Infra-red camera, damage to baby's eyes

[Jimbom]

Looking to add a cctv camera in the nursery to my cctv system at home. Just wondering if the infra-red leds shining may have an adverse impact on my daughters eyesight?

Any thoughts?

J

[dilbertina]

Why would you want CCTV in the nursery?

Personally I would avoid unnecesssary electrical equipment if not necessary, but unaware of any research that says Infra red dangerous.

[clumsymum]

Same question here. Why on earth do you want to put a CCTV camera in a baby's bedroom?

[EvelynsDad]

No.

It's perfectly safe, but I agree with the others, it's a silly idea.

[MadreInglese]

You have CCTV in your house?

Are you a celeb?

[clumsymum]

It IS a joke, right ....?

[dilbertina]

hmmm....interesting first post.

[Jimbom]

Yes Dilbertina an interesting first post, as was the response this newbie got! Thank you and Evelynsdad for your constructive info though!

There are number of reasons for doing this

a. I already have a comprehensive cctv system installed in my house, no I?m not a celeb! It is not an old fashioned video recorder system, rather a system that enables the outputs to be streamed around the house and elsewhere via the net, think of a glorified webcam! The extra cost of one more camera is minimal?.

b. It is an addition to the conventional audio baby monitor, we can sit downstairs and see what our daughter is up to as well as hearing her! Not a replacement for regularly checking on her, more a supplement! How many times have you heard a thud and wondered what it was, only for it to be the baby banging it?s legs, well with this I can see her happily lying in her cot and know it is not what ever ?worst case? my imagination may have conjured up.

c. I sadly have to go to work, meaning I am remote from what is happening at home, this system means that I can remotely watch my wife and daughter playing, not a substitute for being there, however makes a boring afternoon in the office that much more fun, especially as I can talk with them simultaneously. It is password protected so the world at large cannot get to view it, but I can even access it via my mobile phone. Oh it can be turned off at the nursery end if so desired!

d. I thought this forum was entitled ?Geeky stuff?? nearly every other father of a new born I know wants one! There are expensive to install from scratch, I?m fortunate that it is already in place following a major property refurb, just want to get as much benefit from it as possible!

J

[dilbertina]

You came back!!

I find the idea of wanting to remotely see every corner of your house slightly odd...but each to their own...

I would be uncomfortable being monitored by my husband whilst he was at work, although would be very happy to have webcam chats etc.

Is it a wireless sytem? Whilst I know risk is probably minimal I would not want my baby spending lots of time near a transmitter, I know the experts would say signal is less than a tv but I wouldn't want the baby next to that for long periods either - maybe paranoid but we don't yet know for sure.

Can I be nosey and ask if your wife is as keen as you on all this gadgetry?

[clumsymum]

Yes I have to say that the idea of being able to 'watch' any part of your home like this a bit strange. Is it the next stage on to those people who are constantly on a mobile phone? Never being alone, never being seperated from home/family.

Ok so in practical terms it may not hurt your baby, but I wonder if a child growing up in a house where she is permanently 'watched' might end up with a few 'issues' ????

As far as supplementing the baby-monitor is concerned, well recognising that this is probably your PFB, maybe you need to chill a little?

[wannaBe]

does your wife know?

Recently there was a man who rang into our local radio station who was talking about his need to know what his wife was doing all the time. He too had cctv in his house and had even installed it in her car but she didn't know. He gave her cash to spend and approved all her clothes before she was allowed to keep them. And this man was quite open about it, live on the local station. and he got absolutely slated for it. And his reasons... "well I'm the one earning the money, so I have every right to know what she spends it on. Plus she is married to me, and while she is at home I have the right to know what she is doing." The presenter told him she hoped the wife divorced him.

[BouncingTurtle]

Good God, there are some suspicious minds here! Yes there are some weirdos out there, but don't be so quick to jump to conclusions, ladies!

It's no different to people sending their kids to nursery and watching them over the CCTV that the nursery provide!
And you can buy baby monitors with cameras/TV screens built in.

As long as your wife doesn't mind, that is. Though I must ask, you haven't got them in the bathroom - I wouldn't fancy my dh spying on me while I'm having a shit

I think it's just a men-and-gadgets thing, myself!

[clumsymum]

"It's no different to people sending their kids to nursery and watching them over the CCTV that the nursery provide!"

Well, maybe not, but then I think that is strange enough. If you can't bear to let them out of sight ....

[wannaBe]

well I think the idea of watching children in nursery equally odd tbh.

As for men and their gadgets, I think there's a difference between having cctv installed for security purposes (we don't but I can sort of see why some people might), and having it installed so you can check up on your wife/family while you're not there.

I think it's ve controlling actually, and I wouldn't be happy if my dh had such a system in our house.

[BouncingTurtle]

My nursery doesn't have cctv - and I was surprised that some do, as a lot of people asked me if I did. It would be tempting to watch him while I was work because I know I'm going to miss him - but that's not what I'm being paid to do!
If my nursery did have such a system, there would be times I would check up on him, during my breaks, just so I could see him and reassure myself that he is ok. I guess that makes me controlling does it?
I honestly don't think that JimBom has given enough information to warrant being called "controlling". For instance - we have no idea where the CCTV cameras are - they may be on the outside of the house and/or in common rooms as part of a commonly used security system.
We know nothing of what his wife thinks!
Anyway it's moot since I think the OP has gone - and I'm not surprised considering the frankly inquistorial bent of this thread.
It could simply be that he hasn't properly thought through the implications of this - or he has and his wife have discussed it and are both happy with it, and are now ironing out technical issues.
But of course we don't know that!
Do we have a new policy on Mumsnet that new posters should be views automatically with suspicion every time they post something that seems a bit off the wall? I hope that we would give new posters the benefit of the doubt before jumping all over them.

