Setting up a surveillance system in a house thats tough to wire

[TorontoJ]

Hi there,

I would like to install surveillance cameras in my house but running wires nicely is a problem and I want to avoid wifi. Wondering if this setup would work:

Poe hub/dvr connected to three cameras via cat 6 cable (these are the areas I could easily wire to)

Powerline adapter (hopefully with built in poe injector) to one camera

Cat 6 from hub/dvr to poe switch to three other cameras. or poe switch connected to home network to three other cameras.

Basically wondering if cameras need to be connected directly to poe dvr or if they can connect via network.

Sorry if my terminology is wrong as I am a noob when it comes to surveillance systems. Also, by all means recommend a different method for a hard to wire home.

Thanks,

 

[fenderman]

Hi there,

I would like to install surveillance cameras in my house but running wires nicely is a problem and I want to avoid wifi. Wondering if this setup would work:

Poe hub/dvr connected to three cameras via cat 6 cable (these are the areas I could easily wire to)

Powerline adapter (hopefully with built in poe injector) to one camera

Cat 6 from hub/dvr to poe switch to three other cameras. or poe switch connected to home network to three other cameras.

Basically wondering if cameras need to be connected directly to poe dvr or if they can connect via network.

Sorry if my terminology is wrong as I am a noob when it comes to surveillance systems. Also, by all means recommend a different method for a hard to wire home.

Thanks,

consult with a low voltage contractor - telephone and alarm guys are usually the best or an electrician, often times they can wire it up much better than you could with zero external runs....at 100-150 a run its not much more than powerline and the result will be much better..
ip cameras are network devices so they dont have to be homerun...

 

[mat200]

Welcome TorontoJ,

Fenderman has good advice if you're finding the DIY wiring job a bit more than you'd like to do at this time.

I went the DIY route, and yes it did take me some extra time - however I can certainly say it is possible to wire up any building. I had to cut some dry wall sections, and in the end it turned out nicely. Remember to pull extra cat6/5e lines while you are doing this. I'm glad I did as in one location I am currently thinking about adding an additional camera, and now it will be easy to do so as the wiring pull is already done.

Yes, you can add a external PoE switch to your setup. That is the nice thing about IP PoE standards, it gives you a lot of flexibility.

It's easy to get swamped with information here, so I wanted to share some notes with you

Please check out @giomania 's notes:
Dahua Starlight Varifocal Turret (IPC-HDW5231R-Z)

I have also made notes which are a summary of a lot of the reading I've been doing here,:
Looking for some advice and direction!

Have fun joining us here.

 

[TorontoJ]

Welcome TorontoJ,

Fenderman has good advice if you're finding the DIY wiring job a bit more than you'd like to do at this time.

I went the DIY route, and yes it did take me some extra time - however I can certainly say it is possible to wire up any building. I had to cut some dry wall sections, and in the end it turned out nicely. Remember to pull extra cat6/5e lines while you are doing this. I'm glad I did as in one location I am currently thinking about adding an additional camera, and now it will be easy to do so as the wiring pull is already done.

Yes, you can add a external PoE switch to your setup. That is the nice thing about IP PoE standards, it gives you a lot of flexibility.

It's easy to get swamped with information here, so I wanted to share some notes with you

Please check out @giomania 's notes:
Dahua Starlight Varifocal Turret (IPC-HDW5231R-Z)

I have also made notes which are a summary of a lot of the reading I've been doing here,:
Looking for some advice and direction!

Have fun joining us here.

Thanks for this. My house is really difficult to run wires. The basement ceiling is sound proofed, walls have solid wood wainscoting, the ceilings have crown mouldings etc. etc. Fishing is just not an option here. Plus if I hire someone, they will just make a mess and cost me 1000s. I like doing things myself so that I can take care to do a good job and at the same time know how everything works so that I can fix it when something goes wrong. So, would my setup config work? sounds like it might. Is the concern more hardware to fail and slower network speeds?

 

[NoloC]

So not sure what you said BUT i think everything is wired but one cam on powerline? If so, YUP.

Looking at your words, you could do well to read a bit more here. There is no POE hub/dvr. You need to understand what these terms mean and that is not really hard.
You'll need a switch or two and they will need to supply the POE for your cams. No biggy. You'll need a dvr or nvr or Blue Iris on a PC. And yes the cams can either be connected directly to a DVR/NVR or your network.

So sounds to me like your plan will work.

 

[Silas]

I think they may be describing a NVR with PoE ports?
I for one am not a fan of them as they tend to confuse newcomers what with the different network for the PoE compared to the one they have on the local network, I also like separate units so that I can place them where I want, NVR secured and PoE switch in the most convenient location for termination and length of runs.
As to one of the ? of the OP, the cameras can be connected to either, it depends on how you want to manage them, do it yourself or let the NVR do it.

In my case I bought a 4 channel NVR, I then bought a 16 port switch with 8 PoE ports, my 4 cameras go to 4 of the PoE ports on the switch in the wiring cupboard and my NVR is sat in a suitable location for management. The rest of the ports are used by various other devices like VPN server etc.

 

[mat200]

Thanks for this. My house is really difficult to run wires. The basement ceiling is sound proofed, walls have solid wood wainscoting, the ceilings have crown mouldings etc. etc. Fishing is just not an option here. Plus if I hire someone, they will just make a mess and cost me 1000s. I like doing things myself so that I can take care to do a good job and at the same time know how everything works so that I can fix it when something goes wrong. So, would my setup config work? sounds like it might. Is the concern more hardware to fail and slower network speeds?

HI TorontoJ,

Don't worry.

There's a number of ways to setup IP cameras, so definitely take some time to plan and determine what you can setup.

You can make it as simple or complex as you would like.

SImple: Camera(s) ----- one ethernet line ----- NVR w/PoE

Next: Camera(s) ---- ethernet line ---- PoE Switch ---- NVR or PC with Blue Iris ( or other sw )

and more complex with additional networking gear, such as switches...

Yes, each additional piece of equipment adds to the complexity and reduces reliability of the system.

Drywall should not hinder you - it is possible to cut a smaller section from stud to stud if needed to help with wiring and then patch it up with minimal mess. Lots of great youtube videos and tolls which can help. Crown and foot molding can be worked around without drilling or cutting it. If you feel that is work you'd like to find a contractor to do, that is a option - and there are some really qualified people who can do this, and yes it will cost you some to pay for their investment in tools and skills.