Deciding to organize additional security for your home, first you need to understand where to install video surveillance cameras. The effectiveness of the entire system depends on how competently they are placed. 

Viewing angle, location of outlets, ease of maintenance – all this affects where and how to install video surveillance cameras. We will tell you about all the features of their placement right now.

Features of installing video surveillance cameras in an apartment building

If you want to be sure that your house is all right, even under the condition that you are several thousand kilometers away from it, then you can’t think of anything better than installing video surveillance. Modern cameras allow you to monitor your children, their nannies, tutors or your elderly parents from computers, phones and tablets. But it’s also important to know where to install surveillance cameras so you don’t accidentally break the law.

Potential users of video surveillance systems often worry about whether they can be installed in the stairwell. If in a private house or in its yard you are entitled to do whatever you want, in case you live in an apartment building, there are a few nuances to consider when installing surveillance cameras.

Installing video surveillance in the entryway may be considered legal under the following conditions:

• You can only mount a camera above the door of your apartment.
• The camera must not be able to see the interior of neighboring apartments when you open their doors.
• Contrary to popular belief, it is not at all necessary to hang a sign warning of the filming.
• You do not have the right to disguise the camera under objects, it must be visible.
• Video surveillance in the entryway should not have a shooting mode at night.

Compliance with the above conditions allows you to be confident in the legality of the installation of video surveillance system, no one has the right to demand its dismantling without an appropriate court decision. If someone nevertheless gets to the camera and takes it off, it will be a reason to sue the culprit.

As an alternative it is suggested to use the so called video eyeholes or video intercoms. Then you will not have to think about where to install video surveillance cameras, the option will be only one – in the front door.

Installing video surveillance cameras in the apartment

The first thing to think about when designing your own video surveillance system is what purpose you are pursuing. The purpose of use determines what kind of technical solution is more suitable.

Here are the main reasons why people buy and install cameras:

• To monitor the babysitter’s work.
• To check what hired workers, like maintenance workers or cleaners, are doing at home.
• Often people want to be able to watch over elderly parents or children.
• Some are driven by a desire to keep an eye on their significant other or other relatives living with them.
• To protect their belongings from burglars.

The first and most necessary condition is often the installation of a camera that “looks” at the front door. This will allow you to monitor everyone who enters or leaves the house. So you can find out, for example, whether the nanny drives guests while you are away and how much time the maintenance workers spend working and how much time drinking tea.

Is permitted when the camera, aimed at the entrance, has a high resolution that allows you to see the faces of those who come to the door, and the rest of the camera can be with a lower resolution, because a little less high-quality picture will still be enough to understand what was doing people who came into the house. 

If we talk about the number of cameras, then each room is enough for one. It is very important to consider the viewing angle of the device when designing the system. The known rule of thumb is that the wider the viewing angle of the camera, the lower the detail in the picture. Fisheye lenses have a very wide field of view, but you certainly will not see the details in their images.

A kind of standard are cameras with a viewing angle of approximately 90 °. If the device is mounted in a corner of the room, this is almost always enough. You can pick up a book, stand where you decided to install a surveillance camera, and open it, drawing an imaginary boundary of what the device will see and what it will not, to determine the required viewing angle of the camera.

There are two ways to install the camera at home: either on the wall under the ceiling, or vertically on a stand. The first way is better because in this case the device provides maximum visibility and can not be accidentally dislodged or overlapped, but the second option is attractive because of the simplicity of installation and the ability to easily remove or relocate the camera if necessary. 

Where to install video surveillance cameras in a private home

If you own a private house, then you are lucky, because you do not need any permits, and to collect signatures from neighbors will not require. In this case of great importance is a competent system design that provides maximum coverage of the electronic “eye”. 

Gates and gate should be included in the frame, which should be equipped with electronic lock and video intercom for greater security. This will provide more advanced access control territory. Video phone is better to choose multi-channel, to be able to connect to it and the cameras that you install along the perimeter. This will save you some money.

Consider the fact that the expert recommends putting the cameras not only in the yard, but also on the site. The number of cameras is calculated based on the size of the yard and the complexity of its configuration. Often two or three pieces are enough for the entire perimeter.

