security cameras dvr

shadyoc

New member
For those who have security cameras, where do you put the DVR?  Since the placement of the DVR determines where all the lines come in, was wondering what is the easiest.  Master bedroom?  Loft?  My neighbors run it into the garage but don't know how you would hardwire the internet cable since there isn't a cat5/6 in the garage.
 
Doesn't it get hot in most garages and bad for the NVR and electronics in general.  Master bedroom closet (if all your cat5/6 wiring is in there) and your NVR doesn't make much noise or bother you when you're sleeping. 

One of the places that most people don't think of is laundry room cabinets as I assume you don't want your HDs to get stolen since you want the footage if robbed, most people don't go looking in laundry rooms.  You'll need to be able to get someone to run the POE wiring from attic down into the cabinet space and electrical.  I think most people go POE if doing a security system with an NVR.  You can get various cameras in 4k, dome and bullet, and never worry about changing batteries, better for facial recognition and to pull in license plates if needed.  Note I don't have a system, but that's what I hear from people who have cameras. 
 
Is there that high of a crime rate in your area to warrant that robust of a system? Sounds like prepping in case of a home invasion robbery! Soylent Red would want one given her present worries about things like that, but all we get on our Ring reports are out of area posts about 2AM "car in driveway door checkers", porch pirates, and neighborhood coyote reports.
 
Soylent Green Is People said:
Is there that high of a crime rate in your area to warrant that robust of a system? Sounds like prepping in case of a home invasion robbery! Soylent Red would want one given her present worries about things like that, but all we get on our Ring reports are out of area posts about 2AM "car in driveway door checkers", porch pirates, and neighborhood coyote reports.

May be overkill in this general area, but if you're protecting a ton of stuff or family, guess it's peace of mind.

For the op, most people say if you start doing this, actual coverage with little to no blindspots, you'll be at least at an 8 camera minimum.  Good luck. 

Sideyard x 2 (1 for each side, maybe more if you want facial recognition if someone busts through a side door or side garage door)
Driveway x 2 (different angles)
Front Walkway x 1
Porch x 1 or 2 (different angles to get their face)
Inside Garage x 1
Backyard Door x 1
Patio/Backyard x 1 or 2+ (depending how big it is)

Then you can move indoors, but if you have large coverage outside you should be ok and maybe you don't want to record everything inside, but you always add more indoor cameras as needed though with a robust system and wiring.
 
Depending on your neighbor, I'd buy a camera to face your house from their home and a second unit to face the neighbors home from your house. They'd be privately linked to the homeowners system (no shared feed) but if all else fails at least someone may get something that your camera may have missed.

My .02c
 
You can definitely work with neighbors, but also for complete security you want a CC system with no cloud or remote access and you can share footage with the neighbors as needed, anything that can be remote accessed can also be hacked.  Also think about battery backup in case the power goes out.

I'm sure there's a lot more to think about, but if you're in Irvine, a Nest or Ring and some wifi cameras and call it a day.
 
My wife has talked about getting an alarm system for years... but I keep saying we don't live in an area that really requires it.

So far I have been right... but YMMV.

If you have high value stuff... don't keep it in the house.

Beyond that, what other reason would someone break in?

But to answer the question, I would keep the DVR in the house but somewhere that no one would bother to look... like the pantry or even in the entertainment center so it looks like another media box. The master closet is good, but that's usually the first place people look for stuff.

Or... just store to the cloud, although cutting your power and internet would kill that (but would also your on prem DVR).
 
You can go crazy trying to plan for every contingency and there will always be a way for someone to get you if they are determined enough.
For me, it came down to the deterrence aspect and I have noticed a difference since replacing my outdoor lights with Kuna (https://getkuna.com/) and the Nest Hello doorbell.
 
In Lake Forest, Baker Ranch, and RSM we're under an epidemic of porch pirate raids and 2am out of garage car door checkers. Almost to a tee, the Ring/Nest cameras are poorly placed, slow triggered and rarely if ever are lit well enough to capture faces. A self-installed system is cost efficient, but do they get the image you want? It's too bad to say this, but camera saturation at the home level is a must. Security lights also are a big deterrent, although with so many close quartered houses and intrusive HOA's can you get lighting installed?

Any reader gone through the HOA process to get a security light put up? If so, it would be a good read to know what the process was like.

My .02c
 
The nest cameras work well if you have the full time clouds service. There is no delay. When I get an alert it shows several seconds of video before the actual activity.

The delay is an issue for the motion activated recording not for full time cloud recording.
 
They need to fight back and get technology. (simple camera set up and not that much) If they have video footage post the video on YouTube/Facebook.
It might be their neighbor or someone in the neighborhood.

