Infra Red Lighting

[Steve K]

I am completing a cctv job in the middle of Dartmoor. There is zero ambient light, and the customer hates light pollution. I have fitted day & night cameras with Derwent 100UL covert IR lamps on each camera.

The stated range is 25mtrs, but I am achieving significantly less than this. Some images are just blackness.

Daytime images are a dream.

The IR lamps are working, and the voltages are all fine.

I am going to be replacing the lamps for 300W non-covert lenses on Tuesday.

I was wondering if anyone else has ever had problems with IR?

Derwent weren't particularly helpful when I enquired with them.

I'm wondering if the range is over stated on the packaging.

I have installed the 60 degree angle 25mtr range lamps.

Any comments would be appreciated.

Steve K

[Service Engineer]

Whats the minimum stated LUX of your day / night cameras ?

And yeah swapping for the non covert lens on those lamps should make a noticable differance.

[Steve K]

Thanks Dave,

the lux is stated as 0.18.

I've just been invoiced this morning for the 300w lamps - £330 each plus VAT

Gulp!

Steve K

[JB_]

Make sure when you put them in to get the filament of the lamp horizontal and not slanted or vertical as this will reduce the lamp life dramatically.

[Steve K]

Thanks for your comments.

I changed out the lamps for 300W non-covert lamps, and the difference is magnificent. :red:

My customer is extremely happy with the results, and I am quite pleased too. Something to remember for the future me thinks!

Definetly a night visit job to align the lamps correctly. I was out there in the middle of Dartmoor at 2300hrs up a ladder in the rain.

It's very deceiving, daytime alignment was quite a way out. Its only when the B&W images are viewable that you realise the beam patterns from the IR lamps.

Thankfully my suppliers have agreed to refund me the cost of the original IR lamps - they are not cheap

Thanks again boys (and girls)

Steve K

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[Guest mark_gemini]

To add another comment on the infrared lighting issue.

Different cameras are able to see different wavelengths of infrared, these range from around 715nm (fairly bright red glow to the eye) to around 950nm (invisible to the eye). most monochrome or infrared sensitive colour cameras will work from 715nm, fairly few of the standard cameras will work @ 950nm. The moral of this story, check the infrared capability of the camera first if using invisible lighting.

Good luck

Mark Smith

[Steve K]

Thanks Mark for that, I shall bear it in mind in the future.

After all the hard work of sorting out the IR lamps, my customer has now decided that he would prefer halogen lighting activated by PIR's. He would like to lower the cost of his electricity bill.

Anyone want some second hand IR lamps? New condition, installed for six months only.

I'll post the details later of the models etc, but it's three 300W lamps, and 2 PSU's capable of driving 4 lamps, with daylight sensors in built.

My customer would like me to be able to sell them on or re-use of possible.

Any takers?

[hisec]

Thanks Mark for that, I shall bear it in mind in the future.

After all the hard work of sorting out the IR lamps, my customer has now decided that he would prefer halogen lighting activated by PIR's. He would like to lower the cost of his electricity bill.

Anyone want some second hand IR lamps? New condition, installed for six months only.

I'll post the details later of the models etc, but it's three 300W lamps, and 2 PSU's capable of driving 4 lamps, with daylight sensors in built.

My customer would like me to be able to sell them on or re-use of possible.

Any takers?

Just a bit of insight.

I also installed "DERWENT" lamps a couple of years ago The gold optic lamps were of a new design then.

on setting up It appeared that the lamps were not working but on closer inspection all was ok,trying to fathom out why we had no night time pictures we decided that the IR wavelenth was not matched to the cams/lamps,upon checking all was correct.

We requested Derwent attended site (to buy me my evening meal)after 3 nights in the cold it was the least they could do.

They could not explain it either, so I changed the camera to a JAI very low level, still no luck,

replaced the DERWENT lamp for a DENNARD IR what an improvement.

So the moral of the story is DERWENT lamps are pants.

p.s I also used PICO LEDS later on this site and they also worked better than the DERWENT's

[Guest bladedawg]

for the cost steve, why not put sensors on the IR them selves rather than rewire and replace with Haolgen,,,

just a hint if I can help, as they only need to illuminate when there is movment, thus cutting the powerr bill and saving you having to sell them ir...ok regards

[Steve K]

Hi!

Thought about PIR's on the IR Lamps, but in the end the customer went for 500W Halogen incl PIR's except for one camera where he kept IR.

Thanks for your assistance - nice to see someone else had IR probs with the same manufacturer!