Make yourself a cheap drain camera
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 ก.ค. 2024
- Drain inspection cameras will set you back £50+VAT just to hire for the day, and that's just for the cheap ones, you can easily pay more than double that. As long as you already have a laptop (or a computer you can take outside) here's how you can rig up a combined inspection camera and drain rod for as little as £30, and it's yours to keep.
Rodding drains has never been so much fun! :)
INDEX
0:00 Index
0:10 Introduction
0:31 Drain rods
0:58 The camera
2:52 Putting them together
4:35 "Going through the motions" - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
This is a great idea. I just dug up the area a professional plumber said I had a master bath cracked combo. He marked the spot. I had a security camera by chance record his description of what was going on. I could not afford 3700.00 to tear up my slab and dig and repair so had a friend help and his friend a plumber stopped by and there WAS NO CRACK, NO LEAK and NO issue. I was lied to. Almost SCAMMED and now I don't trust anyone at all!!!
My neighbour just got done for £400 to remove a simple blockage by some local ripoff merchant!
Amazing that people wont try and fix things themselves just by using youtube and finding great vids like this will save you a fortune.
Ive saved over £20,000 i reckon over the years in car mechanics, plumbing, electronics and i have become good at most things i do now!
Never had to employ a tradesman , car mechanic ...ever, a lot thanks to youtube vids like these!
God knows how much the blockage on mine would've cost to clear. 4 metres up the pipe then off into a side pipe that may well be at right angles to the main one. I managed to use the camera to locate it, then loosely taped a jetter hose (which runs off a domestic pressure washer) to the end and sent that up to the same location. A bit of coaxing to get the tape to release the jetter into the side pipe but once it was in there it had a field day.
With the help of your video anyone can make drain camera at home. The process shown is easy to follow and implement. Nice work
Good to see a positive comment from someone who deals with drains for a living. For those in Melbourne, Australia if you've got a problem that your own rods can't fix (or you've turned the rods counterclockwise and got one stuck in the pipe) give Drainclear a call on 1300 372462 :)
www.1300drainclear.com.au/
Thanks for that. I bought 2 five metre drain augers and used hose clips and tape to tie them together. I also added extra light by the addition of two cheap torches, sealed with duct tape, worked great!!
When you're working with both hands on something with the torch between your teeth and you suddenly remember what you last used the torch for... :D
I like the fact that the end of the drain rod holds the camera suspended in the pipe. I have a borescope, but the camera drags along the floor of the pipe, in the muck, and the lens gets quickly obscured. This is a practical and elegant solution. And as Esther mentioned, I didn't know there were such things as drain rods, either.
Excellent info. Thank you for doing what I had so many times wondered was possible.
Thanks for the instructions I wouldn't have thought of this setup. I've not seen the rods in the US, I was able to find a set for $55 with free delivery. A good investment. Also thanks for taking the time to make and share.
Great idea you just saved me £100+ for a camera inspection on my drain pipe to septic tank and i will do repair to pipe so another £300+ saving HAPPY DAYS
hi- Thanks for the post. I just wanted to chime in saying that I use a similar setup for chimney flue inspection. The app that I use for my android tablet is called UsbWebCamera. The camera does not do well in low light, so I add lighting to my rig. Also, for non - water inspection purposes, sometimes I strap an old smartphone on to my rods and use an app called ipwebcam to broadcast to any device connected through a router. At times I have used my main phone as a router between my inspection device and a tablet. Other times, I just use an old router from the thrift shop.
After watching this video I couldn't resist buying one of the USB endosope cameras. I got the 7m version and it's very good. But I couldn't resist popping open the plug end to see what sort of circuitry is inside. The answer is NONE. Just the ptentiometer and all the other USB signals go straight up the screened 4-core cable. I guess screen is common ground and one of the four cores is the variable current LED feed. The plug end is just twp press-together halves of a shell.
Thanks a lot for the info and for the speedy reply. I had already ordered a similar USB camera but really helpful to know the app name, so cheers again!!
Good call about the cavity wall, I forgot I need to take a look inside mine!
