Short answer
In a field with no electricity, the camera is powered by a solar panel, a battery, and a charge controller. If there is no internet, the camera connects with a 4G SIM card or reaches the internet of a nearby house through a wireless bridge; if neither is possible, the recording is kept only on the camera's memory card. The right choice is made according to mobile coverage, the energy needed through the night, and what the camera will see.
What does a camera protect in the field?
On the Harran Plain, or on land along the Siverek and Viranşehir road, losses often happen to equipment before crops. The irrigation pump, the pump cable, solar panels, drip irrigation pipes, and tractor equipment left in the field are thieves' first targets. At harvest time, the crop and the vehicles leaving the field come to the fore.
Before placing the camera, be clear about what you want to see. The door of the pump house and the panels, the road coming into the field, or the inside of the barn? It is not possible to fit the whole land into the camera. A few cameras focused on the entrance to the land and the point where valuable equipment sits are more useful than many cameras scattered over the land.
Entry to the field is usually through one or two dirt roads. A camera facing this road records the vehicle that arrives and the time. Reading the plate at night is difficult in most cases; the vehicle's type, color, and arrival time are also valuable information for tracing after an incident.
If there is no electricity: solar panel and battery
At a point far from the grid, the camera works with a small system made up of a solar panel, a battery, and a charge controller. The panel charges the battery during the day, and the camera runs from the battery at night. Because Şanlıurfa has many sunny days, this system works comfortably in the summer months. In winter the days get shorter and cloudy days can come back to back; the battery capacity needs to be calculated for this hardest period.
The calculation depends on the power the camera draws, the infrared light that turns on for night vision, the consumption of the 4G modem, and how many days without sun the system should last. Choosing a small panel and battery just by looking at the camera's own label ends with the camera shutting down on the first winter night.
There are also ready-made solar cameras on the market with the panel and battery attached to the body. They install quickly and suit watching a single point. If you need several cameras, continuous recording or strong night vision, a separate panel and battery system is more flexible.
Expert note: Keep the box that holds the battery in the shade and in a ventilated place. In a Şanlıurfa summer, the battery heats up in a closed box under the sun and its life gets shorter.
If there is no internet: 4G, wireless bridge or local recording
The most common solution in a field is a 4G camera with a SIM card slot. Before installation, check mobile coverage with your phone at the spot where the camera will go; a line that works well inside the village can be weak in the middle of the plain. Checking which operator works better at that spot reduces connection drops after installation.
The second issue with 4G is the data quota. Watching the camera live all day uses up the quota fast. Instead, the camera records to its own memory card, sends a notification to your phone when it detects motion, and you connect and look only when needed.
If there is a house, storage building or pump house with internet near the land, a point-to-point wireless bridge can be set up. The two antennas are placed so that they can see each other, and the internet is carried to the field. If there are trees, hills or buildings in between, the link weakens; the antennas must have a clear view of each other.
If no connection is possible, the camera only records locally. In that case you cannot watch an event live, but you can take the card or the recorder later and review it. Keep the recorder in a hidden, locked place away from the camera; otherwise a thief takes the device along with the recordings.
Cameras in barns and animal shelters
A camera in a barn does two jobs: watching the door against theft and checking on the animals remotely. For a farmer, seeing an animal that is close to giving birth from the phone, without getting up at night and going to the barn, saves time.
The barn environment is hard on a camera: dust, humidity and gases rising from manure affect metal parts and connectors over time. Choose a camera with an outdoor protection rating, put the cable connections in a closed box, and mount the camera at a height where the animals cannot rub against it. Covering the barn door and the feeding line together in the camera's field of view lets one camera watch both the entrance and the condition of the animals.
Protect the camera itself too
In a field, both the camera and its panel can be stolen. Take this into account during mounting.
- Mount the camera and panel not close to the ground, but on a pole at a height that cannot be reached without a ladder.
- Put the battery and the charge controller in a locked box.
- Run the cable inside the pole or inside a metal spiral conduit.
- For cameras with a speaker, consider playing a voice warning when motion is detected.
- Do not aim the camera at an angle where tree branches or tall plants will sway; false notifications increase.
- On the day you install the camera, check one night's recording, and watch the battery for a week.
If power exists but is far away
On some land, electricity reaches the pump house, but the spot where the camera will go is hundreds of meters further. Running a power cable that distance is expensive, and the cable itself can be stolen. In such cases, it can make more sense to place a camera near the pump house and watch the far point with a solar camera.
If the pump house has electricity and internet, it becomes the center of the system. You put the recorder here and connect the remote cameras with a wireless bridge. This setup is also suitable for monitoring the panels and the inverter on land with a solar irrigation system.
Seasonal maintenance and checks
A field camera is the system most likely to be forgotten after installation. After the harvest nobody visits the land, and the camera is left on its own for months. So do a short check a few times a year, especially at the start of summer and as winter comes in.
At the start of summer, clean the dust and bird droppings off the panel surface and wipe the camera lens. After a dust storm, check that the panel is charging and that the night recording is clear. As winter comes in, check how many nights the battery lasts; as a battery ages its capacity drops, and the first sign is the camera shutting down toward morning. Memory cards also wear out over the years; if you see gaps in the recordings, replace the card.
Frequently asked
Does a solar camera work at night?
It works, because it runs on the battery the panel charged during the day. The real question is how many nights the battery will last. In winter, on short and cloudy days, the battery may not charge enough; the capacity needs to be chosen for this period.
Can a camera be used if there is no phone signal in the field?
It can. If there is a building with internet nearby, a wireless bridge is set up. If there is not, the camera records only to its own memory card or to a local recorder; the footage is viewed afterwards.
Does a 4G camera use a lot of data?
It does if you watch live all the time. If you set the camera to record locally and send a notification only when there is motion, consumption drops. To choose a data plan that suits your use, watch the first month's consumption.
A camera solution for your land
Tell us where your land is and its electricity and internet situation, and Desa Bilişim will evaluate the suitable solution on site and prepare a written quote.
