How Green Can You Get with Solar-Powered Surveillance?
Who says you need fuel-powered electricity to use an effective surveillance system? With the advent of ‘green’ technologies, you really do not need to rely so much on resource-hungry gadgets. With solar-powered surveillance, this is probably as green as you can get – or maybe not. Let’s take a look:
What are solar-powered surveillance systems?
Solar surveillance systems are your basic electronic monitoring and tracking systems used for automatic observations and recordings, but with a catch – they run on solar power. They are used for security monitoring purposes on residential homes, office buildings, universities, government offices, shops, parking lots, garages and construction sites. Solar-powered surveillance systems are also very popular for monitoring wildlife and remote environment changes over a long period of time. The fact that they tend to be wireless means that they can be carried in virtually any location and will not require electricity in order to work. The system’s recorded data can be stored onto digital video recorders for future use.
Advantages
One of the advantages of the solar surveillance system is that it does not rely on old video tapes for recording what the cameras capture. Video tapes, as we all know, can be notorious for producing less than sharp images. They also tend to run out, causing you to lose valuable recording time merely because no fresh blank video tape is available. Of course, a solar surveillance system uses green energy, allowing you to tap one of the best energy resources around. Unlike fossil fuel-sourced energy, solar energy is clean, leaves no residues, has no harmful side effects to the users and is environment-friendly.
Limitations
Its greatest strength is probably also its greatest weakness. A solar surveillance system works best outdoors, where it can pick up the sun’s rays to power up its batteries and run the device. It could probably work well indoors provided, of course, that there is ample access to light.
Can you really go green with solar surveillance?
The truth about most solar surveillance systems is that the video security system itself is the only component that uses solar power. The wireless cameras that are essential to making the system work may not always run on solar power. In fact, most units still require the traditional power connection in order to work. That means, in order to view any activities captured by the surveillance system, you will need to have the cameras hooked to a power outlet and probably use a monitor or TV that also uses electricity. However, as green things go, some solar surveillance systems may be hooked with rechargeable battery-powered cameras for more efficient energy use.
solar powered surveillance camera image
Tags: green, security, solar energy, surveillance