Very usefull for my job. We want some technology for plumping & drainage works. Very thank you for sharing sir
Great video! 👍👍👍 I’ve gor drain rods (exactly the same as your one) and I’ve used them on many occasions the past few years! I’m in Australia.
Now I need to get me a camera for another suspected blockage, but this time, I need something much more flexible. Possibly a drain auger for those tight bends?
Great idea - like the description "Going through the motions" :-)
The old ones are the best ones :)
Both. Clockwise from left: Drain outside kitchen (dishwaher, sink and waste disposal), upstairs bathroom (WC, sink and bath), house next door (and possibly my house's drain for the roof and the utility room (sink, washing machine)), downstairs toilet (one fork), drain for flat roof (other fork), outlet to next inspection chamber.
It'll be down to the USB specification, I believe the maximum length including repeaters is 50 metres.
Great DIY !
Do you mind list down all the tools and equipment being used to assemble the Camera? Thinking of assemble one for myself . TQ!
I enjoyed your video. It was very helpful. Thank you!
Also if you mount a inspection camera on a plumbers power auger thats one way to not have to worry so much about snags as the machine helps you thru but i am wondering if there is a proper installation to minimize damage to the camera as the auger bores down the pipe / vents.... Because even forcing the my inspection camera on fishing wire down the 2 in pvc pipe its roughing it up over time i know this would eventually destroy the scope. So far for big vents / pipes or straight vertical drops , or looking into short tight areas like a car engine to inspect valves , pistons ,..etc works great.
Thank you. I'm ordering parts now :)
Great video. Very useful.
what a brilliant idea, cheap and effective
Great vid! given me an idea for pcb inspection work and cable threading. Didn't know usb fibrecams existed.
Great money saving Hack everyone should learn, Nice one
good video thanks ...could you give the name of the app again ...tried on my samsung 3 and nothing coming up ....thanks
Thank you very much for the info… you’re awesome..
Great video thanks for sharing.
You are a life hack genius🤓!!! Thank you so much!
Great Idea, as home owners, and others watch, more and more, HGTV any new Tool will help. Best Yet !
So i am hopeing somebody has a solution for the tight pipe/vents and bend/getting hung up on fittings. Because thats really the frustrating part of looking down stuff with an inspection camera i had some close calls where it to a while to get the stuck scope / fishing wire out...So there has to be a better / easy solution for inspection...though haven't figured it out yet. For small diameter pipe vertical runs are easy gravity helps ... but for when the pipe is horizontail or slanted at angles or with lots of turns / fittings the inspection gets almost impossible. And the only thing is to blindly auger it .
Holy hell, ive not seen a drain rod kit since the 80s. Seriously though $600 for a proper drain camera that will be so much better.
For $600 I could replace the drain. Shelling that much out on a set of rods used once every few years would be daft.
@@AintBigAintClever I suppose it's relevant to how often you work on drains. A 150' orthoscope ( $35 ) and sectional cables or rods works. When working on them often having a proper camera is absolutely worth the $$., it will last.
Awesome, well done!!
Excellent idea. could you feed the cable through the rod for added protection. and how did you get a fork stuck in your drain.
How I can get the drain rods..Please share the link as I need to puchase
So what would you say is the maximum lenth of cable before the signal starts to brake up? Because the last thing I want is for the recording software to abandon the recording because the signal drops out for a couple of seconds
I've managed to knacker mine, got water into it. If you're using yours under water put a big gob of sealant around the cable end of the camera, there's a load already there but it'll improve the protection.
I've torn mine down and bought a smaller one now, not finished the vid yet though.
Good vid!
The rod I have is not as flexible as that, anyone know a good brand that good in a tight space?
Thank you! I didn't know there was anything called a drain rod. That must be what I needed. I have a camera scope but didn't know how to get it down in there. My drain goes down about 3 ft then makes a 90 degree angle turn. Will the drain rods make a turn that drastic? So far nothing else has worked. Thanks again!
Rods won't do a bend like that, but a jetter hose for a pressure washer would get down there. They're cheap enough on eBay. I needed one of those because there was a blockage in a side pipe about 4m up the main run, this looked like a 90 degree bend on camera. I sent the jetting hose up taped loosely at an angle on the rods' screw head, managed to break it free at the 4m mark with it just poking into the side pipe, then switched the pressure washer on and let it do its thing.
