Outdoor IP Camera Housing from garden lamps

Recently, a friend of mine who regularly installs IP security systems found he had a surplus of cameras and was looking to get rid of them. I had an uninvited guest relieve me of a few things a couple of years ago and had been considering putting in a number of cameras myself. Guess it was fate.

As I was planning the installation I realized that I wanted at least some of the cameras outside where they would be in the weather. Of course my friend only had indoor cameras. I needed camera housings that were..... 1. inexpensive (the regular housings were more than a hundred bucks more than the camera) and 2. the correct shape (take a look at the picture) . I did what anyone who visits this page would do...I went to my junk box an made a square peg fit into a round hole for the betterment of all humanity. (I have been looking for a way to fit that phrase in)

I began tinkering as a way to make something that is no longer useful, useful again. That is the green component. Taking trash and making something relevant. I thought, if I could save a bunch of money as well, so much the better. All said, this project saved me in upwards of 500 euros which is as green as it gets.
I had thought of running everything on solar power, but that requires solar panels which are not free. We are saving money, remember. Perhaps when another friend of mine has a surplus of solar panels and batteries........

Step 1 The Stuff

Necessity being the mother of invention. I helped birth this idea from some yard lamps I found. A neighbor was having some work done in his garden and wanted to change the wall mount lamps to some post lamps he liked. They were still in good shape. I have since located these steel AURIA lamps (because I am a wonderful person and my neighbor told me) at LEROY MERLIN the hardware/decoration store for about 30 euros. The Velleman ip cameras came from a friend but I think they run about 130 euros give or take. I used standard UTP communication cable for the RJ45 IP connections. My install required several hundred meters of cable. (I had to buy the cable) However the lamp itself only needs about a meter plus the distance to your computer or router.
A few other things you will need:

- #1 & #2 Phillips head screwdriver
- a sturdy pair of side wire cutters
- electrical tape
- soldering iron and solder (optional)
- RJ45 crimping tool (only a few bucks at Radio Shack)
- RJ45 connectors (cheap)

The project took me all afternoon for the first one. The next three took me about 20 min. The build is really not that complicated. If you can install a light fixture, this wont be a problem.

I should also mention that neither I nor this website is responsible if you break, burn, electrocute, stab, cut or otherwise mangle yourself or your project.

Comments

[kcruz7]

Guys,

Anyone knows how to use the "DVS Image Center"? It's the software I was talking about but seems I can't get it to work. I'm a newbie in the IP Cam world and I hope you can help me with it. It's a great software I got for free from tenvis (their site) and it seems useful but the manual ain't helpful. Here's their site (it also includes software for Iphone and Android enabled phones to see your ip cams anywhere):

http://www.tenvis.com/web/tenvisdown.html

Francis

[kcruz7]

Guys,

I found a seller on ebay that sells dirt cheap IR LEDs. I hope it's the right nm... Jaden, please take a look into it and please advice us. You're right, I guess it is best to come up with an IR floodlight for those dark places in your area at night. No one else will know anyway there is IR lighting up the whole place and it consumes very low power.

Great Work! Keep it up Jaden.

Francis

[kcruz7]

There are some concerns here about the infra red reflecting on the dome of the camera. I have read somewhere in a forum and below is the exchange of conversation:

Q1. My camera has night vision function, can I still use it with the dome?
A. No, you have to block up the LED window of your camera to avoid IR beams from being reflected off the transparent cover to the sensor.

Q2. What will happen if I don't block up the LED window?
A. You will see white halos if IR beams emitted from the camera are reflected back into the sensor.

But then again, I am wondering, if you cover or block up the LED (infra red) window of the cam, how will you see at night, right? Just try it out guys and let us know the outcome.

I have become an avid ip cam person since i got my first ip cam last month. I also got a software (some sort of control center) that can handle up to 36 cameras, though I'm still in the study it mode on that. I'm willing to share (as it seems to be unlicensed) and if you guys also have the same, might as well share in this site.

Thanks...

[triumphman]

What is a euro equal to in american dollars? Looks like many countries are not happy with the euro sytstem and are considering going back to their original money, ie.: pound, deutchmark or whatever. I'm glad I hung onto my original pounds, franks, etc...!

[kcruz7]

Try this site for forex conversions (I use it as my basis, it's off by a few cents but somehow you'd get the general idea):

http://finance.yahoo.com/currency-converter/;_ylt=AmpxxtVdLqgYlD2jChpYT1200KB4;_ylu=X3oDMTE4dDg0ZjNhBHBvcwMyBHNlYwNjdXJyZW5jaWVzTmF2BHNsawNjdXJyZW5jeWNvbnY-#from=USD;to=EUR;amt=1

Francis

[kcruz7]

Jaden,

I have found a site that sells low cost cam housing (at least at $37 it's the lowest I found). This is the site (the one with the lowest cm housing cost):

http://securitybestbuy.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=74_157_160&products_id=741

I just dunno if it would fit your/our cams... You have a great site... Keep it up!!!

Francis

[Nostradamus-2012]

Intersting stuff....I love the enclosure. Unfortunately glass lets some of the IR through and the rest bounces back, giving an aweful reflection on the camera sensor; of course glass is more durable and prettier. I wonder if an acylic like PMM or even some cheaper types migh allow enough IR to pass and not reflect back to get a usable image.
I must admit this enclosure looks like a work of art (Kudos to the author)and maybe just disabling the IR source and using the IR sensor can give a decent image. I'm going lamp hunting tomorrow for potential housings, then I'm going to see if I can find some type of acrylic based material to fit; I might have to indugle in the use of silicone to seal it up. I'll keep you posted if I have any luck. Great work Jaden! And thx to eupremier for the tid bit on glass.
:)

[rookie1]

Very good instructable. Well made and understandable. Very good idea.

[eupremier]

Good idea but your apparatus needs some work... those cameras have infra-red night-vision... when the light levels fall at night they'll be activated -and you'll lose your image completely! Reason: Reflection of IR off the glass dome which 'blinds' the camera! Solution: Use an IR sensitive camera (Day/Night camera) -but mount the IR emitters externally! Regards, Greg. http://www.halosecurity.ie

[Jaden123]

The cameras have a config page where the IR can be disabled. I mentioned in an earlier post a floodlight style IR. So far I have not had any problems with the IR blinding the camera image.

[pwnman]

great job, ive been stolen from a few times and now il know if it happens:)

[spectrex]

Nice job, as other have stated night vision is a problem when camera is behind glass. I would be very interested to see new IR solutions, maximum lighting distance. Looking forward to those.

[darlin121]

What a great idea! Using the garden lamps to protect the cameras is a good way to recycle with a purpose. Good job!

[Jaden123]

I had to build a separate infrared flood light for better night vision. I don't really like it. I am still trying to make more of a spotlight that moves with the camera. I'll post when I have it working. Still trying to use old material and that takes longer..

[xboxteen01]

This is awesome. I tried hiding mine in a birdhouse. Birds were not happy. Is there anyway to use night vision in a setup like this without the infrared glare blinding the camera?

[Foxtrot70]

Unfortunately the Webcam is particially blinded by the IR lighting when they are sharing the same housing, but not always. A solution to this would be to use a separate housing for the IR lighting, which has a secondary benefit whereby a large power output can be used to flood an area with IR light and thus give better video of the field by the Webcam. In your case a duplex bird house could be built with cam in one and IR lighting in the other, also use a darkened piece of plexi glass to hide the webcam and the IR leds during daylight hours.

[Weissensteinburg]

That's perfect! I've thought a lot about using webcams for miscellaneous things, but the problem of water proofing always remained. Thanks!