Best Locations for Security Cameras at Home

Best Locations for Security Cameras at Home

Choosing the best security camera for your house is one of the first difficult and confusing tasks of having a secure home and is followed by knowing the best locations for security cameras at home.

Every house is different but deserves and requires protection. Security cameras are the ideal sources to provide protection to your property with additional eyes at all times.

Every house is designed in a unique way meaning that the layout and home security requirements for each are different and there is no universal rule stating the best locations for their placement. The security of your house or your family can’t be compromised at all costs.

Security cameras should be placed at locations that provide ideal and maximum coverage. Some people choose the best security cameras for their homes but fail to place them in the perfect locations and thus lose their effectiveness.

Why is the location of Security Cameras important

It is important to know the ideal location for placing the security cameras as it can highly improve their performance. If the cameras aren’t placed ideally, they fail to provide proper coverage and thus proper security.

The location of the placement of security cameras depends on a number of factors like proximity to valuable objects, the total number of cameras, etc. Without any further due, let’s take a look at the best locations for security cameras at home.

Where should you install the security camera

Outdoor – Front Door

It is highly assumed that intruders come in or sneak into the house using the back entrance or the side entrance, however, this is not the case always.

Burglars can enter in to your homes through the most obvious entrance locations. People assume that they won’t just come in through the front door but this isn’t true as statistics from the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors indicate that 34% of burglars come in through the front door.

If you order a lot of packages then you should never forget to place a security camera here.

A camera installed at the entrance of your house will allow you to keep an eye on everyone leaving or entering your house, from maintenance workers, delivery men, babysitters, family members, etc.

In order to protect the camera itself from damage by intruders and criminals, it is usually recommended to place the camera at a higher level like the second floor but by carefully examining the distance from the target place. You can also place a wire cage around the camera to ensure its proper protection.

The typical position of placing the camera at this location is above the door angled down for a clear view of the visitors.

Indoor – Hallway or Centralized Area of the house

No matter what’s the entrance location, the intruder will have to pass through the centralized area of your house. Placing the security camera at the hallway will allow you to have a maximum view of the insides of your house.

This will not only allow you to monitor the criminals but will also allow you to keep an eye on your kids, your pets and babysitters and their moves.

It is a misconception that security cameras are meant for the outdoors only. Placing them in the common areas of your house like the hallway will allow you to have a wider view of the intruders moving in and out of your house.

These are the areas that the burglars will surely have to pass through to access any room or place in your house and thus it only makes sense to place a security camera at this location.

Outdoor – Back & Side Doors

Just like the front door, back and side doors are prone to attacks by intruders as well. A study of NACHI shows that 22% of the intruders use the back door for break-ins.

It is important to know whoever leaves or enters your house and to ensure that there is an eye on all the possible entry points of your house. Such secondary entrances must be monitored all the time as they are very much prone to attacks by intruders.

Outdoor: Garage & Driveway

Just like the back and side doors, garages and driveways are also highly prone to intruders. These places aren’t only the access points to your house but they also contain lots of valuable equipment and property like your expensive car. It must be ensured that these places are covered by the security system of your house and you have a continuous monitoring system at these locations. Some people say that their Wi-Fi range doesn’t extend to their garages and driveways and thus it is recommended to use range extenders for this purpose.

If your camera is detached from your house, a security camera at this location will help you to keep an eye at this place and keep you connected to it. Make sure to place the camera in such a way that the entire location is clearly visible.

Outdoor: Yard

If you have a nice overgrown landscape, it is important to keep an eye at your yard. This is another of the places that is in the interesting point of the criminals. The front and back yards can be good and ideal hiding places for them.

Placing security cameras at the yard will allow you to keep a good eye on people scoping out your house and will also let you capture the activities of not only the trespassers but your kids and pets as well.

Indoor: Off-Street Windows

Windows that aren’t directly facing the street have their own sense of privacy. These entry points are mostly neglected and aren’t covered by the security cameras. To have a full proof protection of your house, it is important to cover these off street windows. Make to keep them locked and have an eye on them. Cameras can either be placed on the interior or exterior at this location, but it is preferred to place it on the interior side.

Additional Tips for CCTV Placement

When you have decided on the perfect position for the placement of your CCTV cameras, it is important for you consider some other factors to have the ideal placement.