"Rodding drains has never been so much fun! :)"..........After two years of working for a drain rooter service, i can tell you without any doubt....it ain't no fun!
Great idea.
Hmm, all the thumbs down must be from shady plumbers. Why sit around, wait, then spend five to eight hundred bucks for something you can do yourself for under $100? If the problem is that bad at least you'd know exactly what's going on before the pro shows up. You'd also know if your getting ripped off or not. Any honest plumber wouldn't have a problem with people helping themselves.
So try. Pros hate anything that's not 100% code and them doing it. I see it on every pro forum. As if there is not more then one way to skin a cat! We work on our own cars but the minute we do our own plumbing the world is going to end! What's the worst it could happen...we could have to call the over priced "pro" and his hourly rates that equal my dentist!?!?
Those rods are very similar to the rods used to clean chimneys and wood stove liners. Look for "sooteater" and the Chinese knock offs. Their are two types, white and black. Black are thicker, white are more flexible.
this was very interesting...the drains system in the UK are quite different to what we have...:) thanks for this and I shall share it with friends...you should have a cup of tea, with milk in it :)
Great idea! I saw one of these cameras in a webshop, but I thought it wouldn't work at all with the camera cable being longer than 5 meters. I think it is not usb communication all the way to the camera head.
The chinese usb extension leads of 6 meters and so on, don't work because of the usb std. only supports a maximum of 5 meters, right?
The rod appears to be solid, the end caps certainly are, but there's not much in the pipe that can damage the cable anyway.
Decent long extension cables will have a repeater (effectively a one-port USB hub) at the end. You can daisy-chain up to five USB hubs (including the one in the PC).
Alternatively USB-over-Cat.5 adapters are available, these extend the USB range to 50m. In the sewer-cam case you could probably take the camera-end out of its box and pot it in epoxy to keep the water out. There's useful information about these at lindy. co. uk /usb-extension-cat5-usb-extender-premium-up-to-50m /42801. html
Tape a plastic sandwich bag around the camera end, to keep it clean.
This way only the cable itself gets dirty, and that's easy to clean since it's sealed along it's whole length you can dunk it in water.
It's not a bad idea but I do wonder how it copes when going round bends in the drain? And also risky if your camera gets stuck in a large displaced joint in the drain then it's time to get your shovels out lol.
Are those rods flexible? Are they the same as the ones they sell to fish electrical lines? My drain cleanout is only 3 inches across and has some 90 degree turns :( This looks like an awesome idea so thanks for posting!
"going through the motions" ha ha legend
Just use a cable tidy to hold the camera! Job done!
what is the application for the mac called, I thought you said quick ear or click here but I cannot find anything with any of these words searching the app store.......could you please confirm, cheers
Where did you buy your USB endosope camera, I want to make one
How to make it more flexible to detect issues in a soil pipe?, so go through the toilet first rather than a shore. The rods would be way too inflexible
You need a 4" cutter to cut roots. Smaller won't cut it.
I'd like to inspect the drain tile extending underground from a gutter downspout. The pipe goes straight underground for about 8 feet and then has a right angle joint before continuing on (for 200' or so, all underground). I wouldn't expect to run a pipe or cable anywhere near that distance, but would like to see if there's any clog as far as I'm able to go. There might not be. The rods used here look too rigid for my purpose. Any suggestions on what I can use? I know I might need to hire a pro.
I think you may well need to do so. You can put a camera at right-angles on the end to see what you can see, which is exactly what I need to do now as I've identified a blockage in one of the side pipes. The pipe's only about 1.5m long but it's at almost a right-angle to a main pipe, 4.1m along it. I may be able to whittle away the blockage with a sprung-steel sink unblocking strip sent down a hosepipe along with the rods & camera but it could take ages (I've already managed to rip the spring off the end of the unblocking strip, and I've only pulled a few bits of old plant detritus out). One advantage you may have is that 8 foot run, that could be a lot of plunge power with the rubber end on the rods if you know what you're dealing with at the far end.
