[Jamie McNamee]

Hi,

What camera & viewer would you guys recommend for my gutter vac? Are they all about the same or is there something I should be looking out for?

[SB Cleaning]

If you've got a smart phone...Look no further than the sj4000 action cam

[Smudger]

If you've got a smart phone...Look no further than the sj4000 action cam

I want one - Mrs smudger say no 

Darran

[Smurf]

A gopro with an lcd touch screen backpak is what I would recommend.

[samson]

We use Gopro with a tablet, only downside is the image is a bit dark !     Sure there is a setting somewhere to fix this, but I am just too thick to work it out 

[Smurf]

Try it when it's not dark then

[samson]

Try it when it's not dark then

You need a new vac smurf, you left loads of muck in them gutters 

[Smurf]

Try it when it's not dark then

You need a new vac smurf, you left loads of muck in them gutters 

I offer a new service and fill them up 

[Smurf]

Those were example still pics taken from a vid clip whilst on a gutter clearing quote.

Just showed the customer there and then why their guttering was overflowing by playing back the vid using the lcd touch screen backpak instead of having to faff about with a smart phone aswell. Offering a gutter cam survey whilst on a quote will give you the edge over local competition as is a great passive sales tool too.

[Jamie McNamee]

Those pics look great Smurf, just what I'm after. How much are we talking for that set up? do you have a link for which one you recommend? There's millions of options come up when I google and I'm a bit dim 

[Smurf]

That's just a hero3+ Silver and I paid extra for the optional lcd touch screen brought from my local currys at the time as wanted one  quick for a particular job. The extra gopro bits I wanted I got from fleebay which in total for that setup came to about 450. To be honest if I was not in so much of a rush I would have liked to have brought the hero4 as it came out shortly afterwards.

Gopro cams are well over the top price wise for what they are so if you are on a tight bugdet then a chepo type sj4000 action cam would probably do the same job but has a smaller screen built in on the back of it.

[samson]

That's just a hero3+ Silver and I paid extra for the optional lcd touch screen brought from my local currys at the time as wanted one  quick for a particular job. The extra gopro bits I wanted I got from fleebay which in total for that setup came to about 450. To be honest if I was not in so much of a rush I would have liked to have brought the hero4 as it came out shortly afterwards.

Gopro cams are well over the top price wise for what they are so if you are on a tight bugdet then a chepo type sj4000 action cam would probably do the same job but has a smaller screen built in on the back of it.

Does that cheap cam have wifi ?

[Smurf]

Have a good look on fleebay as It's a bit of a minefield to know what cheapo wifi enabled action cam would be suitable so that is the main reason why I went for  a gopro in the end. Not only that I wanted a decent size lcd touch screen to see what I was letting myself in for and to show vids/still images to potential customers easily on quotes without having to faff about with wifi and connecting to a smart phone/tablet.

As they say you pays yer money and takes yer choice but for a few quid (30 ish) it might just be worth the gamble if you just want to try one for gutter inspection/clearing.

[samson]

Even with the wifi there is a couple of seconds delay, it's like trying to cut your own hair looking in a mirror 

[Smurf]

As far as gutter clearing is concerned yes there  is a few seconds delay on all wifi enabled gopro type cams but It's  a darn site easier to see what you are actually doing whilst in realish time than say waving a 30 ft pole about blind and/or having to use ladders to check

When I first started I had a hardwired expensive bullet cam and monitor which had no delay but was a real pain in the arse to setup and use 

[Jamie McNamee]

So when you have the Gopro attached to the top of the pole, what do you view the picture on?

[Smurf]

Just to point out the main reason if you see this skyvac vid the chap don't use the camera in real time as the chepo baby monitor camera setup he sells at an extortinate price has a built in battery so when it goes flat you are fooked and have to wait hours to for it to recharge unless you have more than one camera. However if using a gopro you can change the battery within a few seconds if/when needed but he will not tell you that for some strange reason

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eER9K003Tvs

[Smurf]

So when you have the Gopro attached to the top of the pole, what do you view the picture on?

You just download the free gopro app compatible with the smart phone or tablet you want to use. 

[Smurf]

You can use a smart phone in various ways to view and control the functions of the gopro camera whilst gutter clearing.

on your wrist, on yer pole, around yer neck etc etc

[Jamie McNamee]

Cheers Smurf. Much appreciated.

I was looking at getting this vac - http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/3000carbonfibrekits.html

They sell a camera kit thats about £200 has anyone else used one of these or would i be better going for the gopro?

[Smurf]

If you are thinking of spending that short of money http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/camera.html for a crappy overpriced wifi baby monitor then you would be better spending roughly the same amount of money on something like this to be honest http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GoPro-Hero4-Silver-LCD-Touch-Screen-Action-Camera-12-MP-4K-WiFi-Camcorder-Go-Pro-/221832891342?hash=item33a6454bce

That's also if you own a smart phone and you want to use it in so say real time. You would also need to buy a few extra batteries, charger,  mounts etc

[Jamie McNamee]

I think I will save £100 and get the Hero 3 from the same seller. What fitting do you use to attach it?

[samson]

We tried viewing on a phone, but the image is too small, so you are better off using a tablet !

[Smurf]

We tried viewing on a phone, but the image is too small, so you are better off using a tablet !

Did you put the gopro app view in full screen mode as seems fine to me using it on an iphone?

[Smurf]

As a test I've just tried the gopro app on an android tablet and like you say it’s a larger viewer obviously due to the tablet screen size. However the downside to this is the size of the actual tablet especially if you are working on your own you can't really strap it onto the pole or wear it on your wrist whilst working now can you?

