Engine room camera

[thoward]

My wife just found a 2 camera setup that is wireless and auto switches to night vision. She picked it up at Sams(the other one) for like $80. Just plug in to a TV and let it rip. I think I will put one in the engine room and one in the cockpit. I will let you know how they work but if your looking for something to see in those dark reaches this may be the answer.

 

[Angela]

My boat came with four wireless cameras and two monitors, and I have a camera mounted in each engine room, with sound. Yeah, they're pretty cool to have. The other two aren't mounted yet, but I'd like to mount them on the aft deck somewhere so I can have a clue as to what I'm backing into since backing this boat into the slip is done pretty much blind.

 

[Paul45c]

A lot of the new networked nav devices can accept some kind of camera hookup. I've decided when I ever get around to new electronics that I'll go that route, but I've only done some pretty light-duty browsing on the boat stores' websites. I've been looking for engine room cameras, but haven't seen any. The ability to hook up to a standard TV set sounds cool, but for the application I'd want you'd really need to be able to hook it to your plotter/sounder/radar display(s) so you could see the engine room from the bridge.

Anybody know where you get such a camera and what kind of connection/interface it would have?

 

[Angela]

I don't know where you get them as mine came with the boat. My monitors are those small "baby cam" monitors made by Sylvania that you can carry around pretty much anywhere - all I need is AC plug and then I can turn the switch to see/hear any of the four cameras. I don't believe its an expensive set up - no night vision, but if I leave the light on in the engine room, I can see in there. So, for now, it suits my purpose. I have two monitors. One goes on the pilothouse or flybridge, depending on where I'm driving and I have the other one in the master where I can see who is at the door if anyone boards the boat while I'm below.

 

[CARL GUZMAN]

Hello ... I just dumped my sony 1990 system for a new Raymarine system and I dind't buy the raymarine camara's are you crazy the raymarine camaras where 499.00 you can buy the west marine kind for 149.00 and I have them in the engine room in the dark and all is well and you can get 2.9mm and 3.4mm? but thats as far as you get in the dark something with the infared that can't go too wide

 

[Pascal]

cameras in ERs need to show enough details to be worth it... if resolution is too low to show a small leak and or a little smoke, what's the point ?

to back in... yes... that would be a big plus in your case angela

 

[waymaker]

Anybody know where you get such a camera and what kind of connection/interface it would have?[/QUOTE]

Paul,
I had new electronics installed, I went with the RayMarine E120 system. It has the camera capabilities. I ordered 2 Raymarine cameras for the engine room. Even though I got them at a discount they were too expensive, Since then I have learned that other cameras would work. Although, they are good if being exposed to the elements. So I am told.
I started looking into a security system and went with a DVR (digital video recorder) that will record up to 4 cameras. So I bought 4 with the night vision capabilties. I can also view the DVR through my E120. So I will have 6 different views. Then I am having proximity alarms installed. There was a break in on 1 of the boats that was docked on the river side. So I wanted something that would help deter that.
A friend of mine is installing everything for me. He is a real Guru in the electronics field. If you want I can get a list of the equipment I bought and where.

Steve
WAY MAKER

 

[Paul45c]

A friend of mine is installing everything for me. He is a real Guru in the electronics field. If you want I can get a list of the equipment I bought and where.

Steve
WAY MAKER

Hey, that's always handy. I'm sure everybody here could benefit from it if you could. Thanks.

 

[JLR]

My cameras are hard wired. They show the engine rooms in the backround and my mechanical gauges in the engine room in the foreground.

 

[CARL GUZMAN]

I have the Raymarine system too but you can only set up 4 channels per E-120 and I also have the DVD hooked to the bridge station so I can watch some movies you can run the wires to the cameras rca or cable we went cable coax..just remember you cant go wide angle and infa-red something with the red light.. it bounces off stuff and comes back to give you the picture and it dose'nt work wider than 3.4mm lense .my buddy wanted to order a infared spot light and shine it out there to see what picture came back but I think he's crazy so we left it alone...they are color till dawn then they go back and white...

 

[waymaker]

I have the Raymarine system too but you can only set up 4 channels per E-120 and I also have the DVD hooked to the bridge station so I can watch some movies you can run the wires to the cameras rca or cable we went cable coax..just remember you cant go wide angle and infa-red something with the red light.. it bounces off stuff and comes back to give you the picture and it dose'nt work wider than 3.4mm lense .my buddy wanted to order a infared spot light and shine it out there to see what picture came back but I think he's crazy so we left it alone...they are color till dawn then they go back and white...

Good evening Carl,

You are right that system will only allow 4 composite channels or 2 S video channels. I am running the 2 engine room cameras so that is 2 channels, then I am running 4 cameras into a 160 MB DVR I will use 1 channel out for it. That will leave me 1 more channel. Agreed I won't have full control of the pictures but I will have the availability of all 6 cameras.

Steve
WAY MAKER

 

[CARL GUZMAN]

The way we have it is: In the pilot house we have 4 outlets with full control 1 rear 1 front and 1 each ER now the TV is right behind the seats so I don't need a dvd player in the pilot house , now in the bridge I have :1 rear 1 each ER and 1 dvd to watch what someone is playing down stairs. when I get my rear e-120 for the fishing cockpit I will have :1 front 1 each ER and 1 under water due to you can only have 4 outlets per e120 but can share either camera output....and I can put them on cycle to view each camera every 5 seconds or so or I can push that camera's button and get me there now...

 

[Paul45c]

Carl (or others who have it), you mentioned that the cameras feed into a Raymarine display on your bridge. What kind of cable connection do they use? Coax? Standard RCA-type interconnects like you'd have on home stereo? A dedicated "black box" which itself connects into the Raymarine using a proprietary cable? That's the part I'm confused about.