Ultimately for a 200 foot run you'll probably end up needing a pro with the long camera-rod-on-a-reel but it could be that your own rods-and-camera will give you peace of mind that you know what's down there and might be useful in future, if not then I reckon you'll always be able to re-sell a set of drain rods. This of course assumes that you can't go to the end of the 200' run and draw the blockage out that way, again sending a camera up as far as you can may give you an idea of what you're dealing with.
The IEEE USB spec limits USB cable length to 3 - 5 meters. Has anyone had success with a camera cable at 10 or 15 meters?
I think the longer cables have repeaters (effectively 1-port USB hubs) partway down the cable to keep within spec.
Hi
Cant find the app Quickia..Maybe im spelling it wrong?
Could u write the name of it please r if u can share a link so i may find it,if u dont mind...
Thanks
Antonia Mc Namara itunes.apple.com/gb/app/quickier-retro-webcam-movie/id530010766?mt=12
Good demonstration, I am doing something similar i taped the boroscope/camera to a electricians 100ft fishing wire. I find it snagging to often to be useful for smaller diameter pipes or vents. It gets hung up on fittings and bends. So i am curious if you have a solution the boroscopes i have is semiridged but they come in flexible , semiridged , or ridged would you think the flexible would make a significant difference? I am talking about 2 to 2 1/2 inch pipe or less for larger pipes or vents its not an issue aka it won't get hung up as much and it be great for uses. Unfortunately the application calls for looking down small diameter pipes or vents.
I'd expect the flexible one to be better at getting round bends. When drawing back out keep tension on the cable to prevent it getting knotted up round the end of the fishing wire. Another option is to have it taped to the wire at regular intervals, this would also mean less tension at the end as the front end of the wire isn't towing the whole camera cable (which may cause it to pull to one side and snag).
@@AintBigAintClever I tried that i think its the rigidness of the fishing wire also getting hung up. Its long 100ft metal steel fishing wire i saw some nylon fishing wire which feels much more smooth. Perhaps that would snake down smaller diameter things? Not sure what exactly the issue i believe its partly do to semiridged boroscope and partly do to ridged fishing wire meant more for wall snaking or large diameters stuff , or things with not alot of bends in it.
Good idea for straight runs till you hit a fitting
This is my experience. The concept is excellent. Followed all the guidelines provided. Camera purchased from link given. Nice little item but no software dicc now provided. Has to be downloaded as a Win.rar file. Did so. Sporadic performance. Image would freeze within seconds or run all day. Main Problem with these cameras is focal length (about an inch), very poor field of vision (about an inch when in focus) and the LED's will not light up a 4 inch drain enough to give any real information. You simply don't know what you're looking at. I had a rethink on the concept. Used Skype camera from desk top, two LED torches, gaffa taped the whole lot together and it was like driving down the Simplon tunnel on full beam! The whole job still extremely inexpensive at say £25.
I've found different cameras seem to perform differently. Skinnier cameras have been poorer, as you say the LEDs can sometimes be insufficient (I supplemented one of mine with an LED tail light bulb). Focus I've not found much of an issue as you're generally interested in what's right in front of the camera, but a one-inch focal length would be unacceptable. The wires can also break loose inside the camera head, and as it's USB that'll cause lockups. On the flipside they're dirt cheap. A Skype cam may be fine but it's a manky old world down the pipes and if it can't handle getting wet or dirty it won't last long.
Len Morris
you got a video of yours or details re the camera pls?
I didnt have luck with those endoscope cameras. The leds are way too dim. when u use it in cast iron pipe its just not bright enough. Maybe I got a bad one?
+Jay Walt I think some of the narrower ones can be a bit crap, but you can strap a second LED lamp on (such as a car LED bulb or a 12V halogen-replacement) and feed it from a separate 12 volt supply.
great work use some type raps!! I buy 2 and I want to check it!
A foam collar would also absorb whatever "liquid" may be in the pipe.
What is the Mac app you downloaded to operate the camera? Please try to write the name of the app with a Texas accent so I can understand it. (wink)
Thanks for the great vid. I'm going to do this.
