Camera's for the shop...Theres so many

So it is time for some added security at my shop. I have been looking into some different camera systems but just cant pull the trigger on any. I keep getting told to just go on amazon and buy a system for 700-$800 and i will be fine, but those people telling me that are just going off of what they would do not what they have. So far i would like an 8 camera system with a 16ch dvr. I think analog is better for me. I keep hearing IP systems need alot of upkeep. I need good IR distance range at night as well for my parking lot. More lighting will be added as well to help. The local security company who installed my inside monitored system is $3000-$3500 for his camera's. AND that's with me running my camera wire's since I offered.

I would love some input on which route to go to make me feel better about it. I don't want to have to go through 3 systems before I find a good one.

I was in the same boat as you, couldn't decide which way to go so I finally choose one and went with it. First you need to decide if you want cheap or good because you can't do both. A cheap boxed system will show you a car was in your driveway but it might as well be a space ship because you can't tell what kind or see a face. I went with a PC based system because the upgrades are endless. I'm currently limited to 64 cameras because of software limits, I only use 7 right now but I like options. I also choose POE (power over Ethernet) because they don't use any special cables and don't require an outlet at each camera. All you need is a good fast computer, a POE hub which can be bought from $30-$3000 depending on how may ports you need, $50 software, a roll of Cat5 cable and whatever cameras you choose.

DO NOT go wireless you will regret it, tried that. I use software called BlueIris and has a phone app that you can view any of your cameras from anywhere anytime. Stick with good name brand stuff, when it comes to IP cameras you get what you pay for. I have Samsung, Toshiba, Axis ect cameras and believe it or not there is quality difference between a $800 Toshiba and a $100 Chinese POS. Nothing is more irritating than being away from home and getting a motion alert on a camera and not being able to tell who or what it is. A huge hard drive isn't required because the cameras can be set to only record motion. You can choose how long they record, how they send alerts if any, what size object will set of a motion alert ect. I have a Ultra 4K HD camera watching the front of my house and I can count the zits on your face before you can get to the door. :hehe:

Glad this thread has come up. That is some killer information jfaulkner. The place we have our security system through wanted some crazy money to update all of the old crappy cameras to something worth having.

My day will be half shot researching the components now LOL

I definitely dont want to get cheap. I just didnt know when the price comes for decency. Id say i could afford around $1500. I was never going to go with wireless. Poe or the multi cable systems are what i was looking at. Definitely dont want to add an outlet at every spot i need a camera. What brands of hubs should i look into

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cityredneck said:

I definitely dont want to get cheap. I just didnt know when the price comes for decency. Id say i could afford around $1500. I was never going to go with wireless. Poe or the multi cable systems are what i was looking at. Definitely dont want to add an outlet at every spot i need a camera. What brands of hubs should i look into

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Brand of hub doesn't matter just make sure it will do what you want. There is POE and POE+. I bought a POE and then decided to add a Raytec IR illuminator and found out the hub I had didn't have enough power to run it. It needed more wattage than the hub would put out.

I have a friend in the CCTV business, so I bit the bullet and went dedicated. Cost about $8K, but it saved me $2500 a year in insurance premiums, so 3 years it's paid for.

I had a cheap system after we got hit a couple times, and it was trash...now, we may not be able to see a plate number in the dark, but we can at least get a good description if something does happen.

Has also helped me out when we had a driver back into a service truck on the lot here...camera clearly showed driver in the wrong, so saved me from having to fix his junk.

Chris

http://www.frys.com/product/8685960?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

I helped a friend install these when he was getting divorced to check his house while he was at work. He called me over to watch what he had recorded. His ex wife came in the house with the guy she was humping. She had her shirt off and they were loading stuff in her car. After they were done loading stuff, they were recorded "loading his stuff in her". The cameras showed almost every detail of them "getting busy" on the porch. Not bad for cheaper cameras. And they recorded exactly what he needed to use for the divorce. To this day, I still can't understand why she did that, knowing the cameras were recording.

Another advantage to IP cameras and using a computer is the ability to save and email screen shots and video anytime. The BlueIris software also has the geofencing option with like 10 different profiles. You can make the system do whatever you want when your within the set distance from the shop and when your away. I have mine set to not send motion alerts when I'm home. But automatically switches when I leave home to alert. I have a Western Digital purple 4TB hard drive in a standard desktop that is used for nothing but the cameras. I started with 2 cameras and have since added 5 more and IR illuminators. This is a 1080p Toshiba during the day.

Same camera with RayTec illuminator. It can be pitch black and only the camera can see the light.

Just checked out blue iris quickly..Looks like it may have an association with amcrest which seems to be a popular brand through amazon. I guess i have to look into hubs and a pc that i can throw a hard drive into. I have a spool of Cat5 which would be sweet. Also a spool of coax if any use that. I need some time to sit down and research, time is limited though

Glad this thread popped up. Our service truck was stolen (and thankfully recovered) last week, so security has been on my mind recently

What we did was shot the first mutherfukker that tried to steal from us back in the 80's, word got around.

No problems since.

So all i need is a "Friends with the Mumau's" sign and im good?

I spent 2 nights earlier this week here the whole night. First time the woman was actually ok with me not coming home. But since there is a pretty empty huge building right across the street everything except some old 2nd gens are locked up inside.

Snedge said:

What we did was shot the first mutherfukker that tried to steal from us back in the 80's, word got around.

No problems since.

Click to expand...

I haven't been lucky enough to catch the bastages here....yet.


We've been hit 6 times in 34 years...not too bad, and we got our stuff back 4 of those. One of those other 2 we were glad the truck never made it back, POS!!

Chris

I had some losers break into my stuff a few years ago. Since then added lots of motion lights and cameras. Also installed a home-made DVR on a PC with a 8 port vidcap card and zoneminder running on linux. Web search for that if youre interested.
The cameras I used were sony 1/3" CCD with IR lighting. About 150$ a pop, but they are still working great 10 years later. Its easy to make the lights yourself too, save a few bucks.
If you run this setup, you could easily check on it with a phone, or have it email you snapshots when its triggered.
https://forums.zoneminder.com/viewtopic.php?t=6055h

Following for good info.