The WiFi bird box camera can be connected to any 2.4Ghz WiFi network to stream the video online. It is convenient to set up the Wi-Fi bird box camera. However, the camera still requires power. One of the solutions is to use the DC12V extension cable. The AC outlet doesn’t have to be present next to the birdhouse. 3 units of waterproof extension cable can be chained up to have 30 meters if the camera will be placed a little bit far away. One end of the cable needs to be connected to the power adaptor. The longer the extension cable, the higher the possibility the system may pick up the surge. So at the end, the surge protector may be required at the edge camera. Can we power up the camera with a battery to save all these troubles? Yes, we will look into the details about the battery in the passages below.
The Wi-Fi bird box camera accepts DC12V input. The DC5V power bank can’t power up the camera and the DC5V power bank is also not suitable to power up the camera. We will elaborate on this later. The WiFi bird box camera is built based on the technology from IP surveillance which is designed to work 24/7. Unless you dis-connect the power, the camera will keep working and consume the power on the battery. First thing we need to know is how long a battery can keep the camera running before we have to re-charge it. The average current consumption is 135mA. The power is about 38.88 WH (0.135A*12V*24H). Let’s say you got 20AH DC12V sealed lead Acid battery which is the most common battery in the market. You can find this battery in the car. The full charge power is 240 WH (20AH*12V). The dis-charge is 70%. The actual power becomes 168WH (240*0.7). Now we can estimate how long this battery can supply = 4.3 days (168/38.88WH). If you want to double up the time, pick the 40AH battery as long as you think it is not too heavy to carry while you re-charge it. Let’s look back why the DC5V power bank is not suitable for bird box cameras. The power is just too less, you may need to re-charge the battery almost every day.
There is one more thing about batteries, no matter if you have the sealed lead acid or Lithium-Ion, the output is not always DC12V. While the sealed lead acid is full charge, the output becomes DC13.8V. It will drop down to DC11V before you need to re-charge it. The Wi-Fi bird box camera should handle the wide voltage input. The voltage regulation is being considered in the Green-Backyard Wi-Fi bird box camera. It can handle the 13.8V battery input power.
The battery power solution makes the WiFi bird box camera be wire-free. Still you will need to recharge the battery periodically. To set up a complete wire free and no maintenance required bird watching system, you will have to add the solar panel to the bird box camera system.