• Visibility: Should the CCTV cameras be visible or hidden? Let’s talk about this in facts. If security camera is visible, the intruder or thief will most probably “spare” your house, however, having a visible security camera can also ensure the criminals of the presence of valuables in the house. Therefore, this boils down to your personal choice.
  It is recommended to place a visible camera at the front door or entrance, to “scare” the criminals away, and place a hidden camera near your valuables inside your house.
  However, as said earlier, this will highly depend on your choice of setup.
• Height: Security cameras especially on the exteriors of the house must be placed at a height of 8 to 10 feet above the ground. This height is ideal as it can not only capture clear images but also it is high enough to keep the camera itself safe from the reach of the criminals.
  It is recommended to place the exterior cameras at a second-story level.
• Durability: This is an important factor that comes into action when we talk about outdoor cameras. These cameras have to face some of the toughest conditions like extreme weather conditions and are prone to animal attacks. It is highly recommended to use cameras with a suitable weatherproof rating for your outdoors. You can also find camera covers, which will protect your camera from harsh sun rays and animals. Also, make sure they have suitable temperature ranges.
• Sunlight glare and reflection: After height, another important factor about positioning the camera perfectly, it the face of the camera. This should be considered for both outdoor and indoor placements.
  The glare and reflection in sunny rooms or rooms with glass windows will highly affect the footage of the camera. It is highly recommended to get a high dynamic range or HDR camera. Such cameras will reduce the effect of glare and reflection. Cameras shouldn’t be pointed toward the sun directly.
• Angle: Security cameras must be angled properly. A correct angle will complement the video quality of the camera. If they are directly placed at the top of the door or windows, you will most probably end with the footage of the head of the intruder only. This will be useless.
  Place them at an angle from the entrance or windows to get good footage and clear images of everyone passing by.
• Number of Cameras: If you are on a budget or if your cameras use Wi-Fi, it is important to know how many cameras should you use. Make sure that all the cameras will have reliable access to Wi-Fi as without one the camera could disconnect from the home security system or if its weak the video may be distorted.
  Having cameras more than your internet package can handle will highly affect the performance and video quality. It is recommended to use a separate router for the security cameras only.
• Valuables Protection: Why would one use security cameras? To have additional eyes and protection for their valuables. What are valuables? Everyone has their own definition of valuable objects. But according to stats the valuables that are most attracted to criminals and thieves are jewelry, keys, luxury watches, credit cards, electronics, and collectibles. Therefore, it is necessary to keep an eye on such valuables 24/7. Make sure to place the cameras such that they you’re the area containing your valuables is properly covered.
• Out of Reach: The security cameras must be out of reach of the criminals to ensure their safety. They should be placed at places from which they can’t be stolen easily.
• Outdoor Lighting: Night vision cameras provide great protection but to get the best of your security cameras even at night, it is important to place them such that they use the outdoor lights as well. The street lights will allow the cameras to have a better quality of video.
• Corners: It is smart to utilize the corners of your indoors to have maximum coverage. The corners will help you get a wide view and if you place the camera at the perfect location with the perfect angle you will get the maximum coverage of your interiors.
• Blind Spots: These are the places that are a bit hard to capture or could be missed out easily. These are the most liked places to hide of criminals. Make sure your camera is placed properly covering the blind spots as well.

Place NOT to install your security cameras

Security cameras are the best options for monitoring your homes, but their placement must be done carefully. There are some obvious places where you shouldn’t place your cameras, for privacy and legal reasons.

Neighbor’s Property: Security cameras monitor everything in their range; therefore, one must be careful about their placement and be mindful of not interrupting anyone’s privacy. Every place has its own privacy laws therefore, when placing the cameras specially outside your house, one must go through the laws to avoid breaching any.

Generally, it is okay to have a camera with a wide angled view. It is also okay to have some of the publicly visible area of your neighbors property in the coverage, but if the camera points towards the interior of their house, then their privacy will be invaded.

Bedrooms & bathrooms: These places must be kept out of your security system to ensure your privacy. If in case the hackers get a hold of your house’s security system, they won’t be able to invade your privacy.

Bathrooms don’t have any valuables that require protection or watch, therefore, there is no reason of placing a security camera in the bathrooms.

Bedrooms, however, hold a lot of valuables which must be protected. But bedrooms are a very private space and shouldn’t have any monitoring, even if you wish to keep and eye on your kids or elderly ones. This is another reason that it is recommended to place security cameras at common places of the house like the stairways or hallways.

