New to dash cams, need suggestions for overnight/extended parking use

[daniel hart]

I have a car that attracts a lot of attention. Even in the secured parking garage in my building people manage to find a way to linger around it. I have come home at 2am (in my other car) and found people around it.

While I wouldn't mind a dash cam recording while I'm driving, my primary need is for one that can record when the car is off overnight, without draining the battery. I have read a bit about the Blackvue models draining batteries to dead even with the device that is supposed to prevent it. To make matters more complicated, I only drive this car every 3 days or so, as it's my second car. Unfortunately, I cannot connect to a power outlet for a battery charger unless I move my car to a really undesirable location. (plus i have to fight off the hybrid cars that leech power off our parking garage!)

I'd love to hear your suggestions! Thanks!

 

[niko]

So you are looking for some sort of dashcam system which should run in parking mode for about 3 days / nights ?

1 or 2 channel system?

 

[daniel hart]

Yes, exactly that, the length of time it can operate for, without use of the vehicle, is the most important attribute for me. I'm ok with either one or two channels, but would prefer one, because i already have the wiring tapped at the rear view mirror.

 

[niko]

You need additional power source to be used in your car for dashcam that can work 3 days / night， something like AGM， Gel， Deep cycle battery.

 

[daniel hart]

Damn, that sounds like wiring involved. I can't do too much modification since it's a collectible car and should stay original..

 

[niko]

There is other solution with external battery pack where almost no wiring involved. You may check out SGZC12RC and how it can be used in your case ( HERE ).
For 3 days parking mode you need around 15000 mAh battery pack, but to be on the safe side need at least 20'000mAh. Most important is to hide battery pack out from direct sun, in cold place. But best if you go with AGM， Gel， Deep cycle battery.

 

[daniel hart]

Thanks, I will have to think about this some more. Usually I'd be willing to run wires, but on this particular car I really can only run a wire to the rear view mirror, and I won't be able to fit, hide, or mount a battery pack there.

 

[daniel hart]

I already own a 20000mah usb power brick, perhaps I could just set that on the dash with the camera when I'm going to be away for a few days. Do you think 20000mah would last a few days?

 

[daniel hart]

I should clarify that I don't need full video 24 hours a day, I just need snapshots of any motion that was detected

 

[jokiin]

Still needs power regardless

 

[daniel hart]

Still needs power regardless

Certainly, perhaps less though? not enough to drain the car battery?

 

[jokiin]

Certainly, perhaps less though? not enough to drain the car battery?

would be a challenge to measure the difference in power consumption between actively recording and being on and waiting to record, functionally the camera is doing exactly the same except for writing to card which requires negligible power

 

[daniel hart]

would be a challenge to measure the difference in power consumption between actively recording and being on and waiting to record, functionally the camera is doing exactly the same except for writing to card which requires negligible power

Good point, you're right

 

[niko]

Continuous or Parking mode ( motion detection / stand by / Pause - Rec ) consumes nearly equal amount of power.
I would use dascham which is based on supercaps and have pre-buffer recording and can be run from 5 Volt power source. For parking mode you don't need high bit-rate, so likes of Thinkware F50 or Lukas T790 can do the job, the only issue is that they need 9-24 Volt power like most other supercaps + pre-buffer dashcams. 12Volt battery pack cost way much more than 5V. SGZC12RC has option to power via 5V and 12V. You can hide main DVR unit and power bank in glovebox away from sun and only camera unit will be visible to outside which is quite small. Running wires is quite simple and does not require any modifications, disassembly, hardwiring etc. By the way, what car make / model / year do you have, so we can give you more suggestions on your set-up ?

 

[daniel hart]

Continuous or Parking mode ( motion detection / stand by / Pause - Rec ) consumes nearly equal amount of power.
I would use dascham which is based on supercaps and have pre-buffer recording and can be run from 5 Volt power source. For parking mode you don't need high bit-rate, so likes of Thinkware F50 or Lukas T790 can do the job, the only issue is that they need 9-24 Volt power like most other supercaps + pre-buffer dashcams. 12Volt battery pack cost way much more than 5V. SGZC12RC has option to power via 5V and 12V. You can hide main DVR unit and power bank in glovebox away from sun and only camera unit will be visible to outside which is quite small. Running wires is quite simple and does not require any modifications, disassembly, hardwiring etc. By the way, what car make / model / year do you have, so we can give you more suggestions on your set-up ?

its a 2014 dodge viper.. running wires isn't really an option on this car

 

[niko]

its a 2014 dodge viper.. running wires isn't really an option on this car

Its the same like trying to drive combustion engine car without fuel.

Sent from my LG-H962 using Tapatalk

 

[IronMan]

If you are considering SGZC12RC - be aware that manufacturer stoped claiming it is designed for 24/7 parking use. It keeps failing on many users who use it for extended parking use:
https://dashcamtalk.com/forum/threads/sgzc12rc-wiping-card.18798/page-9

I am in search for proper dashcam for 24/7 parking myself now...

 

[SawMaster]

Most cams which pre-buffer use nearly the same amount of current as while recording full-time. I can't see an easy solution for you here even though there are usually ways to adapt cams and battery systems without permanently affecting originality. This type of car makes that nearly impossible, so you're going to have to compromise something somewhere.

Phil