The client does not want us penetrating the membrane or metal flashing. He is thinking some type of clamp across the ledge. I am sure we could find a clamp but not sure how we would transition a large c-clamp to a camera?
We will probably be using a box with a bullet attached to it. I was thinking of gluing the box to the metal flashing.
Thoughts? Ideas?
I would lean towards using a small non-penetrating roof mount, held down with a few cement blocks, before gluing or claming anything.
With a mount like that you can just cut it down to the right height and use some stainless u-bolts to mount the backbox to the pole, and then run conduit/liquid-tite right into the backbox
Any particular reason the client doesn't want any penetration? I mean it's done all the time all over the place. As long as you seal things up properly afterwards, should really be that big of a deal.
That being said, I know how stubborn clients can be, and that sometimes it's just not worth questioning some of their request, so I would second what Sean linked. I haven't used it for cameras, but we used two of those for running cable from one building to another (one roof was higher than the other). With the cement blocks down (I think we used...8? Maybe 4) it was pretty sturdy.
That's the style we use at our facility for a number of roof top PTZ's, albeit ours are welded in-house and bigger, but same idea as the Amazon example.
I second what Sean said, but want to also make sure that you use the pitch pad on all roofs, with the exception of maybe roofs with gravel. The pitch pad keeps the NPM and blocks from tearing a rubber roof surface.
Sorry for the mess, as this was mid install, but here is a shot of one of our NPM installs for 4 Hikvision 4K bullets and one UBNT Nano M Loco. You can spot the black pitch pad sticking out the right side of the base. Our parapet here was much higher than the one you have shown, so we had to have a much longer mast, which in turn required more blocks.
Is that the 1.5AH battery? If so, do you prefer those for the weight savings over the larger batteries? I've switched most of mine out to the 5.0AH Makita batteries. Fewer charge cycles, the batteries seem to last a lot longer, the 1.5's have short lifespan, IME.
Good eye. That's actually my drill and it is a 1.5AH. The battery came with the makita handheld vacuum that was given to me as a gift. I simply rotate through all my batteries. I have 2 5.0AH, 1 1.5AH, and probably 4 3.0AH. I like that they finally added battery indicators to the newer batteries. Only my 5.0AH batteries have that feature. Only one of the 3.0AH quit working ever since I switched to Makita tools. I made the switch in June of 2012 and if I recall it was one of the first brushless sets on the market (impact/drill). I've put the drill through a lot more than I probably should, but it hasn't died yet. My much heavier 18V Milwaukee that the Makita replaced lasted less than 5 years I believe. The newer Milwaukee tools seem to be better built and lighter than the one I had.
To answer your second question, I prefer brushless and any battery you put on it. I'm not using the 1.5AH for weight savings as it's only a little bit lighter. It was just the closest one in my box. I disconnect the batteries from the drills during travel. With the 5.0AH, I now grab those first.
I too like the charge indicator on the 5AH batteries. Some of the tools (eg: angle grinder) have it also, but it is nice to be able to know the charge of the battery itself without having to put it on a tool.
I've killed a couple of 3.0AH batteries over the years, I think they just hit too many charge cycles. Now, I try to run them further down instead of just putting them on the charger as frequently.
Most of my Makita's have been dropped off of ladders, roofs, and decks without any damage at all. Have been quite happy with both the build quality, and the tool selection.
This hammer drill/vacuum is next on my list:
as most retrofit wiring in my house requires at least one core through 9-12" of concrete:
and it should be less messy and more convenient than this:
C Clamp might cause damage from the looks of it. 4'x4' Piece of large marine plywood with waterproofing, sand bags and a L shaped arm?
Can I assume you are running pipe on the roof to the camera for the cable? If so you will use stand offs (pipe support blocks)of course. What we have done is mount the camera to the weather box at the end of the pipe run just at the edge of the roof or on top of the edge. Usually the length of the 3/4” or 1” pipe run and the box itself will hold the weight of those light cameras. Or you can clamp the the pipe down if needed.
Yes, we will run EMT with support blocks and probably liquid-tight the last few feet to the camera. I suggested using a 5-gallon bucket filled with concrete and he thought the wind would knock it over so I doubt he will go with cement blocks.
Not sure why he doesn't want the penetration. It's actually the 2nd customer in a row that has requested this. The last client the request was mis relayed and the techs mounted to the flashing/metal and sealed it.
Penetrating a roof membrane can void the warranty on a roof. This can be worth tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars and owners have every right to be concerned about this. If you need to do it, it is often best to hire the contractor who installed the roof to make the penetration and/or sign off on the methods that you propose to use.
We have run into this issue before, for exactly the reason Silva mentions, roof warranty. We have used a Pelco parapet mount like this, and used cinder blocks to weigh the base down and have not had any issues.
A couple mentions of cinder blocks.I offered a 5-gallon bucket with concrete and the guy said it would blow over in the wind. I doubt he will accept cinder blocks.
The non penetrating mount is usually an engineered system designed to be used with cinder blocks and is used all the time. I would not really trust a 5 gallon bucket filled with concrete. If the thought was to put a small pole in the bucket, it will most likely tip over at some point as the base of the bucket isn’t that big.
If you google "non penetrating roof mount" you should get some good options back.
These are usually some kind of base that you set multiple cinder blocks on and then have an upright pole to attach pole-mount brackets to, or variations that accept parapet arms.
The style shown here is actually not going to work on the ledge. It is made for center roof deployments. One made for ledge work will have the mast on one edge of the base, not centered.
EDIT: Here is an image of a offset mast style.
Agreed, was just trying to give him some additional input and things to search for. I couldn't find a pic of one with the offset upright pole easily.
GE / Kalatel used to make a slick bracket that clamped to the parapet. Another bracket let the PTZ hang over the side. It's been 8+ years since I actually ordered one and it was difficult finding back then. Do a quick search on GEA-107 and GEA-111 it may get you close.
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