua 16 channel NVR as the first part of the replacement.

Will keep this post updated when I start getting the new inventory.

[cctvsuppliersuk 0]

Its always advisable to review all products before purchasing and installing. Biggest mistake alot of people make is to purchase based on TV Lines, however TV Lines is irrelevant if the chipset is not of any quality. We have installed systems in the past with 500TVL with quality chipset and lens that show better images day and night than 600-700TVL out of the box kits. It pays to know what you are installing and if in doubt there is many companies who will be more than happy to provide you with all the information you need, including us.

[goodolick 0]

3 of my cameras have Effio-e chips, I do not see a drastic difference between the effio ccds and the standard cmos chips. I think the only way I am going to get the clarity I want is to go to an IP based solution.

 

By the way, I did review all of the products I purchased before I purchased them. They all received great reviews. It was not until I stumbled upon this board I was made aware of there even being a difference between analog and digital cctv cameras.

 

CCTV has become a very fun hobby for me, I am not interested in hiring a professional. I enjoy learning.

[Numb-nuts 1]

Your installation is a lot neater than many so called professional ones I have encountered,

a pat on the back may be in order " title="Applause" /> " title="Applause" /> " title="Applause" />

 

Camera placement id everything, consider where it's looking the path of the sun external floodlights etc.

[goodolick 0]

Thanks Numb-Nuts... I learned a lot as I went.

 

One of the biggest lessons I have learned is that of placement, if you look at the photos for Camera 4, you can see I have remounted it a few times. It is actually part of the reason I have 2 cameras overlooking the drive. During high sunlight hours I get some distortion from the sun coming over the vehicles. I think that in order to have the proper areas covered, I had no choice but to overlap in some areas to compensate for the sun. Aside from having some blind spots, that is the biggest reason I want to move to a 16ch system.

 

 

As I upgrade to my IP system, I only intend on getting domes or bullets that mount directly under the eave, I prefer the look of ones with no exposed wires.

 

I also really like the placement of camera 1 for the view of the structure it provides, so I am likely to keep one there, but, attach a gutter to redirect the rain water.

 

Another part of the upgrade will include running a conduit to get camera 3 closer to eye level of the entryway. While right now, it provides the best possible chance of capturing a face based on it's FOV, it is mounted too high and half of the time I only see the top of someones head. Again, you nailed it, placement is turning out to be more and more key. Only reason I have not moved it down yet is because I want to keep the install looking clean.

 

 

The floodlights tend to work in my favor on cameras 5 and 6. They are pretty bright and disable the IR on them if they are triggered. That being said, 6 looses some vision due to the porch light at night. I plan to add one at eye level at that door as well, and one facing from the opposite side of the house to get the best coverage.

 

I really appreciate an installer that does not beat me up for installing my own system. If I had a serious crime problem in my neighborhood, I certainly would hire a professional. Being that I am the only person in my neighborhood that has CCTV, I still feel my property is safer than others (something is better than nothing). When I get my 16 channel system, I plan on getting into the practice of cameras point at cameras for redundancy.

 

I am grateful for all the advise I have been given. I look forward to helping others on the board, and posting updates about my current project.

 

Sorry for the long winded reply, it is just nice to get some feedback, and I want to help the community learn from what I have learned.

[dalepres 0]

Another consideration in camera placement is to make sure that each camera has a camera looking at it or at least watching the access path to the camera - though looking at the actual camera is best.

 

When I started my system I had only two cameras in place, mounted close together and facing 180 degrees apart. I had the ladder near by and a couple punks used my own ladder to climb up and cut the cables and burglarize my house - and I had no video at all. I was already working on fixing the issues; they were always in the plan, I just hadn't gotten that far yet. Of course that's all fixed now. There are no exposed wires, all cameras are in the view of another camera, junction boxes are tied to the security alarm system, etc.

 

Punks are getting smart. They're not all as dumb as the dumb ones that they like to show on TV and YouTube. Plan ahead.