Installing a security camera outdoors is quite easy with the latest generation plug and play security cameras. You don’t even need to hire a professional installer, simply run the wires and the system will be self configured.
The real challenge is properly hiding the wires of your video surveillance system. It’s very important to hide the wires. First, clumsy and hanging wires look ugly and will definitely ruin the beauty of your house or property.
Additionally, exposed outdoor wires are an easy target for thieves who may cut the wires and disable the security cameras.
In this guide we will offer a few tips and recommendations on how to hide the security camera wires for outdoor installations.
How to hide security camera wires outdoors?
There are a few effective methods to hide security cameras’ wires, but it all depends on the location where the CCTV camera is placed. If you still haven’t decided for a security camera system check out our recommendations. Otherwise, read the tips below for a few suggestions on hiding CCTV wires.
Pipe the cables
Installing and running the cables through pipes requires the help of a professional. Basically, all the cable run is placed inside plastic or metal pipes, cover and involves making mounts for the camera, drilling holes all over the place and much more.
It’s time consuming and quite expensive but at the end of the day you will have a tidy wiring run that is hidden, protected, safe and it will look professionally done as well.
Select wires of similar color as the backdrop
If you think painting the wires may be too much of a hassle, then you can choose cables with the same color (or similar) as the backdrop.
The wires come with a lot of color options, do you research and pick a color that matches the backdrop or the wall. That way, the cables will blend perfectly with the surroundings.
Install the cables within the false-ceiling
This method depends on the installation job conditions. If there’s a false ceiling in the house or business facility, it’s a good idea to hide the wires on it. Simply inspect the ceiling and insert the wires inside.
Once you hide the cables using this method, the cables will be fully undetectable from prying eyes. However, as we mentioned, this type of hiding the cables won’t work if the building has no false-ceiling.
Before you do any security job, you need to inspect the ceiling and approach the “hiding wires” issue accordingly.
Paint the wires
As simple as it sounds, painting the wires blends them to the surroundings and makes them noticeable for a wanna-be intruder. We recommend going for a matching color, for example the same collar as the wall or the backdrop.
Bring the cables together, you can use tape or some sticker to keep them together then apply the matching color over the wires. Make sure no spot is missed. Additionally, ensure that the cables sit perfectly along the wall or the border.
Once done, the installation will look beautiful and the overall security of the CCTV system will be improved as well. Intruders won’t be able to see the cables from a distance.
Hide the CCTV wires inside the baseboards
Another idea is to conceal the security camera wires inside the base board that run along the wall on the floor. You can remove the baseboards, hide the wires inside and place them back in position. Make sure the sealing is water tight so no water goes in.
Bury the wires
It’s a great idea to bury the wires in your garden or porch, but a lot of effort is required to do the procedure. You need to make sure that the wires are rated for underground use, if not, you may place them inside pipes.
Burying the cables will not just make them completely undetectable but offer protection from the elements and any possible intruders who want to cause damage to the cabling.
Go for a wireless security camera system
What’s the best way of hiding CCTV cables if there are no cables at all? The answer is a wireless security system.
However, there are various types of wireless CCTV systems such as: the camera runs on battery, the system is charged by a solar system or the camera transmits wirelessly the signal only but still needs power.
For the last one, you still need to run a cable to power the camera, but it can be short run since you can power it from any point of the grid.
For the rest, you simply have to mount the camera in a suitable position, turn on the battery-powered camera and it will most likely connect automatically to the main system.
Wireless security systems are generally more expensive but will save you the trouble of dealing with wires at all. Nowadays, there are a lot of affordable wireless CCTV systems on the market that you can choose from.
