Thunderstorm and Lightning

[CCTVmember2011 0]

Hello.

 

My 8-channel digital video surveillance recorder lost two channels during a thunderstorm.

 

A lightning flash caused two channels to white out and then go black, with the 'video loss' message displayed.

 

There is no damage to the physical, external security cameras, and the issue seems to be with the recorder. The surveillance system is on a surge protector.

 

Has this happened to anyone before? What did you do?

 

Can I repair this myself? Or are there no solutions other than buying a new recorder?

[blake 0]

So have you switched the 2 cameras on those two channels to known good channels to make sure those two cameras aren't bad?

[CCTVmember2011 0]

Yes. I did. The cameras are working perfectly.

[blake 0]

Sounds like those two channels are just shot.I dunno if there is anything short of buying another dvr and a better surge protector.What type of surge protector are you using? Post a photo of it.

[Fiona 0]

A couple of thoughts:

 

What is the brand name of the DVR?

 

I presume you were using all 8 channels?

 

As a general rule, it is pragmatic to build redundant capacity into any system - cameras; PCs; DVRs etc. By 'redundant capacity' I am suggesting that you must always anticipate technical failures irrespective of the cause. If the DVR had, say, double the necessary channels, thereby some redundant capacity, the loss of two channels would have been irrelevant to the immediate operational capacity of the system.

 

By the way, I hope it is a DVR that is popular with members on this forum. If it is, you can be certain that such an odd failure will rouse the curiosity of those loyal to that brand.

[ssnapier 0]

You could always put lightning traps on each channel, but the key to any sort of protection system is a good (tested and verified) ground.

 

Here is what the lightning trap looks like, they typically cost between $15 and $40 depending on size:

 

[PaulsonLaw 0]

nice inline surger btw!

 

 

Sounds like you cooked those channels... The good new is you can buy a newer DVR w/out a HD on the cheap. EXP is a Zmodo & Provantage has a 16ch system, no HD, for $220usd.

 

Also, see my post, "GFI that DVR" as I just had a pole get hit the other day & all is well....

 

Good luck....

[SEANHAWG 1]

yeah it doesnt matter what DVR you have, if you receive a surge up the coax, its gonna fry those channels. Putting surge protectors on each channel at the head end like ssnapier showed will help.

[Sawbones 0]

Hard to stop all the surges.

 

And in a direct hit, you're probably toast anyway.

[Numb-nuts 1]

Next DVR you buy get more channels than you need so you have some spare ones in the event of another lightening strike.

 

Question. How do you protect yourself from lightening strikes when using baluns and Cat5 ?

Never really thought of this....

[fa chris 0]

Next DVR you buy get more channels than you need so you have some spare ones in the event of another lightening strike.

 

Question. How do you protect yourself from lightening strikes when using baluns and Cat5 ?

Never really thought of this....

 

Something like this: http://www.ditekcorp.com/product-details.asp?ProdKey=59

[ronp 0]

We had a wicked storm go through yesterday and I lost 5 of my 10 cameras (besides my 55" Samsung LCD TV).

 

The DVR has 16 channels so I swapped out the cameras to other channels and proved it's the cameras that are toast, not the DVR channels. One camera is dead-shorted and takes down its output on the power supply when plugged in. The other four will light up their IR LEDs but there's no video output. The hit cameras were scattered around the house - crawlspace, basement, front door, back yard and don't share a common trunk bundle back to the media closet.

 

I'm thinking it was ESD or EMP rather than a direct electrical hit and power surge. We have a whole-house surge suppressor in the breaker box and the DVR, camera P/S, and TV (not monitoring the CCTV) are on their own surge suppressors.

 

Anyone have any thoughts or experience? Anything I can do to prevent this in the future?

 

We have a high deductible so, oh well...

 

Ron

[fa chris 0]

We put surge suppressors on any copper going outside, all your coax, power, data, or cat5.

 

http://www.ditekcorp.com/product-subcategory2.asp?ProdCatID=16

http://www.protectiongroup.com/Surge/Data-Line-Protectors/Application/CCTV-Surge-Protector

 

I'm don't know the MSRP of these but both of these manufacturers put out solid units, you can probably find cheaper though. You could also try grounding any conduit or junction boxes around.

[ronp 0]

I've read elsewhere that there should there be grounded surge suppressors at both ends of the cable to protect both the cameras and the DVR. That makes sense in theory, but what about in practice? If I grounded the coax at both ends won't that set up a ground loop issue? I see that some protection devices don't go to ground, they're just inline. I'd question how that could work since to shed the lightning charge it needs to be sent somewhere...

 

A couple more things about my incident:

- One channel of my DVR did blow out

- One lost camera was 150' away from the house mounted on a post (this is the one that also lost a channel on the DVR)

- Four lost cameras were mounted to the side of the house

- Four other cameras mounted on the house are fine

- One other camera 500' from the house is fine

 

If grounded lightning arrestors are necessary at the cameras I guess I'll just have to risk it in the future since there's really no good way to attached one at each camera on the side of the house and run a ground wire down the wall to a ground rod. The remote ones, though, I can do. And, I can put arrestors at the DVR.

[Birdman Adam 0]

Technically, open up any outlet and tap into that ground (the bare cu wire of course). That will give you a decent ground as long as your house was wired properly and they drove the ground good.

[ronp 0]

Should I use two suppressors/arrestors per coax - one at the camera and one at the DVR? I've seen references to doing that, otherwise they aren't both protected. It makes sense that if lightning (not a direct hit) charges the line then a suppressor at each cable end would shunt the charge to ground before it gets to the device.

 

On that note...I see suppressors/arrestors that don't have a ground lead, they just hook inline. That seems worthless to me since the lightning charge has to go somewhere. Even if the arrestor is sacrificial and opens up when hit a large charge could "jump the gap" and get to the DVR or camera.