WRS_Mark

Not as dramatic as my first posts in this thread, but here is a novel way to install a dome camera in a beauty salon: Just cut a hole with a knife and drop the sucker in. Very professional. " title="Applause" /> The P&P IP camera is one I installed last night because believe it or not, the dome failed after a week and the local company that did such a magnificent job putting it up there ($150/hour labor rate I'm told) is refusing to come replace it. I really should have taken some pictures of what is going on above the drop tile -scary. Maybe next week when I go back to install a couple more.

Priceless. " title="Applause" />

Absolutely my favorite analog cameras. Very well built with excellent low light capability. Whenever a customer can afford one, I recommend them without hesitation.

Hikvision has a fine hardware compression card and the software has been very good thus far. Nice and stable, very good recording quality, requires fairly basic PC hardware, easy to understand GUI. The only area of concern I have for them is lack of support for Megapixel IP cameras. In that respect, I have found the AverMedia products to be superior so far. And x2 to what Soundy said about the cameras. Good but not great.

PM sent. Made a couple of other suggestions you may want to try as well.

Or just a less-than-great camera. Had the same results when I did a system expansion for a customer. The DVR card had to be ordered from a distributor that I never dealt with before so I tried their cameras as well (made in Singapore, great specs -big oops). Same picture quality as what is shown in the image. Swapped two of the 3 cameras with my normal equipment and all of a sudden the image quality was great. A moderately expensive mistake.

Tip: If you remove your pantyhose and put a couple of wraps around your fingers, you should not suffer as much damage to the skin, Sally. As far as pain in your muscles and ligaments, I recommend you change beverages from mineral water bottles to mini kegs for the purpose of strength training. While I am absolutely sure that compression or even crimp on fittings are wonderful connectors, I have had no issues with the twist ons. Yes, they can be a PITA when it is cold outside (I do outdoor installs in -20c weather. Not because I'm John Wayne, I just like to eat in winter), but they do work when applied properly. Twist em on, add a couple of wraps of electrical tape in the same direction as how you tighten them and you're set. As far as the comment about not having the right tools being the reason for using twist ons, well, that's just ludicrous. A $70 compression tool does not make you a qualified installer. The ability to plan an install, do it in time, following building codes, keep it looking like you did it while sober, overcoming obstacles without having to phone for technical and moral support 17 times a day and finally having the customer say they are happy with what you provided them with after you do a walk through with them, explaining how to use the system and calling them back after a week or two for a simple follow up makes you an installer.

60m distance isn't very far. I have used even cheap RG-59 on those kinds of short runs with never a problem. What is the longest run? 12VDC or 24VAC or both?

That was my first thought as well. Any local auto part supplier should have a set of clips which will hold 4-8 spark plug wires. The only thing which you may have to do is figure out how to fasten it to a surface. Can you use an adhesive?

I have Averdigi running on my iPhone. It works but there certainly is room for improvement. The worst part is that you must re enter the IP address every time you open the app. Silly. But it is free.

I going to install some ACTi 5611's in standard weatherproof housings next month at a potash mine. Just wondering if anyone has a suggestion for a housing which will stand up better to salt water, salt spray and just a lot of salt? I was considering spraying the housing with a coat of silicone just to help protect the finish but figured there might be something out there that you folks who live near the ocean or have done installs in similar conditions could recommend. Thanks a lot.

I ended up going with the aluminum housing. The customer is going to monitor the housings and we will deal with anything that comes up if it comes up. Having said that, I will be sure to offer the stainless units in the future should I find myself in a similar situation. Appreciate the words of wisdom that you left in your post.

That is why I went with this to manage voltage: http://www.powerstream.com/dc2.htm The PST-DC/2812-8 model to be exact. Works beautifully. The only possible problem I can see with it is that it will output 12.08VDC right until the battery output fell to 10.1V. Car batteries do not like being fully discharged and will require replacement sooner than normal because of this but my intention was for a slightly different application than using the device as a mobile DVR. Of course, if you wished to really do it right you would install a small marine battery to keep the DVR operating and have a switch installed to prevent the system from drawing upon the car's battery when the vehicle is shut off.