[BouncingTurtle]

Sorry for the poor grammar but trying to watch ds and print off christening invites atm!

[wannaBe]

"I sadly have to go to work, meaning I am remote from what is happening at home, this system means that I can remotely watch my wife and daughter playing,
not a substitute for being there, however makes a boring afternoon in the office that much more fun, especially as I can talk with them simultaneously." you don't find that controlling? or creepy at the very least?

"It is password protected so the world at large cannot get to view it, but I can even access it via my mobile phone." again.

Do you not think, that someone who clearly has the ability to install such a complex system in his house, link it up to the internet and his mobile phone, would go somewhere just a little bit more geeky than mn to establish the effects of the infrared on his child? .

[BouncingTurtle]

Who's to say he hasn't?
And no - I don't find it freaky. My DH phones me up when he is work to ask me what me and DS are doing. If he could see us as well as talk to us, he would love it - because he misses us when he is away!
God forbid any man takes an interest in his family when he is away at work
It would be controlling if he was doing it secretly without his wife's knowledge - but as he says 'specially as I can talk with them simultaneously', this would imply that yes she knows.

[Jimbom]

It is not a control thing in the slightest! It is not as if we have cameras in every room. If my wife does not want the camera on she can turn it off, in fact it will be more a case that we will turn it on when it will be of use. Cctv covers the garages and entrances to house, we live in a ruralish location and have had the pleasure of having previous properties burgled, not something that is particularly pleasant.

In my line of work we use cctv system in a large number of locations, so I?m used to the technology and it?s benefits. I have spoken to the supplier of the cameras, he would not give me a definitive answer as to whether they are safe or not, thought they were (no-one had asked before, despite them fitting them in a number of commercial nurseries).

Since then I have spoken to an optician, and on another technical forum. It was suggested that a baby forum would be a good place to ask?..Sadly I appear to being slated for caring about my daughter?s well being and not wanting to put her sight at risk.

As to my wife, she is abundantly aware of it and it is of use to her too. The property has lots of high tech features, from whole house audio, through to remote mood lighting. In terms of technology we are both early adopters?.

Bouncing Turtle raises some good points that you may wish to consider re the forum and it?s approach.

Yes my home may not be the norm, but if no-one pushed the boundaries we would all still be living in cold, damp caves!

J

[BlackEyedDog]

you're house sounds cool

[BouncingTurtle]

Jimbom - I'm glad you came back and glad you found the info you wanted.
Please don't be put off - unfortunately many women on here have had some awful experiences with their partners which can make some people a bit over sensitive.
Mumsnet (despite its name) is for parents by parents and as such should be welcoming to all newbies!

I'm pleased that my assumption about you and your house are correct and that you are not some weird psycho freak
Funnily enough I've since found out that my son'ts nursery does have the CCTV! I don't know if I'd use the web function, I'm not sure how I would react if I caught him at a bad moment! He may have been happily playing for ours and then I catch him when he is having one of his I'm-very-tired-but-don't-want-to-sleep-so-will-cry-instead times!

[BouncingTurtle]

hours not ours!

[NathanB]

Hey there,

First post here but hopefully not my last. I was searching the web about the same question as to the one of this post so thought I would add a post here and not start a new thread.

I was surprised to see the backlash that JimBom recieved and some the strong views of some of the members here on this issue.

So, I am in to my gadgets and I am currently decorating and sorting out the nursery for our first Baby in May. I have various cameras in and out of the house and was looking at getting one for the nursery room but was unsure to if infra red ligths/leds would cause any issues to our baby.

Let me explain about the cameras, maybe this will help to reinforce why they are there but I appreciate it is not to everyones taste.

• Outside cameras, these are more there to record if we have a break-in. So not really actively used on a day to day basis.

• Inside cameras, we have two inside. These do not look like cctv cameras and are relatvly small. The point of these was so we can check on our dog from time to time. The were initially a great thing to have as we were concerned that he may not be good alone (he gets a walk inthe morning and my wife comes home at lunch to walk him so he is not left for more that 3-4 hours). The main thing we got from that was that he slept for over 50% of the day and could entertain himself, no excessive barking and did not seem stressed. So, good to know.

So, baby cam. The main point/idea of this is just to keep an eye on the little on when we are not in the room. Not looking at using it during the day but could have a quick look if/when our baby will be sleeping in there cot. I am going to make my own little box with will be a camera, infra red leds, heat sensor (see how hot it is in the room). These out of the box baby monitors can be expesive as the cheap ones are pretty crap.

After reading this post and various bits online there is no evidence to support that UV light can/will cause problems for anyone including babies. I am happy for someone to correct me.

Thanks for listening.

[nunofduarte]

Reading the initial comments to this thread from 11 years ago is hilarious, to say the least. As a recent dad, the infrared camera has been absolutely essential to my and my wife. Peace of mind is priceless.

[doonger]

I was literally going to type the same thing as nunofduarte, lol. It is incredible to see how J got shamed 11 years ago for what is basically the norm now.

[HappyManny]

Hello JimBon,
In 2008 you intelligently asked if infrared would be harmful. Now that your child should be a teenager, have you noticed anything that may lead you to believe that infrared was harmful? Did you learn more about this? The market is now inundated with lowlight infrared cameras for baby monitors and I'm definitely very concerned about my grandchildren. Any opinions?