Installation Tips

• Test before mounting: This is one of the most common mistakes. One should properly test his camera before mounting it at the ideal location. Make sure to test the camera’s working and connection with your mobile application before mounting it to the wall.
• Tools: Don’t use tools that can harm your camera or its components. It might be tempting to have the ideal setup, but make sure that you don’t end up damaging your camera trying to achieve it.
• Cleaning the camera: To get the ideal protection, it is important to clean your camera occasionally. Outdoor cameras are prone to dirt and dust accumulation which can highly affect the video quality, therefore make sure to clean them properly. Don’t install them in a way that makes the maintenance and cleaning impossible.
• Professional Installation or Not? Should security cameras be installed by professionals or can they be installed by yourself? The choice completely depends on you. If you have some prior experience and understand the information given here properly, in addition to the instruction manuals given by the camera’s manufacturer, you can simply do it yourself. Otherwise, it is recommended to let the professionals handle this.

Most of the home security cameras are easy to install and can be done by yourself. They usually use Wi-Fi to connect with the system are powered by a simple power cord. Other smaller cameras usually use batterie, which makes their installation even more simple.

Indoor cameras are generally easy to install and are installed by the consumers themselves. However, outdoor security cameras present more challenges. They can be a bit tricky to install especially due to power supply and their height. Their placement will also require additional tools. It is recommended to let the professionals handle their installation.

Apart from personal preferences, sometimes you are bound to ask the help of professionals. Most of the leading manufacturers require and recommended professional installation of their systems. In such cases, highly trained technicians visit the house and then perform the installation properly.

Best Locations for Security Cameras at Home-FAQs

Where is the best place to position a security camera?
Security cameras must be placed at a number of locations in your house but the most important ones include the entrance points like doors and windows.

Where is the best place to mount an outdoor security camera?
A camera pointing toward the garage or driveway is ideal for seeing indications of unusual behavior. As an alternative, you could want to position the camera inside the garage and aim it at a position that will allow the light from the opening door to illuminate the dim inside.

Should security cameras be above or below lights?
Keep the light fixture out of the camera’s field of vision. Installing lights higher above the camera allows light to flood the camera’s field of vision without shining too directly into the camera, which is the ideal way to do this, therefore one should place the lights higher than the camera.

How High Should security cameras be?
The security cameras should be placed at a height of about 8 to 10 meters.

Should security cameras be visible?
As said earlier, this highly depends on personal preference. However, if the cameras are visible, they are more likely to deter criminal activity. Criminals usually tend to ignore the places that are properly secured. However, some criminals think opposite and tend to attack homes with cameras thinking they must be housing valuables.

How many cameras should a house have?
A normal house requires 3 to 4 cameras. One camera should be placed at the door front, one at the windows, one at the side or back entrance and the last at the common places in the inside of our house.

How can I hide my outdoor security cameras?
There are a number of methods of hiding your security cameras. You can hide your security cameras by placing them behind a bird house or plant or fake rock or lawn décor, etc.

Do lights interfere with security cameras?
Lights can interfere the security cameras if they are placed closed to the cameras. The lights will disrupt the images resulting in bad quality videos.

Where should I put my blink camera in my front door?
The Blink Outdoor Camera should be positioned 8 to 10 feet above the ground, away from direct sunlight. It ought to be slanted slightly so you can still see outside your home and aimed away from the sun and the ground.

Is it weird to have cameras in your house?
No, it isn’t weird to have security cameras at your house. It is really common and is recommended for the protection of your valuables.

Are hidden cameras legal?
Hidden cameras are legal depending on the location, like hiding a camera at your front door is legal.

Are indoor security cameras worth it?
If you can afford it, indoor security cameras are worth it. They make a big difference in deterring crime and are one of the best choices to have proper peace of mind.

How long do outdoor security cameras last?
The security cameras can last anywhere from 5 and more years.

Best Locations for Security Cameras at Home-Conclusion

Home security is a wide topic, from choosing the best security cameras to placing them at the ideal places, it requires precise understanding as it is a matter of security for you, your loved ones, and your valuables. When designing the perfect plan of protection for your house, one should know the best locations for security cameras at home. You can spend tons on high-end security cameras but could still fail to have the ideal results by misplacing them or not using them properly, therefore, their placement and the factors affected by their position must be considered carefully.

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