Surveillance Cameras

Question for all you store owners out there. Any personal recommendations on sureillance systems? We're looking for a 4 camera system that is easy to set up (do it yourself). Need to be able to view all 4 cameras on the monitor at one time and record 24/7. Don't want to spend an arm and a leg, but also understand that "you get what you pay for"

Thanks

Dan,

If you have a Sam's Club nearby, the one around here has several models on display. Complete hookups with VCR, etc. Probably the primary concern will be the quality of the recorder you use.

Probably the biggest pain would be running the cables for the cameras. Wireless would seem to be the solution, but you still need to run power cables anyway, so you really don't gain all that much from them. One of these days maybe someone will come up with wireless power. Batteries just won't work in this type of a situation.

Another thing to consider is protecting the VCR itself from tampering. So you need some sort of vault to have the VCR in.

Running 24/7 is probably a better solution than trying to have the unit event initiated. Reliable triggers can be a problem, and can be defeated if your location is cased by someone who knows what he is doing.

Also, consider getting two parallel systems. One very obvious (which can even be a dummy system), and the other concealed. Anyone breaking in would disable the obvious system and believe they were then in the clear. They make VERY small and concealable cameras now. I guess it depends on whether the cameras are just a deterrent, or you really have a problem where you want to catch the perpetrator.

Thanks. Mostly at the start it's going to be a shop lifting deterent to cover some "hidden" areas of the new store. As I get into higher end stuff I'll be adding a more elaborate alarm/recording system for covering break ins.

http://x10.com

Try them for prices, very reasonable

Mickey Hinkle
The Lizard King Reptiles