So my question is how do you use the tablet in real time viewing whilst working as I’m guessing you must be working in pairs?

[samson]

As a test I've just tried the gopro app on an android tablet and like you say it’s a larger viewer obviously due to the tablet screen size. However the downside to this is the size of the actual tablet especially if you are working on your own you can't really strap it onto the pole or wear it on your wrist whilst working now can you?

So my question is how do you use the tablet in real time viewing whilst working as I’m guessing you must be working in pairs?

Yes our lass holds it, while I work the pole 

[Smurf]

As a test I've just tried the gopro app on an android tablet and like you say it’s a larger viewer obviously due to the tablet screen size. However the downside to this is the size of the actual tablet especially if you are working on your own you can't really strap it onto the pole or wear it on your wrist whilst working now can you?

So my question is how do you use the tablet in real time viewing whilst working as I’m guessing you must be working in pairs?

Yes our lass holds it, while I work the pole 

Bless her...what else does she do? 
Nagging maybe? ... like left a bit right a bit no not that way you idiot springs to mind  

[samson]

As a test I've just tried the gopro app on an android tablet and like you say it’s a larger viewer obviously due to the tablet screen size. However the downside to this is the size of the actual tablet especially if you are working on your own you can't really strap it onto the pole or wear it on your wrist whilst working now can you?

So my question is how do you use the tablet in real time viewing whilst working as I’m guessing you must be working in pairs?

Yes our lass holds it, while I work the pole 

Bless her...what else does she do? 
Nagging maybe? ... like left a bit right a bit no not that way you idiot springs to mind  

She is the brains behind the operation, i just shovel sand 

[Smurf]

As a test I've just tried the gopro app on an android tablet and like you say it’s a larger viewer obviously due to the tablet screen size. However the downside to this is the size of the actual tablet especially if you are working on your own you can't really strap it onto the pole or wear it on your wrist whilst working now can you?

So my question is how do you use the tablet in real time viewing whilst working as I’m guessing you must be working in pairs?

Yes our lass holds it, while I work the pole 

Bless her...what else does she do? 
Nagging maybe? ... like left a bit right a bit no not that way you idiot springs to mind  

She is the brains behind the operation, i just shovel sand 

You mean you just suck in the shiiiiit...gutter clearing that is 

[JandS]

Cheers Smurf. Much appreciated.

I was looking at getting this vac - http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/3000carbonfibrekits.html

They sell a camera kit thats about £200 has anyone else used one of these or would i be better going for the gopro?

I got this system and the camera and viewing screen that comes with it.....the bottom pole has a fixing to slot the screen in at eye height.

[Smurf]

This says it all really what they are meant for- pic of a baby in a cot.
They are not waterproof/rainproof either as are ment to be used indoors as a baby monitor not used as a so say gutter cam system outdoors.. That is what people  started using a few years back but times has moved alot since then as many  use gopro's as they are upto the job and can take alot of abuse in all weathers.

[samson]

Cheers Smurf. Much appreciated.

I was looking at getting this vac - http://www.guttercleaningsystems.co.uk/3000carbonfibrekits.html

They sell a camera kit thats about £200 has anyone else used one of these or would i be better going for the gopro?

I would go for the gopro, there is a new model out now so the price of the older models will have come down a ;lot !

[Smurf]

I think I will save £100 and get the Hero 3 from the same seller. What fitting do you use to attach it?

You can use a handle bar mount for a stripped down wfp for gutter surveys etc or roll bar mount for the gutter pole/nozzle

[Smurf]

If you going to get a gopro then I would say the min spec you should be looking out for is a hero 3+ silver or black if you can't stretch to a new hero 4 silver or black.

The other option might be to take a gamble and get an sj6000 9 with a  2 inch built in screen

[Jamie McNamee]

Cheers Crapinon, went for the Hero 3+ black in the end, should be here in a few days.

[Smurf]

Cheers Crapinon, went for the Hero 3+ black in the end, should be here in a few days.

Nice one 

[JandS]

Works fine for me.

[Smurf]

Works fine for me.

I'm not saying they don't work but from experience I'm just saying they don't last very long as I've tried  many types of so say gutter camera systems over the years that either broke or just decided to pack in.  Mind you working out in all weathers including heavy rain did not help matters much. Oops! 

[Smurf]

I've found using a gopro the image quality is a much higher spec than a wifi cam/dvr  baby monitor. The vid clips you take using a gopro you can crop quality still images from them or just take high res pics that can be  used for marketing purposes too.

This example high res image has been scaled down/resized from 5.6 mb to be allowed to upload on the forum .

It's a long way down to be using ladders on that one. Well it's further than most  would want to climb to handball it out 

[JandS]

Had to do one side of two semis last w/e by hand, too tight and virtually a lawn laid in gutter.
Don't think the machine would have done it anyway.
I tend, if not too much hassle, to pop up the ladder for a looksee.

[Smurf]

Some jobs can be right pigs to do so ladder are still needed for sure on some jobs also can be quicker to handball sods out or unblock downspout bends by hand. That's if you can set the ladder safely but still a guttervac is an esential bit of kit to have too when ladders can't be used at all due to access issues.

The use of a gopro set up as a gutter cam for surveys whilst giving a quote in my opinion is to really establish best methods to be used instead of getting ladders of the van to have a good look so you know for sure exactly what you are going to be up against. Just clamp the gopro onto the end of a stripped down water fed pole, hit the record button and wiz around the property which takes only mins to do. If you have an lcd touch screen backpak the vid can be played back directly from the camera instead of faffing about with a wifi connected smart phone or tablet.