Security Cameras -update

[newbury]

Have you tested any compact remote power sources for the wyze cam?

I've used various sizes of power banks but my need for total unconnected to the grid power is minimal. A 10AH power bank last about 3 days IIRC.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

A buddy of mine had two four wheelers stolen last year. When he discovered the theft he thought "I have two trail cams with sd cards on the road into the property. I've got them on camera." Well, when he went to check the trailcams they were both gone too. I travel that same road and had noticed the cameras, so they were not obvious but I guess they were to the crooks. This year he is paying a ridiculous fee for cellular cameras that send him a video to his phone when activated. He's hoping they will climb the tree and steal one of them. He should have a perfect picture of the thief as he takes down the camera.

On those cameras you have to put tape over the red light. Or get black out cameras. Or get a cellular and put it in a non obvious place. Because thieves will figure you have the obvious under surveillance. They will come in the other way. We use them on hog traps here and have another cell phone to text a number to the gate latch.

 

[Jchonline]

A question. What exactly do you expect from a security camera setup. You are three hours away from the property. Are you planning on having a video feed at your current house. Are you going to sit and monitor this video feed - 24/7/365. And exactly what are your plans if you see nefarious activities.

I am up there full time now, but before I had one positioned to get license plates, and they work at night. They also have activity zones, so it detects vehicle, people, and animals separately and sends me an alert anytime it detects whatever I configure it to. I could see someone at my front gate, their license plate. All footage is recorded in the cloud. You do also get 2k resolution so it is good enough to make out features, and read license plates.

However I do understand the issue, 3 hours away calling the sheriff is kind of iffy. However if you have license plates (and thieves are stupid enough not to cover them up) then it is effective If the sheriff will follow through.

Insurance is definitely a must. I have everything insured.

 

[Jchonline]

On those cameras you have to put tape over the red light. Or get black out cameras. Or get a cellular and put it in a non obvious place. Because thieves will figure you have the obvious under surveillance. They will come in the other way. We use them on hog traps here and have another cell phone to text a number to the gate latch.

With the Arlo cameras, I have them mounted up in trees 20 feet. They have a battery in them, and I have a small solar panel up in the tree that keeps them charged.

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

A question. What exactly do you expect from a security camera setup. You are three hours away from the property. Are you planning on having a video feed at your current house. Are you going to sit and monitor this video feed - 24/7/365. And exactly what are your plans if you see nefarious activities.

Well, it helps the cops a lot if they know what time it was stolen. Maybe a license plate number always helps. What they look like always seems to help. What make vehicle and color helps. I'm one of the poorest sap suckers to ever wear a pair of over all's and walk barefoot down a dirt road. But I can see they will help.

 

[dlctcg]

Mostly, I expect to use the images to identify who damaged things and turn it in to the authorities or use as evidence in a civil case for restitution.

IMHO this is only realistic if you are getting real-time notifications of events (& even at that you may not have a case)...

If you want to just take some pictures of things that have happened in the past for you to review when you arrive at your property 3hrs away & realize something has happened... purchase a inexpensive camera that will record to a SD card & if it hasn't over written it's self you will have images to review... if they are a week + old... unless you recognize the person don't expect to much from the local authorities (nothing against them, most of my relatives are them).

I agree with many others here that cellular with notification, although not cheap, is the way to go. Spypoint, Tactacam, Cuddleback, etc. are all good cellular trail cams / game cams but you are more interested in damage / security cams... Although not inexpensive you may want to look at Vosker (yes it is Spypoint tech) but has their built-in AI feature that helps identify & get the photos you need by identifying human or vehicle activity in the monitored area. The V200 includes 100 photo's a month... This is a security cam... not a trail cam... (look for promotional pricing / or a local dealer as their on-line pricing is not always the best).

Our company has deployed many of these units for clients to monitor & secure otherwise inaccessible locations... remote property gates, horse properties, etc. but our biggest customers for these have been temporary / remote construction sites where materials or equipment is kept. If they steal the cam it has geo tracking built-in.

 

[mikester]

Well, it helps the cops a lot if they know what time it was stolen. Maybe a license plate number always helps. What they look like always seems to help. What make vehicle and color helps. I'm one of the poorest sap suckers to ever wear a pair of over all's and walk barefoot down a dirt road. But I can see they will help.

Good luck on reading a license plate unless you mount a camera at bumper level and put in an S-bend and major speed bumps on your driveway to slow traffic down. Oh and don't forget auxiliary IR lighting. Expect to spend $$$ if you want a semi-reliable license plate capable camera setup.

If it makes you worry less put in a few cheap stand alone cameras. Top up your insurance and lower your deductible.

Internet enabled cameras mean your data is stored on someone else's computer, usually located in China. The great thing about internet cameras - Makes it easier for thieves to find and scope out your property. The can check out what you have before breaking in. You mind as well leave the keys in the door lock and padlocks if you connect one of these chinese cameras to your network.

 

[plowhog]

Mostly, I expect to use the images to identify who damaged things ...

We have a tubular steel gate that is 42' off of the county road. Someone hit it and bent it.

Same thing happened to me. I installed a quality trail cam pointed at the gate. It detects motion and records images to a SD card.

Not long later, I checked the camera to find dead batteries. I reviewed the SD card, finding that it had snapped 5,000+ photos. A new picture every time the wind blew a branch or a leaf anywhere in the camera's view!

The frequency of snapping wind-induced pictures drained the batteries. The sheer number of pix made reviewing them virtually impossible. Oh- did I mention I put trail cameras at my other gate locations as well?

 

[JouneNer]

Arlo is the one of the best security cameras option, They provide many options for security camera

 

[PILOON]

My SIL's solution is to use a bunch of dummy cameras so that the live ones are lost in the crowd.
Also he has a post on which hangs a nice collection of bird houses. Very decorative but only one has a camera looking out of the birdhouse hole (door) aimed such as to get a full face photo.
Also the camera sends photos to his phone.
He has called me a couple of times so that I could go investigate.

I'll add that they had a costly incident* by thieves earlier on.
This occurred at their chalet that happens to be close to where we are retired.

Break-in's are an annual fall event in this area.

*smashed doors, electronics and collectables etc., $5K insurance claim.