Replace Motion Sensor with Camera

[rfj]

We have a motion sensor in the garage that is placed in a bad spot for home automation purposes but ideal for a camera. The motion sensor points toward the garage door and the side door (good for security) but away from where we enter the garage which is what I want to monitor for home automation purposes. I already pulled wires to the other corner of the garage to move the motion sensor. Now I need to a camera to replace the motion sensor. I would have liked a PoE camera but I don't think I can get an Ethernet cable to that place. I believe I have an extra 4/18 (4 conductors) cable going to that corner of the garage. So at the minimum I can get power to the camera (I for sure have two conductors going there) and possibly even Ethernet if 4 conductors are enough for a camera (need to check if I really have 4 conductors or just 2). What are my best camera options for such a scenario? Note that I already have a few other wireless cameras inside the house that are connected to a dedicated AP for wireless cams. So adding another one is easy.

• Camera must be supported by BlueIris
• Camera needs to be hardwired for power.
• Probably needs to be WiFi (max 2-4 conductors to that location).
• Camera will be mounted in a corner of the ceiling.
• Needs to be able to handle high contrast (person entering the garage with sun in the back).

 

[TonyR]

How far would this new cam be from a 120VAC outlet? I'm thinking PLA (Power Line Adapter).

 

[rfj]

Very good point. I just came back from visiting my parents and they have brick walls everywhere. So years ago I put a couple of PLAs into their home incl. one that is connected to an AP. Our attic is really small but I do have a light with a light switch in the attic. It's about 20 feet away from where the camera would be. The only thing I am worried about is the heat in the attic which probably goes up to 120F in the summer. I am not sure how long such an adapter will last. Maybe just power and wireless is more reliable??? I don't know...

 

[TonyR]

Very good point. I just came back from visiting my parents and they have brick walls everywhere. So years ago I put a couple of PLAs into their home incl. one that is connected to an AP. Our attic is really small but I do have a light with a light switch in the attic. It's about 20 feet away from where the camera would be. The only thing I am worried about is the heat in the attic which probably goes up to 120F in the summer. I am not sure how long such an adapter will last. Maybe just power and wireless is more reliable??? I don't know...

PLA would be my first choice over most non-hardwired/POE methods but I've got 3 wireless cams performing non-critical duty and they, like yours, have their own dedicated AP that no other devices are on. They have occasional, short term drop outs which I can live with because they are pet cams.

 

[rfj]

@TonyR what cameras are you using? All of our wireless cams are non-critical (checking up on our dog) and I am fine using such a cam for the garage. I just have to be able to mount it in a corner. The Amcrest cams I currently use indoor won't work for that (and 2 out of 4 broke down...).

 

[TonyR]

@TonyR what cameras are you using? All of our wireless cams are non-critical (checking up on our dog) and I am fine using such a cam for the garage. I just have to be able to mount it in a corner. The Amcrest cams I currently use indoor won't work for that (and 2 out of 4 broke down...).

I also have 3 Amcrest IP2M-841's performing pet duty. Two are V3's from the last 2 years and 1 is a V1 that's 4 years old. It has the tiny barrel connector for the 5VDC instead of the micro USB. I had one 4 year old V1 crap out about a year ago.

I don't really need the PT function but for $40 at the time I couldn't pass them up. If I had to replace all of them today I'd consider the TP-LINK Tapo C-110. It's a $21 indoor, 1080p/2K wireless cam, with a mic (speaker AND mic works in the Tapo app for 2-way talk) , SD card storage and IR that streams RTSP with audio to Blue Iris, no cloud or P2P involved. The 9VDC power supply is UL-listed as well.

I purchased another one a few weeks ago to watch my garage roll-up door but the holidays have delayed the install.

I set up with Blue Iris here:

Blue Iris Camera Compatibility.

Hello - I'm trying to replace my 6x Amcrest Indoor Cameras, with something smaller, and with a wider FOV. I purchased two sets of smaller cameras and neither works. I really like this pair I purchased but can't seem to get them to work - what do I need to look for in order to determine if a...

ipcamtalk.com

I put one in my utility closet to watch my fiber modem here:

Blue Iris Camera Compatibility.

It's a spare Asus RT-N66U configured as an AP, is 802.11n spec. It serves 3 pet cams which are of low priority to me. Ok thanks.

ipcamtalk.com

Within a couple of weeks it caught a rat snake checking out that same modem:

Rat snake inspects my fiber modem Sunday night!

Last week I shared my install of a little TP-LINK Tapo cam to watch the status LEDs on my fiber modem. Nothing much going on until about 9:19 PM Sunday night when Blue Iris sent me a motion alert. I walk into the office, look at the screen and here's this rat snake crawling up the back board and...

ipcamtalk.com