Anyone help me with camera selection ?

[zurk]

I have a boat and need a camera to monitor the two engine rooms on the boat at the cheapest possible price.
the engine rooms are pitch dark and 4ft by 6ft. i have POE+ injectors in the engine room and i have dahua SL (corrosion resistant) PTZ cameras for the exterior so that is covered.
I was looking at the Reolink RLC-520A 2 pack for $120 or whatever it is and wondering if that would get me reasonably clear images in pitch darkness ? i just want to see a. if i have a leak or b. the engine is on fire.
any ideas if that is a good choice. looking for longetivity in a potentially hot wet environment more than megapixel density. i dont even need recording just poe sent over the boat gigabit network. i do need motion alerts for any leak and fire.
oh and no internet. just local network (my phone is also going to be on the local network) with an smtp server.

 

[TonyR]

PLEASE avoid Reolink!

Consider this ==>> Loryta Outdoor Security 4MP Ultra Low Light Starlight+ WDR IR Turret AI IP Camera,IP67 Weatherproof,Support POE and ePOE,Built-in Mic,Vehicle and Human Detection,Fixed Lens IPC-T5442TM-AS 2.8mm

or this ==>> Loryta IP Wired Camera IR Outdoor Indoor 2MP POE Turret AI Camera for Home Security,Built-in MIC,Built-in Speaker, Fixed Lens IPC-T5241H-AS-PV 2.8mm


I think a built-in mic could come in handy as well. Don't get caught up in megapixels, your small but poorly lit area of 4' x 6' will be sharp with a 2.8mm focal length and even a 2MP cam with no smaller than a 1/2.8" sensor or the 4MP with no smaller than a 1/1.8" sensor.

NOTE: 1/1.8" is larger than 1/2.8"

 

[zurk]

ok perfect thanks. is that camera significantly better/more reliable than the reolinks ? its 2.5X the price.

 

[mat200]

ok perfect thanks. is that camera significantly better/more reliable than the reolinks ? its 2.5X the price.

Yes .. please DO look for reviews here ..

Reolinks are considered by many members the bottom of the IP PoE cameras ..

 

[Gargoile]

is that camera significantly better/more reliable than the reolinks ? its 2.5X the price.

You get what you pay for.........What @TonyR suggested is MUCH better than your choice.

Also what are the temperatures of your engine room? You want to make sure the camera can handle the heat and humidity.

 

[Mike A.]

The cams above are great but not sure that you really need all of that for this application. A lot of the benefits like AI will be N/A and pretty much any decent cam will light up that small of an area very well. Don't know that you'd see much difference in low-light capabilities of better sensors vs cases where that does make a big difference.

A few at the cheaper end of things. Both are Dahua relabeled so will be easier if you ever want to integrate viewing things with your other Dahua cams. Both still are IP67 rated.

https://www.amazon.com/Loryta-IPC-T2431T-AS-Eyeball-Network-English/dp/B08133J7SC

Amazon.com

There are various others between these and the better cams above. Look at that same Loryta/Empiretech store on Amazon and you'll find others that all are good quality Dahau cams at a good price.

I have a couple of the latter and while they can't compete with something like the 5442s where it matters, they've been fine for my purposes where they are. One watches a ~12x20 porch and does great for that. I have other better cams that I could move there but I haven't since I don't think that would give me much if any benefit just for basic watching of that area.

I don't know what distances within that space you need to watch but may want to check the close focus distance if anything of interest is very close to the cam.

Also don't think that motion detection is going to pick up anything other than a major leak. You'll likely know that otherwise. Fire it might but by the time is does probably a little late. Assuming that you have other alarms for such things though and that the cams would be used more to get a view of why an alarm is going off.

 

[TonyR]

A 2MP camera with a sensor sized the same as or larger than the sensor in an otherwise comparable 4MP will have much better low-light performance than the 4MP.

1/2.8" > 1/3"

 

[DanDenver]

4x6 feet? Honestly you could save yourself a lot of concern by just putting a 60 watt light bulb in there. Then you don't have to worry about low light performance. Put a 100 watt in there and most cameras would work just fine. I would still avoid reolink.

I agree with @Mike A. , double check the close focus rating of whatever camera you choose. Many are well beyond 5 feet. It took me a while to find a descent camera for my basement utility room that had a close focus of less than 3 feet.

 

[DanDenver]

I think that with your gas concern you may want to find a camera with alarm inputs. Then you can simply run a wire around the perimeter of the 4x6 area as well as through the center and near the fuel pump.
If the wire gets wet anywhere along its length, it goes from normally open to closed.
This change in the ropes state would trigger the camera alarm via the cameras alarm input wires.
You said you did not need to record (and I see why!) but it would let you know right away of any liquids running about below deck.

I have been using this wire (really a rope) for years as part of my smart home water detection setup. One drop of water/gas anywhere along its length will trigger it. They may be too sensitive possibly for your needs, not sure just how dry the 4x6 area is. But if it is truly dry, then this would work well.

This explains Dahua camera alarm input and how it functions (e.g. how you would tie the rope into the cameras alarm input)

This is the moisture sensing rope that you could tie into the security wires of the camera. It is 2 wires just like the alarm takes in. It is the old version and uses easy to crimp CAT5 connectors. You can extend this rope easily to 32 feet (4 ropes together). This product is no longer manufactured - it may be due to the fact that a cat licking it will set it off (I have personally tested this). So just a moist palm holding this rope can set it off. Done that as well, just trying to carry it to the install location I have set them off numerous times.

You can get the newer version of that rope here, but it is more expensive and has a proprietary tip. The rope can be extended up to 500 feet. It will trigger with about 2 drops of liquid. Which is still pretty sensitive. It just won't trigger from something like a moist palm. It needs an actual couple of drops of liquid

I have this newer version as well in some of my rentals. I did not want the overly sensitive rope in my rentals, trying to cut down on false alarms.
For example if a child just touches the original rope or even brushes it with a moist had (I did not say a wet hand!) it would trigger it. But the new rope needs a tad more moisture than that (again, roughly 2 drops), so it is better in a rental.
In my house I have something like a dozen of the original ropes around toilets, sinks, furnace, water heater, house drain, etc. Just one flick of anything sets them off and I like it that way : )

I imagine your first question is "will it work with gas?". Of course. I think the proper question is will gasoline damage the rope? Who cares? Once it detects a gas leak it has done its job of saving lives. Maybe after being soaked for several hours it could be detrimental? But after something as dangerous as having a gas leak if the worst thing you have to do is replace a few sections of water sensing rope, well, I guess its up to you if that is a big deal.