Security Camera for Elderly Lady

klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 08:36
Last edited 30/05/2025 - 09:35 by 1 other user

Seeking suggestions from the hive mind on the best product for a slightly unique situation - please bear with the long-winded explanation:

My great-aunt lives in a multi-unit complex. She is a keen gardener, and is growing her favourite variety of flowers. The driveway side of her unit is the only location that suits these plant's requirements for sun, so she is growing them in pots outside her front door. The problem is - somebody keeps picking the flowers just as they start to bloom.

Her main living area is at the back of the unit so she never catches anyone red-handed. And she doesn't want to make wild accusations without knowing who the culprits are, given how closely they all live together. Which is all to say that she wants a security camera near her garage and front door to keep an eye on the flowers.

Now the technical parts:

The geometry of her front door means that a doorbell camera (which would be the most discrete and useful option) isn't really an option. There's nowhere sensible to mount it that would look the correct direction. So I'm thinking a little camera on the soffit above the garage door, looking towards the front door (and flowerpots).
The unit is a rental and drilling lots of holes to run cables or fix cameras in place is probably not an option. So I expect we'll need an adhesive or magnetic mount, a solar panel for power, and SD card for storage.
She doesn't have a router - she uses her phone for emails, and runs a hotspot for her laptop on the rare occasion she needs it. However, I can easily supply a basic router for WiFi, even if it's not connected to the internet, just so she can review the footage.

So, what camera should I use? A lot of options are eliminated by the weird arrangement. And I don't want to spend $500 on flower security.

Currently my preferred option is a Reolink Argus 3 with solar panel, but I'm open to alternatives. Any thoughts?

Electrical & Electronics Security Camera

Comments

Sye on 30/05/2025 - 08:43

+7

Have you thought about placing a grenade in a pot plant and then tying a flower to the pin and covering the grenade with potting mix?
- klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 09:30
  
  +4
  
  Sneaky and effective, but it would destroy the precious flowers.
87percent on 30/05/2025 - 09:02

+5

what about a trail camera?
- klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 09:33
  
  A trail camera is a potential option, but will it take enough photos to ensure sufficient evidence?
  
  Thanks for the suggestion.
  - Grunntt on 31/05/2025 - 11:25
    
    Trail cam with rechargeable batteries attached to a solar panel at my neighbours' weekender just keeps on recording - just make sure it has a large enough sd card.
    They visit every 2 weeks or so and check the recordings and wipe the sd card. They mentioned that they've left it for over a month and it still had space to keep recording.
    I've been told you can set it to take pretty much whatever number/frequency of images as well as only motion activated.
MS Paint on 30/05/2025 - 09:12

+8

Security Camera for Elderly Lady

Great offer but I think I'll keep my security camera. Old ladies can still be high maintenance.
- klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 09:32
  
  +9
  
  Ah, but you're under-valuing the elderly ladies' ability to bake cookies, and dispense wisdom and inheritances. Your camera will only ever be a camera.
  - MS Paint on 30/05/2025 - 09:33
    
    +3
    
    I've changed my mind.
    
    Is this still available?
    - klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 09:37
      
      +3
      
      Which camera are you offering in exchange? It will have to be a good one, or cash my way……the cookies are very good.
      - Protractor on 30/05/2025 - 12:14
        
        +1
        
        @klaw81: Do the cookies make you want to eat even more cookies? Because I'm beginning to think the 'flowers' are of a particular introduced (HIGHly popular) species.
        Does your great aunt have any Steve Earle CDs?
- DashCam AKA Rolts on 30/05/2025 - 09:33
  
  +2
  
  Elderly ladies have lavender scents. Cheers.
redforever on 30/05/2025 - 09:49

+5

For mounting options, you can get gutter mounts which you can integrate solar panel and the camera otself without drilling.
- Mugsy on 31/05/2025 - 07:46
  
  Also drain pipe mounts.
  
  Which one is the better option depends on the property of course.
  - klaw81 on 01/06/2025 - 09:03
    
    Drain pipe mount is actually a great idea that could work well for this location. Thanks for the suggestion.
    - Mugsy on 02/06/2025 - 11:55
      
      No probs.
      
      ebay is where I got my drain pipe mounts for my eufy 3C and S340 cameras. They attached perfectly.
kiitos on 30/05/2025 - 09:57

+6

A sign on a stick saying "Please do not pick these flowers"?
- jv on 30/05/2025 - 09:59
  
  "or ELSE !!!"
- Protractor on 30/05/2025 - 12:11
  
  A sign on a stick saying "~~Please~~ do not pick these flowers, they are covered in polonium"?
- JIMB0 on 31/05/2025 - 10:55
  
