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Solar Powered Wifi Camera with Wireguard (lemmy.world)

submitted 5 days ago by johnnychicago@lemmy.world to c/selfhosted@lemmy.world

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Hello --

I know this is not a 100% fit for this community and I apologise - but I don't really know where to ask best. There's some selfhosting involved, so maybe the smart crowd here has some recommendations.

Here goes:

I want to mount a camera at a quite remote location. I have Wifi there that I can use (I pay for it, but its usage is shared, I don't monopolize it). I do not have power there. It's outside, mild in winter, quite warm in summer. I will not get there for months at a time. I want the camera to be private, not open to the world. Ideally I'd like a solar powered wifi camera that can connect to my home via Wireguard (I have that bit going, multiple roaming notebooks and phones connect to home, terminated in an Opnsense router).

I do not need any specific smart features on the camera - PTZ would be nice, but not even fully required.

I can come up with a configuration that involves a Raspberry Pi routing an off the shelf camera via a Wireguard tunnel, or similar, but that doubles the power issues I need to solve. I am not opposed to DIY a solution, but there's the challenge of getting it well packaged in a waterproof way.

Considering I can't really touch the wifi setup (cheap commercial router), I don't really see a way to have a private connection without having some sort of a VPN (I could do others than wireguard in a pinch).

If you'd like to help me chip away at one or the other bit of this problem, I'd be very grateful.

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[–] ikidd@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Do you have an MPPT charger or a PWM? The amount of extra power you get off your panels in winter can be significant with a good MPPT charger because it isn't clipping the higher voltage/power you get in cold.

[–] unphazed@lemmy.world 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I have this one connected: https://a.co/d/0dkouiZ

[–] ikidd@lemmy.world 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Yah, that's a PWM charger. You'd likely see up to another third more power stored with an MPPT at temperatures below freezing from my experience running various offgrid livestock pumping systems over the years. I still use old PWM controllers on things like fencers because they're pretty low draw, but I haven't bought a PWM for years now since MPPT prices came down to earth.

Just a suggestion, idk what your particular scenario is but it sounds like you're running out of power pretty quick. And for batteries, I've personally moved to LFP with heaters in insulated boxes for the sheer life expectancy, power density and reliability compared to LA in cold temperatures. But I wouldn't say it's the cheapest way to do things.

[–] unphazed@lemmy.world 1 points 4 days ago

I went for cheap, and syored away. The battery sits at the bottom of the stilt legged coup with a screwed on door to keep water and chickens out. Panel just sits on the roof. I set this all up about 2mo before wyzecam with batteries were announced. Been running ever since. This time of year this area is always cloud covered, and limited daylight. The panel is an older one, not quite as efficient as the one that runs my daytime radiator fans in the hoopouse (no battery, just a 10in and 8in radiator fan that sound like jet engines on full sunny days. I tried the camp ceiling fans but they kept burning out). Fans are mostly to help prevent mold in that one, and keep heat even during summer.