Just out of curiosity, have you considered running the 1304sata directly off the battery? I tried that last June using a 2.5" 250GB WD Scorpio Black HD and "Step Up, Step Down" voltage regulator (12.08VDC constant output). Anyway, the DVR ran for over 2 days on a small, half charged car battery (cameras powered by another source). Seems that might be a good way to go.

Here is the reply I received from the ACTi factory rep: "We have had very good experience with D-Link and Cisco PoE switches. D-Link is more price competitive though. See if your preferred distributor carry D-Link or Cisco PoE switches. I’d stay away from Netgear PoE switches as I have heard several complaints from our customers about these not supplying enough power for each port." I did follow that up with another question just to get a few more details and ended up convinced that Netgear was not the way to go. But hey! If it works for you then great.

The factory ACTi rep I spoke with strongly recommended against using Netgear PoE's. Go with the Cisco. What model of ACTi camera are you going to be installing?

I have a system running two 6480's with the GA-EP45-UD3P motherboard beside me right now. Operates beautiful. Wish the system was mine to keep but it is going to a customer next week.

Well I went back a few weeks ago and found where exactly those live wires terminated: Yep. -That is an indoor surge protector. Then last week I went back and replaced all but one of the old cameras in -20c weather. Came upon this gem: I accidentally broke the lens. Combined with the "Half Bushnell", I will be building a glass case to house both cameras for future generations to marvel at.

Guess what? It's the "middle man" who is the one installing the system. It is the "middle man" who is providing the technical support. It is the "middle man" who comes out and performs the quote. Most of the professional installers on this forum who provide volumes of absolutely invaluable knowledge are "middle men". Seems the "middle man" plays a pretty important role in this business. That being said, it pays to shop around, ask for references (the most overlooked yet most crucial aspect when picking out someone to perform the job) and if you find a good one who is competitive on pricing, go with them. As I explained in the previous post, just don't expect the equipment to be priced comparable to Ebay. Or Walmart.

Or maybe the same customer will not pull the same crap at Walmart because he/she is going to have a heck of a time finding anyone working there who could put together something as complex as a good CCTV system. Anyone can install a four camera system they buy at Costco or any other retailer but to do it right, to know what will work best for what application and who can properly install the system requires someone with knowledge and experience. Comparing a big box retailer to a reputable local dealer/installer is not the way to look at it. The retailer is not going to come to your home or business, assess drawings, check lighting conditions, distance to target, point out special considerations, etc., and then quote for you a custom system which will work based on experience and understanding of CCTV systems. Instead, they are going to point out the different products they sell and read the specs to you and give you a price. If that suits you, then great. I cannot speak for everyone out there but generally my markup on hardware accounts for the time invested on average with making calls, doing an on site assessment (even at places sometimes a couple of hundred miles away), spending time figuring out exactly what will work best within the customers budget, writing up the quote, ordering the equipment, tracking shipping, fighting at times with customs and then delivering the equipment. That usually gets me to break even and the labor rate is my profit. So yeah, I can understand someone who doesn't give all of the minute details when performing a quote because that someone will not be in business for very long.

$5k is a pretty decent budget so finding a system which will work shouldn't be a problem. Are you planning to go with any cameras outside or just inside?

The 230EX, if it is from cctvwholesalers.com is no longer available. The 832EX is a great camera but with a 2.8mm lens you will not get a great picture if you are looking to cover the entire bar based on the dimensions you gave in your last topic just because you will be trying to cover too large an area witha single camera. Go with 4-6 of them and you will be smiling.

It's the nature of the business though. Fortunately, I am pretty lucky to have a customer base that is pretty decent about all that -probably due to my geographical location a hour away from Edmonton. But regardless, the way I look at it is that characters like that usually end up being more of a pain in the long run than the amount of money I would have made on the job would justify. One thing I am noticing more and more of is that I am getting calls for system repairs and replacements of the junk sold at certain sites and at certain "Big Box" stores which makes it easier to convince business owners that going for the cheapest price isn't the best practice.

I would just add that screwing a zip tie to a surface is probably the safest way to go. As mentioned above, if you have to move that cable you might have some fun pulling the staples without accidentally causing some damage to the cable.