How many of you have a system installed in your shop and what kind of system/how many cameras? We have an older system with four cameras and a tape recorder. In the past year I’ve had two different companies present a new security package that increases the number of cameras (digital) and switches to the use of a DVR recorder that records so many hours onto a hard drive. An advantage of this system that I really like is that I would be able to log onto my home computer and watch what is going on in the shop while I’m not there if want to. The cost of these were the only drawback compared with what I currently have. What I have gets the job done and I’ve used it to my advantage numerous times.
Just wondering what everyone else thoughts were on security cam systems and what, or if, you use a system.
Don’t pay too much, this stuff is dirt cheap to build. A few hundred bucks would be a good target. A video card, some cat-6 cameras, a $80 1-TB drive, and almost any semi-new computer.
Is there separate software available that would allow me to view the cameras from home?
I have no idea how any of this actually works, so a little more info would be greatly appreciated or a source that I could use to base a system off of.
You can view this system over the internet from any browser. The hard drive is on the small side but you can easily upgrade it to 1TB. It doesn’t include the monitor, but those are cheap these days.
My thoughts are that you should definitely have a visible camera system in your store. It doesn’t have to be High Def (which most security companies will try to sell you) but your employees or a potential thief casing the joint needs to be well aware that the cameras are there and recording.
We have a 3 camera system in my shop. I will start by saying that my hubby is the one who got it all together and keeps it running. With watching him do it, I KNOW you have to have some technical savvy. That being said, I am sure you know someone, or know of someone who knows someone that can get it running for you. We purchased some older cameras off ebay that were once used for conference video set up that are probably 10 years old. It isnt the camera’s so much that allow us to watch the feed online, but rather the ability to remote connect to our computer from anywhere online. It is also the software that allows it to record 24/7 we run a 3 camera recording for 72 hours that tapes over after the 72 hours. I would ask around to family, or friends that knows anyone with technical abilities that run with hardware and software. Even if you cant find anyone, spending some time researching online you can purchase the software that should be easy to use. Look for used camera’s etc. Online, ebay, craigslist etc. But not knowing you and so on, maybe the cost of having a company in is worth just paying the monthly amount, it’s a matter of figuring out, what its worth to you, and what your time getting it set up is worth to you. We work on the cheap as much as possible, and I have an in-house tech junkie, so doing it ourselves worked, that being said, there is a place sometimes to get things done by other people, it is always an individual decision
We bought “plug and play” system from Sams for about $1800. It’s a 4 camera system upgradable to 8 cameras. Ran the wires ourselves, plugged in the cameras, a few set ups on the DVR computer (with a couple of calls to Comcast and the camera company) and now we can sit at home and see exactly what’s going on when we’re not there. The other big benefit is when the alarm goes off at 3am we no longer have to get dressed in the middle of the night and worry on the drive over if there is any damage or theft. We just look on the camera and can see if we even need to leave the house. Also great when we’re on vacation. Just take the laptop and see how they are handling things when they think we’re not looking.
