CCTV advice please.

How will the cameras be powered? Brian

If he lived in the Sahara he may cope with solar charged units for a while till the sand overwhelmed cells. grin. Brian

I mean cameras out of tamper way running on batteries with no way to charge them is a job for life for a man with a ladder. Brian

foresight would have been needed, I installed the cable 40 years ago!

It's dreadful isn't it, Charles? I spent twenty years vaguely wondering how the outdoor floodlamp that I fitted ten years before operated, because it never came on. The other day whilst searching for something else in the loft I found a scribbled circuit diagram. It turned out that I'd wired the lamp to a switch that I'd forgotten existed because it had been behind a shelf unit for the twenty years. I must have intened to move the switch but never did.

Also, my oldest CCTV camera failed last year. It had worked 24/7 since approx 1980. Unlike all the other cameras it was mains powered and I had to physically follow the cable to find out where to disconnect it.

Bill

What's the purpose of the camera?

To deter thieves in which case it may need to be very obvious that its there but maybe not obvious which way the lens is pointing - perhaps a dome type camera enclosure.

If it's to also identify people after the event you need a camera with enough resolution for identification coupled with a suitable lens with a sensible field of view.

Don't forget that many public CCTV systems claim to have a man in the loop viewing the pictures to identify crime/problems - although recent revelations suggest that even on smart motorways no-one is viewing the output to shut down lanes when someone breaks down and blocks them.

I will be able to get power from the loft to the cameras mounted on the eaves but will not be able to run cable to either the router or the pc.

Regards

You could have put in a telephone cable 40 years ago.

That'll usually run megabit+ network with line drivers.

Owain

I do still have a reasonable amount of GPO 4 core. I suspect after being buried for 40 years it might not still be working.

It's surprising how cable deteriorates in damp conditions. I can only think that the plastic outer sheath is not perfectly waterproof.

Bill

Things can be weird, I remmebr opening a draw from one ofm those plastic storage draw units that are common I kept rubber gromments in it and they had 'welded' themselves to the plastic draw like hot caramel on chocolate (dam master chef). I;ts only been about 10 years .

But you also have temperture vairations through the years and everything ages.

I think Openreach use a paraffin gel (Vaseline-like) filled cable to protecte the pairs inside from water. This will be very inert.