When you are away from home, you always want to check if everything is okay, so installing cameras in the rooms is also necessary. This is the only way to get assurance that the child is safe and their babysitter is not doing anything illegal. The same applies to tutors, housekeepers and other hired staff. In this case, you need to consider a few rules. 

When hiring a person to work in your home, you must necessarily stipulate that the premises are monitored by video surveillance, and note this fact in the employment contract, which the person will subsequently sign, expressing his consent to the filming.

If the employee has been working for you for a long time, and the cameras have just appeared, then make sure to notify him about it, take a receipt from him that such a conversation between you really took place, and also make changes to the employment contract by drawing up an additional agreement.

• Consider the capabilities of the cameras. Think carefully about the exact places where they will be installed: kitchen, rooms, yard or stairwell.
• Study how the equipment will be connected. If there is no possibility to run wires where you will install CCTV cameras, then pay attention to devices that work via Wi-Fi. Remember that such models still need power.
• Functional component. Study all the characteristics of the camera, such as the presence of detectors, the ability to record audio and the range of illumination. Don’t buy devices with functionality you won’t need.
• Viewing recordings. If you’re buying multiple cameras, you’ll need to get a DVR as well. When buying it, think about the size of the video archive and choose hard drives with the appropriate capacity.

Where to Install Video Surveillance Cameras on the Site

Designing a security system involves not only buying enough cameras and other equipment, but also studying their characteristics, thinking about the points and angles of their location. Cameras used for outdoor surveillance differ in a certain angle of view and range.

Based on these parameters, you will be able to understand the area of the monitored area. When placing cameras, try as much as possible to reduce the number of places not under surveillance. Moving objects should always be in your field of view.

It is important to position the cameras so that they are not illuminated by the sun, floodlights or vehicle headlights. To do this it is important to choose the right place where you install a surveillance camera, as well as the height and angle of its location. Most often they are simply hung in the corners of the house, buildings and the site itself.

When designing a surveillance system for a standard plot and the house takes a minimum of 4 cameras. If the house has extensions or ledges, the number of devices increases, this is done to the territory there are no “blind spots. 

Most often, cameras are located in the corners of the building. This is done to ensure that was viewed as a plane wall, and the maximum possible part of the territory. If we talk about the height of installation, the best option is three meters. This will protect the camera from physical damage and allow enough to distinguish the faces of intruders entering the area.

Too high positioning of the device will give you only a shot of the general view, in addition, you will lose the opportunity to see the face of the intruder, get only his parameters such as hair color or headgear. 

8 tips for installing CCTV cameras

Installing cameras according to all the rules will not only allow you to maximize the effectiveness of the entire video surveillance system, but will also extend its life:

• It is important not only to think about the locations of cameras, but also to make sure they work.
• When installing, check where the device “looks”. If there is no swivel mechanism, it is important to adjust the correct angle of the body at once, so that you do not have to return to this issue later. 
• Installing the camera outdoors, make sure that its power supply is protected from moisture.
• If in your particular case the law allows the camera to be hidden or camouflaged under some object, do not neglect it. This way the system will be less visible to intruders.
• Like the power supply, the camera itself should be protected from precipitation if it is meant to be located outdoors. Do not point it at the sun, it will quickly destroy the technique, place the device so that the direct rays do not hit its peephole throughout the daylight hours.
• Even lighting is also important. The camera should not be in the dark, as long as its purpose is to view some well-lit area.
• It is important not only to understand where you will be installing the surveillance camera, but also what time of day it will work. The device for night photography should be backlit, and the observed area is also better illuminated.
• Installing a camera, remember that sooner or later you will have to get to it to clean it, change the viewing angle or perform other procedures.

Insects will actively flock to devices equipped with infrared illumination, contaminating the optics in the process. To solve this problem, repellents are used to treat the camera body, but they do not work for long.

Good equipment and professional installation are important for efficient operation of the surveillance system, but that’s not all. It is very important to think about the right locations for cameras. You can take one device and place it first at the end of the corridor and then in the middle. You will see that from two different points the camera will shoot completely differently.

To ensure that the money is not spent in vain, and that the video surveillance works 100%, treat the choice of camera locations with the utmost responsibility.