Need security surveillance system

[Omnipotent]

I have a truck lot that I need to get some cameras for.

I need a video surveillance system to set up on the light posts surrounding the facility.

Here is what I need:

Wireless
Waterproof
HD quality
At least 3 units
Needs to feed into a monitor that stores the video for an extended period of time in my office.

I need it to be almost plug and play aside from the wiring aspect. I would set it up, my company would buy. I'm tech savvy, but I'm not an electrician or a tech god.

My budget is around 1000, but I'll spend more.

Any recommendations?

[Darus Grey]

tl;dr, Before I get too much into this, your budget and your need for plug n play basically limits you to the trash tier DVR kits. http://www.swann.com/us/4-channel-sd...-night-cameras

(Note: In no way do I recommend those, but it's about the best you can do with your requirements).


-Wireless

-Waterproof
-HD quality

These pretty much conflict with each other. Wireless cameras are pretty much useless for outdoor use, for a few primary reasons:

#1. HD Cameras are high bandwidth devices, not in the sense that they require a lot of bandwidth individually(an HD camera typically is 5-30mbs of network load), but that each adds a significant burden and then is multiplied by every new camera. One camera will operate fine, 3-5 cameras will flood the capacity of a wireless router. Meaning you need dedicated high powered routers dedicated to just the cameras, or it's going to interfere with any other wireless devices.

#2. Water blocks wireless signals in the 2.4ghz-5ghz channels(all wifi). A 1cm thick pane of water is pretty much enough to destroy the integrity of a wireless signal.

#3. Exterior walls are the thickest of a building, and for similar reasons as #2, heavily compromise the integrity of the wireless signal if you don't have an expert installing and checking this constantly.

#4. You have to run wires to them anyways, they need power.

Surveillance systems that are not reliable are basically useless. Integrity and reliability are the #1 desired traits of good security.

As a professional I would highly recommend against wireless cameras except in a situation where wired is 100% out of the question. And by 100% I mean it's literally impossible to run a wire there(not inconvenient, or too costly, just straight up impossible), I have only encountered a situation like that once in my entire career(There was building A, and 900ft away there was building B. The company however didn't own the land between A and B, so I couldn't just dig a trench and bury the cable and some repeaters, so I had to use some targeted wireless).


With all of that said, you need to evaluate the situation a bit more. Here's a great calculator for visualizing this -> http://www.theiatech.com/calculator.php

"HD" and resolution in cameras means nothing, everything is a function of scene, angle, and distance to calculate pixels/m. If the camera is only 3ft away from the target, then you only need an NTSC/480i camera to see facial details clearly(such as behind a cash register).

So I'd start there. Figure out what you're looking at, how big the scenes are, and what your goal is for each camera. You may come to the conclusion that an "SD" system is perfectly adequate, and roughly $900 cheaper.

Failing anything else, http://www.cctvforum.com/ is an excellent place to read about these things from other professionals.


Source: Security systems have been the primary source of revenue for my consulting business of the last 10~ yrs.

[Ratatapa]

I think the waterproof is mostly for Rain purpose

for the rest i agree!

[Darus Grey]

I think the waterproof is mostly for Rain purpose

for the rest i agree!

Yes. My point was that the cameras essentially won't be reliable in the rain XD (rain patterns create really high packet-loss at best).

[SephYuyX]

Foscam

[Omnipotent]

Thank you for all of your insight. I will read up on the links you send me and I am sure I will be back with more question!

[Senji]

PoE system.

Should be access covers at the base of the light poles. Run wires up the pole to the holes you drilled from a ladder/man lift, any proper install would have conduits running from pole base to pole base to building etc. If they were on their game they would have extra pull strings in them for the future. Unless you have a plethora of tools; probably gonna need a new school electrician. Even if you wanted to cob the job and run tension wires to strap the cat6 cable to overhead.