Advice on Security Camera Package for Unattended House

OldBugger on 12/06/2021 - 15:03

Details:

  • House has power but that's all. No internet connection but does have mobile coverage.
  • It is checked every weekend otherwise it's unattended.
  • Need a few cameras either inside looking out through windows (less chance of them being taken) or could do outside under eaves. Rather not get into the roof but can do.
  • ideally will be 4k with motion detection vehicle/person
  • needs night vision
  • ideally be able to receive motion detection alerts to mobile
  • under $1000

Looking at reolink but open to others.

Advice and links to products appreciated as I'm confused with all the different models. Any advice on internet setup (if needed) welcomed.

Background: asking on behalf of an elderly friend who is quite ill and living in between hospital and friends while she recovers. Her neighbour has been stealing her plants. Police were called and found some on their verandah. Neighbour said they didn't know anything about it. And supposedly that's all you need to get out of stealing these days, even though this is the second time, and are already known to police 🤷‍♂️.

Anyway, the effort may not be worthwhile even with footage but thought I'd investigate.

Cheers

Electrical & Electronics Security Camera Security System

Comments

  • pharkurnell on 12/06/2021 - 15:08
    +1

    midnight trip to steal the plants back would be step 1.
    cant help with the rest.

    • OldBugger on 12/06/2021 - 15:10

      Got them back. Well, most. Police helped with that bit 👍

  • bdl on 12/06/2021 - 15:34

    Motion activated spotlights also a nice deterrent, give them a tan if they try to steal

    • OldBugger on 12/06/2021 - 15:37

      They are, although the globes disappeared recently too. Thanks for the reminder, I need to get her some new ones

      • bdl on 12/06/2021 - 15:54

        Led globes + couple of drops of araldite :)

        • OldBugger on 12/06/2021 - 16:04

          Ah, up there for thinking…. 👍

  • Geillis on 12/06/2021 - 15:53
    +1

    Does her insurance company know the house is unattended? It would affect her cover

    • OldBugger on 12/06/2021 - 16:05

      I'm not sure on those particulars

  • Transient on 12/06/2021 - 16:59
    +3

    Regarding camera placement, if you have cameras inside but pointing outside through windows, I think you'll find problems with certain motion activated sensors and night vision / infra red as the glass tends to either act as a barrier or reflective surface. Some people have had luck with having the infra red source outside however that involves a lot more wiring, etc. Once you buy the cameras, try testing it through the windows before fixing it in place in case you need to mount them outside to make them effective.

    Camera choice (focal length) also depends on distance and width you want to monitor. Also whether you want video capture to SD card on camera or on a separate DVR.

    • OldBugger on 13/06/2021 - 11:24

      Thanks

      • Transient on 13/06/2021 - 12:33

        Popular choices are Dahua, Hikvision and Reolink. The first two are also sold in Au by resellers with warranty. There are also niche brands more aimed at the home market with higher prices such as Nest and Arlo. I feel Swann are a bit overpriced and do not provide the same resolution at the same price point as others, but are much more widely available and regularly go on sale. If the surveillance distance is not too far, 1080p or 2K resolution should be a minimum. Price increases with resolution. Video quality can differ between different manufacturers at the same resolution. Check out youtube for some examples of the different resolutions at difference distances, eg: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJdt87nc5Xg https://reolink.com/4k-vs-1440p-vs-1080p-vs-720p-security-ca…

        Also, night video quality of a camera needs to be checked as can be B&W and more pixellated. Movement activated sensor lights can also act as a deterrent as well as providing improved lighting for videos.

        • OldBugger on 13/06/2021 - 12:36

          Will check them out. Appreciate the detail

  • thatonethere on 12/06/2021 - 17:11

    Maybe put the plants inside for a while?

    Cameras won't stop theft. If you can't see the face, if police don't recognise it because they have a cap or face mask nothing they will do. Probably steal the cameras too.

    • OldBugger on 13/06/2021 - 11:26

      Yeah that was my first thought. Do all this work and police still can't do much with the footage

  • bobvegas on 12/06/2021 - 17:22

    You want cameras that can detect people because if they just detect movement it will annoy you with alerts in no time, and you'll turn alerts off.

    It may depend on your situation, if cameras are looking at something where they should be no movement at all then it will be ok. Some cameras are even fooled by shadows and many by tree movement

  • holdenmg on 12/06/2021 - 18:32
    +1

    Hi,

    Maybe consider having Mail Held or Redirected so Mail isn't hanging out of the Letterbox.
    https://auspost.com.au/receiving/manage-your-mail/redirect-h…

    Get a "No Junk Mail" tag and a Padlock for the Letterbox from Bunnings.

  • boomramada on 13/06/2021 - 08:54

    Having a camera not gonna fix any dodgy activities.
    1) let insurance company knows
    2) few random night lights inside
    3) clean letter box
    4) outside decoy camera may ditter
    5) motion lights outside
    6) even if you have camera, make sure to do some remote back up or trigger notification

    • OldBugger on 13/06/2021 - 11:30

      Was more looking to catch them and prove to police it was them. But the feeling is it won't matter anyway. People do what they gotta do.

      • boomramada on 17/06/2021 - 15:55

        Police would say, here is the incident number, claim it off the insurance.
        They only care, if its a arson or something critical. At the point of arson, you probably need to backed up to a remote location.

  • psdillon on 13/06/2021 - 13:45

    For identification/recognition, you generally need high zoom cameras, which escalates the cost quickly. For your goals, you could easily spend $4k to do it properly, or make a lot of compromises and hope that it works.

    You could buy a construction security camera for about $2500, which is a 4G pan/tilt/zoom camera on a tall pole with solar charger.

    If I were you, I'd install 1 or 2 motion sensor spotlights, and 1 or 2 old mobile phones running a security camera app like Alfred. It might be enough for you, and if not you'll start to get a good idea of what works and what doesn't work and what kind of cameras you'll need.

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