The software is called Quickier.
Use OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) It's free and records at 1080P It will continue to record even if the USB comes unplugged.
It's funny to me that the rods you use for 10 of them cost you around £13.50. Here in the United States they cost $35-$50 for each rod. Thanks for the great video.
The quality of the rods is poor. I've snapped several of them. Then I bought a more expensive set and no issues in 3 years.
i would probably put the camera inside an garden hose so i can push it way deep to check out what is causing the blockage
A garden hose is likely to coil up in the pipe unless it's being drawn forward by water pressure. Flexible jetter hoses do this and I used one of these - held loosely at an angle and pushed into position with the rods - to drive into a blockage in one of the side pipes about 4 metres in. They have backward-facing nozzles in the tip which push the tip forward, drawing the hose along behind.
Lol that camera had the same cd for the drivers I had for the cheap gamepads I ordered. They were like 1$ a piece, shitty, and a copy of a dualshock. But the worst shit I even had was a dualshock from Esperanza. It was such a literal copy of the original that I was able to swap the insides. And the plastic used for that pad can be scratched with nails.
Hi can anyone tell me what these cameras are called. Can't find them on ebay
USB endoscope
Are those drain rods hollow? You could make a nice camera setup if they are.
Drain rods are hollow but unfortunately the brass/metal connectors are not.
should have used zipties to attach the camera
hook the sprayer to the end also
That's how I eventually cleared the blockage. Sprayer loosely attached at an angle so it would snag the T-joint, driven 4 metres up the pipe then switched on and allowed to head off on its own.
good idea, would have used gaffa tape much stronger the selotape :)
True, there's a roll of that here somewhere too.
Any suggestions for going round 90 degree bends?
I had a near-enough 90 to deal with with my jetting lance, I was able to point the camera that way (attaching it sideways to the corkscrew end) but not drive the camera up there. It depends how far round the bend you want to go. If you just want to peek, put the camera at an angle. More than a peek, try the rods in conjunction with a jetter hose (they attach to a pressure washer and drive themselves up the pipe into blockages). In my case I'd probably reuse my jetter hose, the corkscrew being used to guide it up as far as the bend. That's how I got the jetter round the bend (without the camera), switching on the pressure washer caused the hose to break free and head up the pipe I wanted it to.
@@AintBigAintClever phenomenal detail. Much appreciated, thank you! What jetting washer is it you have?
@@donniem6783 Karcher K4, with a cheap jetting hose from eBay that connects straight to the end of the pressure washer's trigger.
@@AintBigAintClever Thank you 👍
00:10 Introduction
00:31 Drain rods
00:58 The camera
2:52 Putting the camera together
4:35 Going through the motions.
Already in the video description.
My sewer pipe goes straight down and makes a 90° turn. It's all 4 inch pipe. The rods you use will not work. I want to use and electrical snake with a camera attached. Do you think that will work? Any suggestion from anyone would be welcome. I have already paid Roto-Rooter $1000. They can't see because of dirty water in the pipe. They could not break through the blockage so now I am $1000 lighter and still blocked.
I've got one which I've struggled to get a rod down (and which - typically needs looking at). When I get round to it I'll be using a fibreglass cable threader for conduit, hopefully that'll fare better.
If the water's dirty you could try flushing it clean. Use a wet and dry vacuum cleaner to suck out some of the water, fill it back up with a hose, suck up, fill up, and so on until it's clear enough to see down. Sounds like they've done a pretty shit job for $1K.
+AintBigAintClever
He probably hired frogger 8314 ;-)
Update to this: Where I had a pipe going off at almost a 90 degree bend I sent a jetter hose up the pipe, loosely taped sideways to the corkscrew end, deliberately using sellotape because it loosens if it gets wet. Used the rods to get it into place (I'd marked the rods with how far they needed to go after using the camera to figure it out) then my pressure washer drove the jetting nozzle off the corkscrew and into the side pipe. Shifted about 3 feet of moss, washing machine residue and other black gunk. All clean now :)
La perche de ramoneur est trop rigide pour passée dans les angles que forme les tuyaux d’évacuation des eaux (gouttière..). Besoin de plus d'éclairage et-ou vision par led infrarouge?. Besoin d'une protection occultant la caméra pour la protégée des saletés lors du débouchage. Pour le débouchage, je verrais bien une prince qu'ont peu activée par un câble passant aussi dans la "perche". En guise de perche, peut-être un tuyaux flexible. .. J'ai noter quelques idées en plus..
