Hello from NE Pennsylvania, total newbie with some questions

watson524

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Hi there,

We are in the process of moving houses into my parents old house. The basement isn't finished now (it's a ranch), but will soon be with a drop ceiling. Currently that house is "vacant" (i.e. we're in and out a lot but my mom passed away in early 2018 so no one is living there) so we put up some quick inside D Link cameras which have worked ok, but since they're sitting on window sills against glass, there's really no nite vision given the glare. Now that we're moving in, I'm wanting to put up some outdoor cameras and POSSIBLY see something down at our barn across the street.

The driveway is about 250 feet long. 3 car attached garage on one side, then the house goes to the right from there. I plan to put up at least two cameras to start, one to get the front door/long porch area out towards the driveway. One for the back area to get the back doors/deck area and a bit of the back "yard". The house sits on 90 acres so think of a lot of open space. I may in the future put one up above the garage to get more of the top of the driveway past the front porch/walkway. The other thing I'd like to do is get some vision on a barn we have across the street, roughly 1 football field away from the house. That barn has power as well as a dusk/dawn light that illuminates the whole front area where I'd most like a camera ("parking area" there, so people are not likely to come in through the field that's off the back side of the barn). It is across the road tho, so that presents a problem. i.e. can't go over/under it.

I'm wanting to do PoE cameras but I have no idea about resolution (I understand more pixels aren't always better for nite vision), I'd like to get decent nite vision and I need to be able to access from my phone and get some motion alerts. Sound would be nice (my d links are 2 way sound) but I suppose not critical. We just upgraded our alarm system so our security company is of course pitching all kinds of crazy things and the one camera they mention (Hunwha LNV-6071R) for 3 of them plus an 8 channel NVR with 2TB HD and install they're looking at about $1,500. I do like that the cameras have zoom as I would like to be able to do that but I don't know if that's a "like" vs a "need". They're dome cameras which I always thought were for open spaces vs install up against walls or where these would be, under soffits.

We are handy so I could do the install myself as we have a nice blank wall in the house where I can get cat 5e from attic to basement and then over to the "safe" room that's being built where I plan to put the NVR. The tech said you don't need a PoE switch, just take the camera lines down to the NVR and then a line from the NVR to the router, which is in a different room but easy enough to run cameras to. None of that would solve my need at the barn since that seems to be a big mystery to everyone (the barn doesn't have internet and I have no plans to pay to put it there).

Any advice you can give a newbie would be much appreciated.

thanks!
 

SouthernYankee

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:welcome:
-----------------------------
read study plan before spending money.

The alarm company stuff is very over priced.

There are two reasonable approachable to recording use an NVR or use a VMS (software on a computer)
Plan on more cameras than you think you will need.
Start with one variable focus camera, and a test rig, a 2x4 and a bucket of rocks (see below).
--------------------------------------

My standard welcome to the forum message.

Please read the IP Cam Talk Cliff Notes and other items in the IP Cam Talk Wiki. The wiki is in the blue bar at the top of the page.

Read How to Secure Your Network (Don't Get Hacked!) in the wiki also.

Quick start
1) If you do not have a wired monitored alarm system, get that first
2) Use Dahua starlight cameras or Hikvision darkfighter cameras or ICPT Night eye cameras (Store | IP Cam Talk) if you need good low light cameras.
3) use a VPN to access home network (openVPN)
4) Do not use wifi cameras.
5) Do not use cloud storage
6) Do Not use uPNP, P2P, QR, do not open ports,
7) More megapixel is not necessarily better.
8) Avoid chinese hacked cameras (most ebay, amazon, aliexpress cameras(not all, but most))
9) Do not use reolink, ring, nest cameras (they are junk), no cloud cameras
10) If possible use a turret camera , bullet collect spiders, dome collect dirt and reflect light (IR)
11) Use only solid copper, AWG 23 or 24 ethernet wire. , no CCA (Copper Clad Aluminum)
12) use a test mount to verify the camera mount location. My test rig: rev.2
13) (Looney2ns)If you want to be able to ID faces, don't mount cams higher than 8ft. You want to know who did it, not just what happened.
14) Use a router that has openVPN built in (Most ASUS, Some NetGear....)
15) camera placement use the calculator... IPVM Camera Calculator V3

Cameras to look at
IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED Review IPC-T5442TM-AS-LED (Full Color, Starlight+)
IPC-T5442TM-AS Review-OEM 4mp AI Cam IPC-T5442TM-AS Starlight+ - 4MP starlight+
IPC-HDW2231R-ZS Review-Dahua IPC-HDW2231RP-ZS Starlight Camera-Varifocal
IPC-HDW2231T-ZS-S2 Review-OEM IPC-T2231T-ZS 2mp Varifocal Starlight Camera
IPC-HDW5231R-ZE Review-Dahua Starlight IPC-HDW5231R-ZE 800 meter capable ePOE
IPC-HFW4239T-ASE IPC-HFW4239T-ASE
IPCT-HDW5431RE-I Review - IP Cam Talk 4 MP IR Fixed Turret Network Camera
DS-2CD2325FWD-I
IPC-T2347G-LU Review of the Hikvision OEM model IPC-T2347G-LU 'ColorVu' IP CCTV camera. (DS-2CD2347G1-LU)
N22AL12 New Dahua N22AL12 Budget Cam w/Starlight -- low cost entry

