A CCTV/Security Camera Cost Overview

The CCTV and security camera market is very popular amongst residential homes and office, growing to a stage which can be overwhelming for someone who is new. While there are many popular brands and systems it can often be confusing about where to start and how to set it up. We recommend these systems should almost always be set up by an experienced professional On average, security camera and CCTV installers usually charge around $100 AUD an hour for their work. Additionally, we recommend you have a secure internet connection for monitoring and installation, as well as potentially purchasing a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) device. While these pricing recommendations are for someone who would like to independently install and monitor their security system, there is also the option to join a contract with a security company which will charge you a monthly fee for their services and devices.

Tips for CCTV and Security Camera Installations

1. If you already own a Smart Home/Home Automation system in your house or office we recommend connecting security devices to your existing system. Open source Smart Home technology such as Z-Wave offers thousands of products from different brands internationally, these include IP camera and Smart Security devices like sensors and sirens. By adding Smart Security devices to your existing system you can reduce the set-up costs and have everything on the one system.
2. You don’t need to get the most expensive cameras on the market. Middle of the range cameras are usually enough for the purpose security cameras serve. As long as the cameras can capture a face or car license plate numbers clearly it should be sufficient.
3. When choosing the devices you’d like to install remember to find cameras with inbuilt or add additional motion detectors. These motion detectors are important because they can automatically sense people or movement and send alerts to you so you can check your cameras when you are away from the premises.
4. We highly recommend you choose an open standard system rather than proprietary. There are many security camera protocols that now work with multiple security camera brands. If you use a proprietary company you will be limited to a small selection of devices, additionally, if the company shuts down then you will not be able add new devices or maintain your current cameras. With an open standard system you can easily find devices from other brands. Check if the cameras you’re looking to use support the common protocol – ONVIF Protocol.

Tips for Hiring a Professional

1. Doing a bigger project, e.g. multiple solutions or tasks, is more cost efficient than doing multiple small home improvements. It’s more affordable to do one big home improvement project with one professional rather than hiring different professional at different times. By bundling these solutions and tasks together you can receive bulk discounts on hardware and negotiate better installer costs.
2. We highly recommend spending time to plan a project well. If you carefully design the project you will not only have a clear plan for the installer but can also save money through an efficient installation or by fixing potential problems that may cost money to fix in the future.
3. Budget for a little bit extra. While you may get a rough guide to the costs involved online or from the quote, we recommend that you always budget for around 30% more than you expect any project to cost you. While this may not be necessary in the unfortunate situation of problems occurring or upgrades being required you may need this extra 30%.
4. We recommend you always ask potential installers and professionals to provide you with references of their previous work. Experienced professionals should always have a website or portfolio of previous work to show you. This will give you a better understanding of the quality of work that you can expect.
5. Remember to discuss with the installer or professional about who will pay for the hardware costs. If you decided that you’d like the installers to source the hardware then expect that most installers will charge you the recommended retail price for this hardware. Alternatively, if you’d like to save money you could try to find a retail store what will give you a bulk order discount for bigger projects, this way you could save some money by getting the hardware yourself.
6. If you’re unsure about how to do a Home Improvement project we recommend you hire a professional. While you could attempt to do it DIY style this takes time, energy and often frustration. Additionally, if you try to do it yourself and end up damaging something you may create a second problem that requires a professional to fix.