Locating Static Equipment

Locating your static equipment so that it is the most use is a vital consideration. This type of equipment includes things like remote Night Vision Cameras, Video Cameras on Tripods, Sound Recorders, USB Temperature/Humidity Sticks, IR Beams and IR detectors to name but a few.

So how do you choose where to put these? Often it’s down to instincts and guesswork, certainly being a sceptic I know what the site research has turned up and make use of this. I am also present on the recce where we are talking to either the owner or a representative from the site. What they tell me is also worth taking into consideration. If any guest psychics are present they also do a walk round before we start the investigation and this may lead to a last minute change of plan, although this is neither always possible or necessary.

When we do the recce I am always looking for good places to deploy our equipment. It follows that I am also looking for the location of power points and safe places where I can leave a DVR or PC. I am also thinking about how one location relates to another and this leads to my decisions on what sort of cameras or other equipment I need to deploy. While doing this you’ll need to be taking photographs, recording your thoughts on a sound recorder or making notes and this is vital.

All of the things listed above with the exception of remote NV Cameras can be relocated quickly, remote cameras usually have wiring and recorder locations are to be considered and as a result moving these around at the last minute is not something that you can do very often.

Good locations for static cameras are corners of rooms, ends of corridors, staircases etc. These are expensive resources and you need to place these so that you get the maximum coverage possible from them. You might also locate a USB stick or sound recorder in the same area, the latter is useful if your cameras do not have sound capabilities, like some of ours.

If you are using a DVR camera, most AV cables allow power to be routed through the same cable, so these are best used if safely locating wiring or access to mains power is difficult. IP cameras likewise require only one cable, but these cameras do require a separate power supply, which must be a consideration when using them. Being digital, IP cameras can be successfully used via an RF link, which again may prove an advantage if wiring to a remote PC is difficult.

In the case of either type of camera, the length of the wiring needs to be kept as short as possible, 18 metres to a max of 36 for DVR 25 to a max of 100 for IP Cameras.

Tripod mounted NV Video Cameras can also be used to good effect, the only problem with these is that you need to consider the length of time that the tape, memory card, disk or DVD will last and remember to change whichever at the appropriate time.

USB sticks need to be placed away from windows or heaters. The temperature and humidity measuring variety may be very usefully employed in damp places where they can be used to monitor the dew point. Knowing the dew point is useful for the explaining of mists etc that may be seen on camera.

I often use IR beams on staircases or across doorways or corridors to protect an area where I have set up static cameras or where there is an investigation team that needs to know if there is anyone lurking around near their the area. These can also be used as guardians around areas that are dangerous or where you have placed trigger objects.

The IR detectors are also useful for a similar purpose, but come into their own when you want to protect a room. These units come with a remote control so you can set them up, close the doors and switch them on or off from outside the area. When using these make sure you don’t leave the remote control lying around.

Make a note where you have left equipment. This will be useful for two reasons. Firstly if you know where you left a small USB stick, you can find it easily again. Trust me it’s very easy to forget and becomes a real pig of a job to find small equipment otherwise. The other more important reason for doing this is that you have a record of what was where, which may prove invaluable when you analyse your results later.

These are a few helpful hints to get you going, once you have done this for a while you will find like I do that it all comes together. My final comment is don’t under estimate the time that laying cables around a place can take, we usually allow two hours and then we overrun sometimes. As a rule of thumb it takes about a third to half the time to take it all down again and pack it away, removing cables is always the worst job.

Good Luck!