Other dahua 4MP starlight Dahua 4MP Starlight Lineup

My preferred indoor cameras
DS-2CD2442FWD-IW
IPC-K35A
If interested in Blue Iris and other setup items see the following post

Read,study,plan before spending money ..... plan plan plan
Test do not guess
 

Hammerhead786

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Welcome to the forum. For the exterior turret cameras are usually recommended as bullets suffer from spiders and their webs and domes are prone to having reflection issues due to the dome. I'd suggest running your own VMS (Blue Iris) along with a managed POE switch as this will give you the greatest flexibility, security and scalability.
 

watson524

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Ahhh...you ARE NE.!
Got in-laws there. Great hunting.
Yep, I've definitely heard about the hunting up that way. I went to summer camp as a kid at the college there back in the late 80s a few years in a row. was always a nice drive out, tho we also stopped at a special ice cream place on the way out and back so that probably helped my view lol!
 

looney2ns

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If you have direct line of site to the barn, you can solve that situation by installing a pair of these: Ubiquiti NanoStationM LocoM2 IEEE 802.11n 150 Mbit/s Wireless Bridge - 2.40 GHz - 3.1 Mile Maximum Outdoor Range - MIMO Technology - 1 x Network (RJ-45) - Power Supply, PoE - Pole-mountable - 1 Pack - Monoprice.com
Others here can help with the exact choice of equipment and setup. That's above my pay grade. ;)
And Welcome.
Keep in mind that most "security company's" don' know what they are doing, except to get into your wallet.
 

K175un3

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Hello watson524.

When I hear installer, I think small large fee extra on top of components.
 

watson524

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If you have direct line of site to the barn, you can solve that situation by installing a pair of these: Ubiquiti NanoStationM LocoM2 IEEE 802.11n 150 Mbit/s Wireless Bridge - 2.40 GHz - 3.1 Mile Maximum Outdoor Range - MIMO Technology - 1 x Network (RJ-45) - Power Supply, PoE - Pole-mountable - 1 Pack - Monoprice.com
Others here can help with the exact choice of equipment and setup. That's above my pay grade. ;)
And Welcome.
Keep in mind that most "security company's" don' know what they are doing, except to get into your wallet.
I do!! And those are WAY WAY WAY cheaper than what a security company was quoting me (in the thousands). This also bodes well for a detached garage we're adding in a field in the back of our house which I'll also have line of site to. Are these able to be used to bring internet for browsing to those locations too or strictly for the cameras?
 

looney2ns

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I do!! And those are WAY WAY WAY cheaper than what a security company was quoting me (in the thousands). This also bodes well for a detached garage we're adding in a field in the back of our house which I'll also have line of site to. Are these able to be used to bring internet for browsing to those locations too or strictly for the cameras?
Yes, when setup correctly. It connects your barn and garage to your home network. ;)
And it will work for the new garage as long as it has power.
 

JMan

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Hi there,

We are in the process of moving houses into my parents old house. The basement isn't finished now (it's a ranch), but will soon be with a drop ceiling. Currently that house is "vacant" (i.e. we're in and out a lot but my mom passed away in early 2018 so no one is living there) so we put up some quick inside D Link cameras which have worked ok, but since they're sitting on window sills against glass, there's really no nite vision given the glare. Now that we're moving in, I'm wanting to put up some outdoor cameras and POSSIBLY see something down at our barn across the street.

The driveway is about 250 feet long. 3 car attached garage on one side, then the house goes to the right from there. I plan to put up at least two cameras to start, one to get the front door/long porch area out towards the driveway. One for the back area to get the back doors/deck area and a bit of the back "yard". The house sits on 90 acres so think of a lot of open space. I may in the future put one up above the garage to get more of the top of the driveway past the front porch/walkway. The other thing I'd like to do is get some vision on a barn we have across the street, roughly 1 football field away from the house. That barn has power as well as a dusk/dawn light that illuminates the whole front area where I'd most like a camera ("parking area" there, so people are not likely to come in through the field that's off the back side of the barn). It is across the road tho, so that presents a problem. i.e. can't go over/under it.

I'm wanting to do PoE cameras but I have no idea about resolution (I understand more pixels aren't always better for nite vision), I'd like to get decent nite vision and I need to be able to access from my phone and get some motion alerts. Sound would be nice (my d links are 2 way sound) but I suppose not critical. We just upgraded our alarm system so our security company is of course pitching all kinds of crazy things and the one camera they mention (Hunwha LNV-6071R) for 3 of them plus an 8 channel NVR with 2TB HD and install they're looking at about $1,500. I do like that the cameras have zoom as I would like to be able to do that but I don't know if that's a "like" vs a "need". They're dome cameras which I always thought were for open spaces vs install up against walls or where these would be, under soffits.