  It's probably a little girl that lives in the complex who is picking them. I doubt they can read.
  - klaw81 on 01/06/2025 - 08:59
    
    It's almost certainly the equally elderly neighbour next door. But baseless accusations are not a good way to keep harmony in such close living quarters. A quiet request directed at the culprit is the desired outcome.
jv on 30/05/2025 - 09:59

+3

This works well…
- boomramada on 30/05/2025 - 10:02
  
  This be the answer, what cam going to do? lol
- MS Paint on 30/05/2025 - 10:12
  
  +2
  
  Anyone born after 1990 will not get this reference.
  - Protractor on 30/05/2025 - 12:10
    
    Anyone born before 1990 has now been triggered.
    Time does not heal all.
JIMB0 on 30/05/2025 - 10:54

Can you park a car in the drive with a dashcam looking at the flowers?
- jv on 30/05/2025 - 11:01
  
  -1
  
  park a car in the drive
  
  Buying a car is hardly a cheap solution…
  - JIMB0 on 30/05/2025 - 18:00
    
    +1
    
    Maybe they already have a car! Good chance it's fitted with a dashcam as well.
- klaw81 on 01/06/2025 - 09:00
  
  No, that's not an option with the carpark configuration.
Protractor on 30/05/2025 - 12:09

+4

Is the great-aunt you, and is the flower garden the next door neighbours pool, and are the flowers the 2 Swedish backpackers renting the place?
- klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 13:49
  
  Wow, that's a great analogy that I wish I had thought of.
  
  This thread is a gold mine.
- Mugsy on 31/05/2025 - 08:15
  
  If the flowers were Swedish backpackers, I'd be guessing that they'd be plucked more often.
  - klaw81 on 01/06/2025 - 09:05
    
    If there were Swedish backpackers next door, I might be inclined to visit more frequently.
    
    Sadly this unit complex seems to be entirely occupied by retirees.
scrimshaw on 30/05/2025 - 12:31

+1

And I don't want to spend $500 on flower security.

The cheap option would be to hang a sign close that reads "Don't pick the flowers" and then install a dummy security camera nearby to spook the culprit into thinking they're being watched.

But otherwise battery powered cameras (Reolink Argus series, TP-Link Tapo C-series etc) are your best bet. Note that these battery powered cameras do not record 24 hours a day (to conserve power), they only record when movement is detected and they need a constant WiFi connection with Internet access to send notifications to the app.
- klaw81 on 30/05/2025 - 13:52
  
  The Argus 3 has on-camera person detection to trigger recordings, so my thought was that even without an internet connection, it would record any relevant incidents to the SD card for later viewing.
  
  The app notification isn't so important.
Downvoter on 30/05/2025 - 13:11

+1

Cheap fake camera might make them think twice, before you start dropping coin on a real one.
Brucet on 30/05/2025 - 13:48

Recommend ( ieGeek Battery Camera ).I am using it.quite good and affordable.
Protractor on 30/05/2025 - 14:12

Wildlife camera in the garden vicinity, obscure location. Name and shame the floral fugitive, wne you capture their image.
I suspect it could be Bill, or it could be Ben, looking for a 'Little Weed'..
Mugsy on 31/05/2025 - 08:00

Is there a window with visibility to the pot plants?

If so, just set up an indoor security camera on the window sill and follow the camera setting guide here to reduce reflection in the footage recording…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CCjXDxWtpk

Tapo indoor security cameras like the C210 or similar that are often on sale will do the trick. Stick a microSD card in there to store recorded footage and leave on motion sensor recording.

Your main issue with this technique is if the culprit is doing this at night… you need night vision off for this to work. A solar powered garden light might do the trick though with providing enough lighting.

And in case you're wondering on the effectiveness of this technique, I've been doing this since my house has been built. Have had one camera capture a tradie taking a piss on side wall that I forwarded the footage to council to fast track an application to undertake landscaping works that required removing and replacing protected vegetation. I have another camera looking at my front gate from the second floor front facing window… it sees what is happening on the street, even at night due to good street lighting. Captures some useful footage.
- klaw81 on 01/06/2025 - 09:01
  
  Sadly no windows have a good view of the area in question. But your solution was my first idea also.
  - Mugsy on 02/06/2025 - 11:52
    
    +1
    
    Bugger. Sounds like an external battery power camera (ideally with solar power) is the way to go. Hope it all works out!
Greg McGregerson on 31/05/2025 - 13:07

Quickest/easiest option is firstly a sign that requests that the flowers are not picked, and also that the area is under video surveillance. If this fails to work, then consider other (i.e. camera-based) options…

Security Camera for Elderly Lady

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