Soylent Green Is People said:
In Lake Forest, Baker Ranch, and RSM we're under an epidemic of porch pirate raids and 2am out of garage car door checkers. Almost to a tee, the Ring/Nest cameras are poorly placed, slow triggered and rarely if ever are lit well enough to capture faces. A self-installed system is cost efficient, but do they get the image you want? It's too bad to say this, but camera saturation at the home level is a must. Security lights also are a big deterrent, although with so many close quartered houses and intrusive HOA's can you get lighting installed?

Any reader gone through the HOA process to get a security light put up? If so, it would be a good read to know what the process was like.

My .02c
 
qwerty said:
The nest cameras work well if you have the full time clouds service. There is no delay. When I get an alert it shows several seconds of video before the actual activity.

The delay is an issue for the motion activated recording not for full time cloud recording.

I would just do the above in Irvine.

But if someone really wants to deter the porch pirates, garage checkers, unlocked car doors, throw a couple of domes on your porch and driveway and I'm sure its a huge deterrent as most thieves will just move on since there are so many other houses without cameras.
 
I prefer hard wired.  No wireless in case batteries die when you?re not around.  I like the fact that you can see your entire perimeter and inside garage from your smart phone.  Do people still set up monitor to the NVR these days?

Akkord, do you have a professional installer you have personally used you can recommend?  Bullet or dome?
 
I've had a few systems from back when I lived in a, uh, grittier neighborhood.  They do deter people, though not everyone notices them.  I got more value from entertainment than from security I think.  The stuff people do on the street when they think no one's looking...  Ironically, I never had a problem with theft or porch pirates there, but here in my safe white collar neighborhood I did have 1 package stolen.  IME, the best video in the world isn't going to bring you justice for a porch pirate, unless you or the police just happen to recognize the criminal.  They're not going to waste their time.  After you figure out the camera locations, you can plan the runs, figure out where to punch holes in the wall under the eaves to get to the attic, size the conduit for the # of cables, and then install everything.  Once the cables are in the attic, they can go anywhere.  Drill holes in the headers to get the cables into the walls and drop into whatever room you want.  I had mine running down through the ceiling of a BR/office closet, and just stuck the DVR right outside the closet.  I ran video/USB cables around the bookcase and up to the monitor on my desk.  Learn how to make the connections on the cables ends.  CAT5/6 cable is easier to run than the coax/power combo of the analog stuff, but you usually need to use injectors in the attic.  I don't have a full system on my current house, but the PO had a system and the cables were run from the outside through the wall into a bathroom cabinet, up through the ceiling into the attic, and down through an office wall.  There's a cover plate over a hole in the wall above the desk, so I'm guessing he just had the DVR/NVR on or under the desk.
 
shadyoc said:
I prefer hard wired.  No wireless in case batteries die when you?re not around.  I like the fact that you can see your entire perimeter and inside garage from your smart phone.  Do people still set up monitor to the NVR these days?

Akkord, do you have a professional installer you have personally used you can recommend?  Bullet or dome?

I don't, I've never had a system, wife had wanted one, but I told her it's not worth it in Irvine, though I did some prep work and  picked the brains of friends who have systems.  Dome is better for facial recognition IIRC and you can't tell where it's pointed, but also potentially has a glare problem depending on the lighting at night or if the sun hits it in certain positions, but I believe a mix would be what most people use. 
 
Has anyone done the PRE-plotted camera spaces through the builder?  I believe they make holes and cover it with a panel so that its easier to hire someone after closing to install cameras.  That way, you don't have wires running all over your home. 
 
lovingit said:
Has anyone done the PRE-plotted camera spaces through the builder?  I believe they make holes and cover it with a panel so that its easier to hire someone after closing to install cameras.  That way, you don't have wires running all over your home.

If I were to ever buy another new house I'd have them run the POE to all the places I may want a camera and/or ethernet connectivity, also run the POE to where I would put the NVR- so much easier and cleaner when its at the framing stage.  Yes it'll cost more through the builder, but you don't have to worry about matching paint, stucco, patching drywall holes, wire runs on the walls, etc if done aftermarket.
 
Soylent Green Is People said:
Any reader gone through the HOA process to get a security light put up? If so, it would be a good read to know what the process was like.

I haven't gone through it yet, but I just did my builder's walk-through and they said it's common and usually isn't an issue getting it approved. Heck, even the builders just installed locks on all of our circuit panel doors and put up construction site security cameras because of a recent spike in thieves ripping out circuit breakers.
 
If anyone has recommendations on a trustworthy security camera installation company, please post.  Clean installs that does a great job hiding the wires.  Personally, I haven?t seen very clean jobs when you do it after close of escrow so would be curious if owners had a great experience.
 
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