We are handy so I could do the install myself as we have a nice blank wall in the house where I can get cat 5e from attic to basement and then over to the "safe" room that's being built where I plan to put the NVR. The tech said you don't need a PoE switch, just take the camera lines down to the NVR and then a line from the NVR to the router, which is in a different room but easy enough to run cameras to. None of that would solve my need at the barn since that seems to be a big mystery to everyone (the barn doesn't have internet and I have no plans to pay to put it there).

Any advice you can give a newbie would be much appreciated.

thanks!
Hi Watson, Scranton PA here; been installing cams for about 8 years now. I agree mostly with the comments above. I have installed mostly Dahua and Hikvision NVRs and cams for customers. I have used separate POE switches and POE ready NVRs. Frankly the POE ready (plug and play) NVRs are the easiest and I have been using them for customers for the past few years. There are arguments for and against using plug and play NVRs but they work for me. At my home I have 9 POE cams (mostly Hikvision) connected to a POE switch and recording to a 3xLogic NVR. The Ubiquity Nano's are a great way to get camera networking to the barn; you just need to power the cam locally; most cams come with a separate hook-up for auxiliary power. Lately I have been ordering cams/NVRs from LTS. They have a warehouse in Cherry Hill NJ and they can get an order to Scranton in 12-24 hours during the week. Not that I am pushing that company but they are very good to deal with and have good customer support. Their items are mostly renamed Hikvision. I have stayed away from dome cams especially ones with IR illumination because there is a reflection back into the lens at night. I have mostly used turret cams because they have a fixed lens, of varying sizes, but, in your situation, with the long driveway you may need either a 8 or 12 MM or verifocal lens that enables you to adjust the zoom at the cam. Price starts to go up with the verifocal.

You mentioned motion alerts. Careful with that; leaves, fast moving clouds, anything really, can set the motion off. At home, my system evolved over several years so be sure to get an NVR with at least 8 channels so can add as time/budget permits. And, you are right, a camera system is easy to install. When in doubt youtube it!
 

watson524

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Thanks for that helpful info!! That's one thing with my current d-links, clouds set it off so I've turned down the motion sensitivity to stop that silliness. Definitely going to do some more research and given the barn and future garage, may just go with 16 off the bat to cover it on the NVR side.
 

looney2ns

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Thanks for that helpful info!! That's one thing with my current d-links, clouds set it off so I've turned down the motion sensitivity to stop that silliness. Definitely going to do some more research and given the barn and future garage, may just go with 16 off the bat to cover it on the NVR side.
Dedicated PC running BI is a much better choice than any NVR. Especially the motion detection.
 

watson524

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I haven't looked at BlueIris at all some I'm not sure what it can and can't do but heaven knows I have enough spare computers and parts running around. In fact I have a linux server I'm not sure if I'm going to keep running when we move and an older laptop I can reformat. Is there a link where I can check out hardware/OS requirements?
 

looney2ns

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I haven't looked at BlueIris at all some I'm not sure what it can and can't do but heaven knows I have enough spare computers and parts running around. In fact I have a linux server I'm not sure if I'm going to keep running when we move and an older laptop I can reformat. Is there a link where I can check out hardware/OS requirements?
Blue Iris - Video Security Software
 

watson524

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Hi Watson, Scranton PA here; been installing cams for about 8 years now. I agree mostly with the comments above. I have installed mostly Dahua and Hikvision NVRs and cams for customers. I have used separate POE switches and POE ready NVRs. Frankly the POE ready (plug and play) NVRs are the easiest and I have been using them for customers for the past few years. There are arguments for and against using plug and play NVRs but they work for me. At my home I have 9 POE cams (mostly Hikvision) connected to a POE switch and recording to a 3xLogic NVR. The Ubiquity Nano's are a great way to get camera networking to the barn; you just need to power the cam locally; most cams come with a separate hook-up for auxiliary power. Lately I have been ordering cams/NVRs from LTS. They have a warehouse in Cherry Hill NJ and they can get an order to Scranton in 12-24 hours during the week. Not that I am pushing that company but they are very good to deal with and have good customer support. Their items are mostly renamed Hikvision. I have stayed away from dome cams especially ones with IR illumination because there is a reflection back into the lens at night. I have mostly used turret cams because they have a fixed lens, of varying sizes, but, in your situation, with the long driveway you may need either a 8 or 12 MM or verifocal lens that enables you to adjust the zoom at the cam. Price starts to go up with the verifocal.

You mentioned motion alerts. Careful with that; leaves, fast moving clouds, anything really, can set the motion off. At home, my system evolved over several years so be sure to get an NVR with at least 8 channels so can add as time/budget permits. And, you are right, a camera system is easy to install. When in doubt youtube it!
@JMan are you still doing camera installs in the area. I'd be interested in talk to you if you are.
 
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