Equipment for home surveillance
Equipment for home surveillance
Because of family issues and new residents moving in, my mom wants some cameras to monitor the area. She’s considering ring systems or door bells but isn’t familiar with the options. I think starting with two or three outdoor cameras would be a good idea. Maybe a video doorbell for the front entrance, a door bell or regular camera facing the garage door, and another in the back pointing at the shed. The front door already has a doorbell setup, but since we bought the house in the 80s, the wiring might be outdated. The side door lacks wiring, though we have an outdoor outlet and a light. The rear part of the house doesn’t have outlets, but there’s power available through a light fixture. WiFi coverage is decent throughout the house, including outside on the patio, though Ethernet isn’t practical here. Some questions I have about the ring system: they seem to use a battery-powered bell with solar power. How effective is that? We get sunlight at both spots during certain times. Does the wired doorbell draw power from the existing circuit? What features do cameras offer without a subscription? How much data do these devices consume? Our plan has limited bandwidth. I’m open to ideas. I own a 4-bay NAS and currently use only one bay, so I could store files locally. Any solution will likely need to rely on Wi-Fi.
I’ll note that I don’t rely on Ring. Still, it seems you’d need a subscription to handle most tasks. With the free version, you’re limited to viewing live streams. For recording, a subscription is required (as I recall from my research). I’ve been using Wyze for a few years now and have generally been satisfied. I’ve set them up at my in-laws’ place and my mom’s residence. Other brands have also been tried before. The cameras are reasonably affordable and often on discount—around $25 when on sale. They can be powered via standard electricity, though the adapters available are mostly similar. The Wyze model also functions as a smart lamp, responding to motion or time triggers. The V4 version lets you customize recordings and send alerts for specific events. If your goal is simple alerts for people or vehicles, it works well. For full recording, it’s limited, but it suits your needs. I pay a monthly subscription with Wyze ($10), which matches Ring’s pricing roughly. These units have performed reliably so far, capturing several items you wanted to monitor. I prefer not to manage battery-powered models due to the hassle of replacements or dead batteries. Solar options are similar concerns—cloudy weather could affect performance. I’ve considered a POE system, but it would require additional equipment. Overall, these have been quite satisfactory and have helped me address several issues.
Are you referring to the Wyze cameras? They don't save videos directly on SD cards, but you can do so if you install an SD card. All mine upload to the cloud via Wi-Fi. It seems that with SD cards installed, they record continuously, and most users report they last about 2-3 months. From what I've read online, some people say SD cards wear out quickly. I noticed reports on forums mentioning usage around two to three months before failure. I haven't tested it myself, so those are just observations. The cameras also have an internal light; I leave it off because the night vision works well—just give them a few minutes, and I'll share some photos from my garage. The doorbell I've been checking out recently is actually missing from my house.
We face a 1.2 TB data limit, and once we hit it we’re charged more. My dad streams video nonstop for 16 hours daily since retirement. Several months have passed with usage exceeding 90%. The plan costs $10 per 50 gigs over, up to $200 in excess, or an additional $30 monthly for unlimited data. We’d rather avoid those fees. That’s why I’m cautious about subscriptions and cloud services. Instead, I’ll present the options to my mom—she’s the decision-maker in the household—and let her choose. Just a note: we might end up using more data overall. We seldom activate the backlight in the house, so installing a new fixture with a light and camera would be unnecessary.
I haven't looked yet. I'm sure it could be fairly accurate. I understand my father-in-law, who uses a limited data plan, has used up his allowance while watching his cameras. You can adjust the recording or streaming quality, which should help. Also, restricting what gets recorded would be beneficial. It's getting dark outside, so soon I might be able to capture images from outside, but this is from my garage, which is completely dark (don't worry about the mess). Just the camera's night vision. The V4s include an integrated spotlight, and it's active here too. Again, the garage remains dark: I usually turn off the spotlights, though. It lets people know something is there, but it can interfere with other cameras. So even if this one has a clear shot, if others aren't recording properly, they'll be affected (depending on your setup). Same applies to the distance you choose for recording.
It could simply function as a power source. For instance, my light in the back is centered on the porch. I installed the camera cables beneath the siding so they’re hidden, with no visible wires. Wyze offers 20-foot extensions if required. It doesn’t have to be placed very close to the light.
Cool beans that could simplify things. We have a light fixture on the front of the house, on the side facing the entrance, and a security flood light on the back. Between these fixtures, power should be available. I just need to understand how the door bell wiring functions—though we do have wires to the front door bell, and I’m not sure about the power source or the old wiring. The V4s you mentioned seem likely to work. The main challenge will be figuring out the internet connection for the data part.
While reviewing the door bell system, it seems they're utilizing the existing wiring for power. They provide an installation guide, which is why I've been neglecting it—without one, I'm having to dig for a wire through the wall and deal with difficult exterior walls.