Infrared Cctv
CCTV Systems to protect your small business
Talk to any business owner in the UK and they will have no doubt at some point asked, “is a CCTV system right for me?” The answer put simply is YES!!!
CCTV cameras are an excellent addition to any business or home security system, adding an important visual deterrent to any business premises. Not only that but a CCTV system can help to obtain evidence in the event of any crime being committed, evidence which may be vital in helping you to have your goods returned.
It was once a case that a high quality CCTV system was only available to those wishing to spend thousands of pounds investing in the best quality CCTV cameras, DVR recorders and monitors, this is however no longer the case. You can now have a professionally installed CCTV system with high resolution CCTV cameras and an internet capable DVR recorder for Less Than £600.
How do I select the right CCTV system for my business?
Selecting the right CCTV system for any location is something that will require you to consider several factors. You should first look at what you want the CCTV cameras to do. Do you want a camera that will give you a general surveillance of a certain area? Or do you want a camera that will provide a more defined image but of a smaller area? Alternatively you may wish to have a camera that is capable of covering multiple areas, if you wanted to do this you would need to consider using a PTZ camera.
As a general rule you should always have a camera that has a resolution of at least 470 TVL. Cameras that have a resolution of 540 TVL are considered to be a very high resolution, however there have been recent models of CCTV cameras which have a resolution as high as 600 TVL.
You should also consider the type of DVR recorder you are going to use. This can be a hard choice for some as there are many DVR recorders available that have a huge amount of features. There are a few things that you should insist on when looking for any DVR. The first is that they are capable of recording in Real Time, this means that the DVR will record 25 frames per second (FPS), this should be available for every channel. A real time DVR will have a total recording capacity of 100FPS for a 4 channel recorder, 200FPS for an 8 channel recorder and 400FPS for a 16 channel DVR Recorder.
Almost all DVR recorders are able to be connected to the internet, this is ideal if you have many properties that you wish to protect, allowing you to view the CCTV cameras at each property, from one location through an internet connection.
A DVR can be set to record in a number of ways, the most popular being to record when motion is detected. This is a feature built in to some DVR recorders and means images will only be recorded onto the Hard Drive when there is movement. The benefit of this is that it reduces the amount of data stored on the hard drive and therefore increases the length of time that you can record for.
CCTV Cameras at night.
CCTV cameras are usually required to be used 24 hours a day. This means that they have to perform at night, in low light levels and still produce high quality images. It will be difficult for a colour CCTV camera to produce a high quality image in low light levels, this means that a monochrome CCTV camera would be used. However it is preferable to have a colour image when light levels permit. To accomplish this most high quality CCTV cameras have a feature that allows them to produce high quality colour images in optimum light levels and when the light falls to a certain level the CCTV camera will produce images in black and white. These are known as Day/Night CCTV cameras.
CCTV lighting.
CCTV cameras work best when there is a level of usable light. Each CCTV camera will have a different light level that they can work in and this is measured in lux. To help your CCTV camera produce the best possible images you should ensure that adequate lighting is provided in the areas your cameras will be covering. It is also important to use the correct type of lighting for the CCTV camera you are using.
With a colour CCTV camera you should only ever use “white light”, using an infra red light will have no effect upon the image in low light levels. If you have a black and white CCTV camera then you should install infrared lighting to help maximise the image. Many CCTV cameras that have a day/night feature will also have an inbuilt infra red light, allowing you to obtain high quality images without having to install seperate lighting.
About the Author
Quest CCTV supply CCT Vcameras to the trade and public, offering a 5 year warranty on all products. Articles will be written to give general advice when choosing and installing CCTV. For detailed information you should contact the company directly.