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Is it hard to install a security camera system? 4
It’s not hard to install a security camera system by yourself. If it’s the first time for you it would take a little bit longer. The hardest part of installing a security camera system, and most time consuming, is usually running the wire.
There are two different kinds of security camera systems. One them is an IP security camera system, the other is an analog security camera system. Both camera systems require pulling wire. The IP camera system would require running a network wire such as cat5e or cat6. The analog security camera system requires pulling Siamese coaxial cable which has coaxial cable plus a pair of 2/18 gauge electric wire.
Whats the difference in siamese coaxial cable and cat5e wire?
Network Cable for IP security camera systems
As seen in image above, the Siamese coaxial cable has two wires zipped together. One of the wires is the coaxial cable that transmits video from the security camera to the digital video recorder (DVR). The other wire is to transmit power from the power supply to the camera. The coaxial cable requires BNC connectors on both sides to connect the camera.
BNC connectors plug into the back of the camera and the back of the DVR. Similarly, the power red and black pair require flying power leads. The male flying power lead connects to the back of the camera and the female power lead connects to the power adapter. The power adapter is connected to the electric outlet. Installing both the BNC connector and power lead is not hard, it’s fairly simple.
As seen above the image of a network cable, there are 4 pairs of small 22 gauge wires in one cable. The camera uses one pair for transmitting video signal and another pair for transmission of power over network called POE (Power over Ethernet). The network cables cat5e or cat6 both use rj49 connectors. Most, if not all, IP Cameras are powered by POE. Power is provided and pushed by the network video recorder on the POE switch. Installing the rj49 connector on the network wire is harder than installing the BNC connector and power lead on the Siamese cable.
Most HD analog security cameras run on 12 VDC 1 amp or less. Pan tilt zoom cameras require more amperes and typically run at 3 amperes. For analog HD security cameras a central power supply is required if you are going to install more than 4 cameras. As you can see in the images below of the central power supply and the power plug in; the central power supply is a little more involved and you must be very cautious when using as high voltage 120 vac runs through on the block terminals. The 4 camera plugin adapters are like laptop adapters and are much simpler to install and use.
This short, simple explanation of how security cameras systems install gives you a brief idea on what you are getting yourself into. Keep in mind when you purchase a security camera system, purchase it from a company who offers technical support post sales. Buying an off the shelf a security camera system from a store and not getting the support your need will be difficult.
If you have any further questions feel free to call us at 1-877-926-2288
If you are shopping for the above products here are the links
- Central Power Supply
- Single Security Camera Power Supply
- IP Camera CAT6 Cable
- Siamese Coaxial Cable for analog security cameras
- BNC Twist on connectors for analog security cameras
- RJ45 connectors for IP security cameras
- Power lead connectors for analog security cameras
Security Camera Systems Sales Consultants
Also Read: Body Worn Cameras BWC and Will My New HD Surveillance DVR Work with My Old CCTV Cameras?
such an informative article thanks for sharing
Do most wired security cameras hook up the same? I have a 8 channel system with Digimerge cameras and a Honeywell dvr that doesn’t record anymore, and a few cameras stop working but when I tried disconnecting the 4 cameras that didn’t work, by the time I took 2 of the 4 down, the other 2 started working again.
I guess my question is, can I purchase another 8 channel ssysyem regardless of the brand, can I just hook them up to the wiring I already have?
Thank you for the heads up about buying your own security cameras from a store and how that might not provide you with the security you want. Our new house is quite large, so it makes it harder to be able to keep an eye on everything. To make sure our security is assured, I’ll hire a home security camera expert that can do the setup for us.
I have a Zosi security cameras. I just can’t get it to work. On monitor everything looks good most of the time. Can’t connect to my iPhone in a working way. It pops up but it’s not right. Don’t like the way it shows pictures for all cameras on iPhone itself.