It has to be rigid in order to push itself along instead of coiling up on itself, which a hose would do. To use something flexible like a hose some sort of front-end propulsion would be required, such as a rear-facing nozzle; connecting the hose to a tap would drive water out of this nozzle, dragging the hose forward.
i had it done twice and i was put to sleep at the hospital never felt a thing in the states.
Quickier
Just attach the Endoscope Camera to a generical plumber's snake.
We're a house of women and I always get the shitty jobs I just lost the plunger down the drain I've got everything you used in ur video how long did the camera take to come ??
It depends on the seller. If they're in your country it can be a day or two. I can't remember how long I waited last time.
you so funny johnhole2 , lol
Sorry man, what app did you use on the Mac?
Quickier.
Ah thanks.
HI Mate - just bought one of these cameras from China, can't load the software have you an email address or Facebook account I could contact you for some help? Dave - Forest of Dean
doc's putting one of those cameras up my colon next month and i'm not looking forward to it.
Did he find any tree roots? ;-) Been there, done that, not my favorite, either.
Bummer!
i cleaned drains professionally for years..i wouldn't recommend to camera a line until i snaked it for a 2nd time...alot of times after i cleaned the line the customers didn't have another problem. ..a friend had someone snake his main from the house to the street, they told him he needed to replace his line...i went there and snaked it..now 30 years later he still hasn't had a problem. . at the time..snaking was 150$ , camera was 350$ to video the line you don't get the camera( they cost $4,000.. at the time)
You'd probably want to file the edges a bit first :)
If you want a dentist's view of your own teeth then these cams are great, but obviously once they've been down the pipe (or in your suggestion up the pipe) you probably wouldn't want to :)
looks like big sea monsters lol
Holy Cow....somebody shit a fork!!!!!
Up next:
The home colonoscopy kit.
Drain rods or chimney rods in the US are $25-$50 for a single 5’ rod! You can buy the cheap rod sets, but they break very easily. US for chimney equipment is such a rip off!
Great idea but for gods sake get some rubber disposable gloves man 😉
Couldn't see anything.
That pisses me off I downloaded 30 different borescope apps NONE work I followed your link it said view in store click on it took me to some junk page like always trying to get me to download junk apps can you please send me the download page without the view I hate iTunes I don't see how they can do business can't shop.
+Zoological Militia Download the Quicky DMG file from here, Quickier is inside it.
b-l-a-c-k-o-p.com/Quicky-download.html
You're better off using insulation tape instead of cellotape. Good idea though.
True. Sellotape was very useful though when I needed to run a jetting hose off at almost right angles to the pipe though (down a side pipe). Got the lance and rod assembly in place and it wasn't long before the sellotape loosened up and let the jetter shoot off into the side pipe where it needed to go.
AintBigAintClever Apart from that, I thought your idea was amazing. We are getting our downstairs toilet refurbished soon and we need to find out why it blocks up before getting the new one installed. I think it might be a cracked section of pipe or a misaligned joint, but I will have to have a look once my order of this camera arrives.
If you own your home then a set of rods can be a cheap but worthwhile investment for dealing with the odd blockage, but these cheap-ass cameras make the job so much easier as you can see what you're dealing with instead of just guessing what's up there. I initially bought them to rod out a blocked pipe in a bungalow I was renting which had very little fall in it, since then they've come in handy a few times at the house I own now.
If you've got a pressure washer then one other thing I'd recommend is a jetter hose, you'll pick them up cheaply enough on eBay. They spray a few jets back and to the sides which drags the hose forward and drives it into the blockage. Use the camera first though so you know at least how long the hose needs to be.
Gloves...
"Make yourself a cheap drain camera"
You don't need to "make yourself." You are already made!