Forum Discussion

NorthOrSouth's avatar
NorthOrSouth
Explorer
Jun 27, 2015

Security system instead of RV specific system?

Y'all convinced me not to bother salvaging my old Sony backup camera so I'm looking at new systems.

Then I came across this at Costco yesterday:

http://www.costco.ca/Q-See-4-Channel-960H-Security-System-with-500GB-HDD-and-4-1000TVL-Cameras-with-Night-Vision.product.100218140.html

We boondock a lot so we live with the blinds closed most of the time and Im always wondering whats going on when I hear people near our rig (esp with a classic toad).

The appeal here is that this system actually runs on 12v with a AC to DC adapter so wiring in to straight 12v would be easy. It records which is nice. And it can be display on our big flatscreen not just a little 7" dash monitor so my thought was it would make a great backup camera on the road AND security system when parked.

The clarity is excellent. PLUS the external cameras have a ton of infrared LEDs and they are rated for 100' of viewing range at night where most RV specific systems are 50' or even 30'. Motion detection mode when we're away from the rig would be helpful.

I would mount the two bullet cams front and back and put the dome cameras under the mirror struts so they would double as lane change cameras. When parked we would have 360 degree security at all times.

Price is decent and Costco sells good quality stuff. Two year warranty and concierge service for setup if needed.

Why not?
Class A
  • ArchHoagland's avatar
    ArchHoagland
    Explorer
    Jun 28, 2015
    Had a system like that from Sam's club. Took it back after a month. Great during the day but night time had some issues.

    Infrared draws bugs at night so it looks like it is snowing outside.

    Bugs draw spiders so every couple of days I had to clear off the webs.

    Caught on video a neighbors car being broken into at 0130 in the morning...all we could tell was that the thief was driving an old light colored Ford Ranger.

    The only way to get good night coverage is to add outdoor flood lights.

    There is a time line across the bottom of the screen and when movement is detected it puts a red marker up. Ha...the bugs create red markers all night long so trying to find the break in was very time consuming as I had to review a lot of footage.

    During the day birds and a ton of other things trigger the markers.
  • NorthOrSouth's avatar
    NorthOrSouth
    Explorer
    Jun 28, 2015
    Totally agree. I actually wasn't even considering using the mounts they come with. My first thought was that I'd have to build my own housing to keep them aligned and protected. Not hard for the rear view since there's already a mount built in to the back wall, but the side mounts could be tricky. Since they're cylindrical, possibly mount them inside a chrome pipe that gets bolted to the bottom of the mirror mounts?

    As for the front mount, my Monaco is old school enough to have a remote control spotlight up there, so mounting a camera onto that would be kind of cool. Not only full directional control but instant light to get clear shots at night. Now if I could just mount a BB pistol on it too the crows at my favorite parking spot would have a little present with their 5 am chatter :)
  • Raist11's avatar
    Raist11
    Explorer
    Jun 28, 2015
    I've been looking at a security system for the house for some time now. My only thought on this, my number one concern is so often the cameras on display have broken swivel points. The camera sits there unable to stay upright. I would be concerned about the cameras standing up to the strong winds from driving down the road. I'm sure the dome ones would stand up better but the regular cameras I'm not so sure about.

    Perhaps do some research on how they hold up in tornado areas that get strong winds? I really like this idea, I just wonder how well they would survive on the road.
  • DSDP_Don's avatar
    DSDP_Don
    Explorer
    Jun 28, 2015
    Actually not a bad idea. If you had an overhead TV, you could use two side cameras, rear camera and forward facing roof camera. You would have quite a view of your surroundings while driving. It's illegal to use the overhead TV while driving for watching a show, but as a camera system, it might be legal.

    You could even put a camera under the front bumper facing backwards and see what your tires are doing. Lots of options with all those cameras.
  • NorthOrSouth's avatar
    NorthOrSouth
    Explorer
    Jun 27, 2015
    Thanks Executive! That one has a remote which isn't mentioned in the Costco ad.

    Slight differences: Cameras are lower resolution and no mention of motion detection feature. But a far better price.

    You lucky 'Mericans. Amazon.com is always three times the selection and at least 1/3 cheaper than amazon.ca I have to drive 8 hours to a postal outlet in MT to collect all my US orders and even with fuel costs it's a better deal. We Canadians get hosed!
  • Executive45's avatar
    Executive45
    Explorer III
    Jun 27, 2015
    Ditto with rgatijnet1...lots of 'puffing' goes on with camera claims. We use a four camera system with our vacation home. Daytime is good, night time only if the crooks turn on the lights...:W.....Dennis
  • rgatijnet1's avatar
    rgatijnet1
    Explorer III
    Jun 27, 2015
    Having wired two different security systems on our houses, all I can say about the night time range is that it is way optimistic. You may be able to see a lit match at 100' but for facial recognition or to even tell it is a human, you are probably looking at more like a 20' range. Maybe a little more if there is some outside light source or during a full moon.
    I use mine to monitor the stick house when we are on the road in the RV.

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