New House, New to Security Systems

I built my house just over a year ago, and didn't think to run cabling for security cameras. Wanting to do this now. House is about 5,000 SQFT, I have attic access and the basement is unfinished. These are my questions, and I know some have been asked before, but circumstances of other questions were different than mine.

I've attached some pics of the exterior of my house, and circled spots where "I" thought a camera might best go. But I would love your opinions.

Security is important, but the number one reason we are installing these is to be able to watch over the kids as they play out in the yard.

- Budget for Cabling, NVR and 4 Cameras ~$1800

- Want an 8 Channel (full POE) NVR. I really don't know which manufacture to go with. I don't want a DIY NVR. I want want that is solid, great software, and great remote/mobile device support.

- Optionally it would be great if it had Home Automation features. Also, what would it need to be able to take a Wireless Camera in the future if needed?

- Cameras: What type and brand for my needs? (See photos). I want at least 720p, but higher (3 MP+) would be great too. Night Vision is important.

- Should I run Cat6 cable? Is it necessary, even for near future video cameras? (I have a lot of Cat5e, but I can purchase Cat6 if suggested)

- I assume the best way to run the cable, is to run it through the eaves on the house and through the attic, then down into the basement where all my networking equipment is? Am I missing something or making this harder than it needs to be?

- Anything else you suggest?

* I guess I can only attach three images. The fourth is the back opposite corner of the house, camera pointing toward the side of the yard, or backyard

Nobody?

I'd recommend Hikvision or Dahua. Personally, I'm buying the Hik 2CD2032 mini bullets and 2CD2332 turrets these days. Turrets have fewer IR issues than domes, and are a bit more visually appealing than bullets.

You generally want to get the same brand NVR as the cameras, but I'm not an NVR user, so others will have to chime in on that. PCs give better flexibility, but require more tinkering and maintenance.

Wireless cams are easy to add, but adding very many can cause wifi congestion, and they're not as reliable as wired cams. You still need power, of course. Many people start with wifi, then switch over to wired to avoid problems.

Cat 6 is marginally better for POE cams due to the usually, but not always, heavier gauge, but for your layout, it won't make much difference. How you run the cables depends on access and how much protection you want. Under the eaves, even indoor cables are easy to run and can last for years, but can be cut more easily compared to through the attic or basement and are not as attractive.

With a big house that's not a square, you'll probably want more cams to give full coverage. For general coverage where you're not worried about getting a legally identifiable face, like watching the kids, broad coverage of the yard is pretty straightforward. For security, I like to have close coverage of the doors and windows, as well as the general coverage of the yard; sometimes you can do that with one cam, sometimes it takes several.

My front cams on a small house are 2 Hik 2CD2032 3.6mm bullets in the center of the house covering the yard and street, one Dahua 2100 bullet watching the front door with a 6mm lens I added, and an old Vivotek 1MP bullet watching the driveway.

If it were me, I'd settle on a brand, then order a couple of cams in different lens sizes - maybe one of each style in 2.8mm and 3.6 or 4.0mm, then play with them in temporary setups to see the trade-offs between field of view and resolution, as well as nighttime IR coverage. This will give you a good idea of what to add for the remaining cams.

I use a ladder, a towel, and bungee cords to stage cams in positions I'm interested in before I commit and drill holes.

Some people add extra IR illuminators to help light up bigger stretches of yard at night. These usually require dedicted 12Vdc supplies, but can be run from POE extractors as well if you've got extra POE ports.

The Chinese Hiks are under $100, but warranty support is weak. If you buy from an authorized vendor, costs go up, but support is better. Some people buy from recommended Aliexpress vendors due to the cost savings and buy an extra cam or two in case of problems, providing self-warranty.

Thank you! This is so helpful! I appreciate the time you took for the response. I'll definitely take your advice

I think I have the NVR settled (Hikvision) and now just need to choose the Cameras. (Think I am buying everything from http://www.surveillance-video.com , don't know if they are reputable, but prices seem reasonable).

Since I have no experience with Security Cameras, should I choose a Bullet, Turret or Dome for my front porch? And what size lens exactly? Is 6mm going to zoom objects too close?

And I assume I will put Bullet Cameras everywhere else? I definitely need good IR on each camera. Are there good cameras with Extra IR built-in, or do I need to get illumination kits?

Does anyone have experience with the 180 degree cameras? Are they any good? Would like to monitor the sides of my yard with one camera.

I wish someone on this forum with lots of experience lives in Utah. I would pay for their time and suggestions for purchasing and installing.

Of the starter level cams, the turrets have the best IR. Domes can have IR reflection problems, and more people are moving to turrets to avoid this. Strong IR can wash out stuff up close, and smart IR isn't always effective at controlling this.

The mini-bullets are smallest, but can be knocked around more easily, while some people like the looks of turrets better.

Lens size is always a trade-off between how much you want to see and how much detail you get. This is where getting one of each will help figure out what works and where. If you need to zoom a bit to get closer to something, 6mm is good, but most people start with shorter lenses and only get 6mm for specific areas where they need it.

The 180 degree cams can be tricky. They give a great field of view, but not much detail, and the stream needs to be de-warped to get rid of the fisheye distortion if it's a single-sensor cam. If it's multi-sensor, there's more bandwidth used, but better detail from each sensor.