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Here2BeBad

Want a Sanity check please…!!

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I just wanted to get a sanity check to see if I’m possibly forgetting something, or if anyone has a better suggested on HOW to set up the wiring up better.

 

For starters, I have a bi-level house. I was planning on locating the PC on the bottom floor of the house in a cubby hole behind the stairs. Its nice and dry & cool the, Plus I have easy access to run my cables.

 

I ran an 1.5 PVC pipe from the attic to the laundry room. Here I am planning on running the pre-fab co-ax cables from the camera’s into the attic, down the 1.5 PVC into the laundry room and over thru the ceiling to the area where the PC is located.

 

I’m a going to mount the Bullet camera’s just under the flood lights which are located on either corner of the house. My intention was to run the co-ax cable thru the same hole as the flood light wiring so that I can avoid additional drilling.

 

Does anyone see any issues with this setup so far…??

 

The one additional question that I did have… I want to fabricate a covert bracket to mount another bullet camera on and place it in the shrubbery for a short period of time (say a week or two). Last year I had an issue with the kids the night or two before and after Halloween. My question is, can I use the pre-fabed Siamese cable outside and tuck it in behind the bushes like Christmas lights..??

 

Thanks for your help

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I would be careful running the video cable too close to the high voltage, really want to keep it at least 1 foot away from that to avoid the chance of interference.

 

Rory

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I would be careful running the video cable too close to the high voltage, really want to keep it at least 1 foot away from that to avoid the chance of interference.

 

Rory

 

Rory... Thank you for the feedback. I really didn't consider "a 12/2 run" to the flood light "high voltage", but if that's the case, I'll have to make the necessary adjustments.

 

What is your thoughts about my other quetsion...??

 

"The one additional question that I did have… I want to fabricate a covert bracket to mount another bullet camera on and place it in the shrubbery for a short period of time (say a week or two). Last year I had an issue with the kids the night or two before and after Halloween. My question is, can I use the pre-fabed Siamese cable outside and tuck it in behind the bushes like Christmas lights..?? ""

 

Thank you again, Rick

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I have been on service calls (new client) where they have used prefab video/power cables outdoors.

 

One had it ran from a building to a 4X4 pole with a camera, and a pan/tilt motor. It worked fine on the pole.

 

The ones outdoors were through concrete block then ran to the front under the eave, and the others would go to a carport. These worked fine from what I saw. I think there are more problems with the bnc to rca adapters then with the wire itself.

 

Would I recommend running prefab? No! Have I been guilty of it in the past? Yes!

 

I would recommend the RG 59 for outdoor runs!

 

In your case the the prefab wire should be fine as you are only doing it for temporary setup.

 

I back Rory up 100% about seperating the 120 VAC, (or what ever your power company uses).

1. Interference issues!

2. In case of somekind of minor disaster, and both wires are punctured, and the high voltage travels to your DVR, and blows out the DVR. I say hell with the camera, you can always buy a new one, but DVRs? They are expensive, and I would not want to have to buy another one.

 

If you have to run both sets of wires next to each other, and you have no other alternative, then run the camera wires in some conduit. Metal prefered to help with interference problems.

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Personally I doubt there is a problem with a foot or so close proximity of coax to lighting-level power AC, but I'm sure these guys have a lot more field experience than I do!

 

I used baluns and cat5e cable for one camera in my home installation as the cable needs to run 1" away from an incoming 240 v line over 8 ft. I was quite surprised to see no visible evidence of interference with a monochrome camera.

 

Just another opinion...

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You tring to catch moths breeding?

 

 

Mount it quite a bit farther away, for covert just drill a hole in the soffit near an attic vent. Make the hole offset one of the rafters to allow the camera to mount to it and look through the hole. Silicon and back to the beer.

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It also depends on the country or state you live in, as many have wiring regulations that specify things such as minimum specifications of wires, distances between low and high voltages etc.

 

The wiring regs can be a pain, but they are there to protect life and property... Anyone doing a professional install should always follow them to the letter, or they could face hefty punishment if things go wrong.

 

Even home users should be aware of any rules and regs in the area they live, for example in the UK it is now illegal to do many types of elctrical DIY work in the home, without proper certification etc.

 

Also, say you are doing a home install, and you route high voltage wiring somewhere unsafe, or in a unsafe manner, and at some point down the line, a fire occurs. If the house burns down, after a investigation, if they find out it was down to wiring installed not to safe standards, you can be fairly sure the insurance company wont pay up...

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having the low voltage wiring in the same electrical / fixture box as your outdoor lighting would definitely be a violation of the National Electrical Code. All states have amendments to the NEC, but keeping low voltage out of electrical fixture / junction boxes is consistent. Most importantly is the fire hazard should 120 volts energize wiring designed for low voltage. Then there is also the reasons Kensplace mentioned.

 

Unfortunately the NEC and most Electrical Inspectors have no concerns about low voltage wiring running near high voltage wiring. They just don't want to see them under the same staples, pulled through the same holes over any distance, or within the same box where connections / splices are taking place as mentioned above.

They are inspecting for fire dangers, and often have have no clue if the low voltage wiring will function correctly because of it's close proximity with high voltage wiring.

I would not be concerned if you had to run the video cabling close to high voltage wiring for a foot or two at one point. If your concerned about it, separate the DVR's power cord away from the video cables running into it to compensate.

 

CollinR's note about insects being drawn to the lights is something to consider, especially if your going to utilize video motion detection.

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A minimum separation distance of two inches should be fine between low voltage (LV) and high voltage (HV) cabling ( NEC 820.52(A)(2) ). I do this all the time for data runs. Of course, it is always best to sepearate them as much as possible.

 

Just make sure that if you must to cross a high voltage line, you do so at 90 degrees (perpendicular) and never run low voltage and high voltage in the same conduit (you are essentially creating a transformer when you run high and a low voltage wires parallel to each other and sufficiently close together).

 

Besides the physics lesson, no one expects to be electrocuted when fiddling with coax or other LV cable, so don't be mean by allowing for that possibility! Also, consult electrical codes and regulations specific to you locality as well as the NEC previously referenced before beginning your project.

 

 

Hope this helps.

 

Josh

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According to Blue Jeans cable (http://www.bluejeanscable.com/articles/inwallrating.htm),:

"Running Signal and Power Together

There are two good reasons not to run signal-carrying cables and power lines in a conduit or other enclosure together. The first is, simply, that it's a great way to get a lot of EMI into your signal chain. The second is, as you've probably guessed by now, that it's against NEC requirements. Video and audio cables may be run in raceways with one another, but NEC prohibits running video in the same "raceway, compartment, outlet box, junction box, or other enclosure[]" with power circuits, NEC 820.52(A)(1)(b), with minor exceptions, and prohibits running audio in the same "cable, cable tray, compartment, enclosure, manhole, outlet box, device box, raceway, or similar fitting" with power circuits, NEC 725.55(A), unless separated by a barrier. Coaxial cable is required to be separated by two inches from power cable, unless either it or the power cable is enclosed in a raceway or they are separated by a "continuous and firmly fixed nonconductor," NEC 820.52(A)(2)."

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after reading this topic, question - what about this cable then? Its LV and coax.Cant post picture, ebay uk item ID: 360001213129

 

Will it still interfere ?

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