Cut and repair the power cable to the outside nest cam?

"john roberts



Rep: 193




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I had the same problem and decided to go for cutting the cable. I first bought an USB extension cable to test the procedure. And you know what? Nest Outdoor Cam only uses the red and black power wires and not the green and white data wires. So I cut the cable, drilled an 8 mm hole and inside the house joined the red and black wires again. The cam works like a charm!

"Just cut the cable myself and only had to drill a 10mm hole and then used a wire connector for added safety. I'm a DIY novice and was a little nervous but can confirm it works. Be careful with the video and audio wires as there thinner so easier to cut altogether when you just want to peel back the plastic insulating.

image before I put the connector in the box that came with it, which I then screwed to the wall (98p from Screwfix). I've tweeted Nest with the issue, hopefully they'll start to offer two cables in the future."

"Yes, the large, permanently attached USB connector requiring a 7/8” hole is ugly and poor design practice. Also way off the mark is Nest’s idea of using a within-reach outdoor 120 volt outlet (unless the outlet is high up under an overhang). It’s also obvious that Nest’s engineers never owned a structure and realized one has to weatherproof exterior holes to keep out moisture, insects and other varmints out of structure walls.

This method is for powering your camera from inside your house. It allows relatively easy removal/replacement of the camera without modifying the permanently attached USB cable and USB plug (and probably voiding your warranty). Admittedly, it’s UGLY but it does work effectively.

Materials Needed (from any good hardware store):

1” PVC LB (aka “condolet”)Tapered rubber stopper to fit the bottom hole of the LB (like what you used in high school chemistry class).Silicon rubber seal (RTV) or siliconized water-clean up caulk (“Alex Plus”). RTV is better, but a mess to apply or clean up; “Alex Plus” works quite well and can be cleaned up with water.

Method:

Make a clean 1-1/8” hole in your exterior wall and line up a 7/8” hole in your interior wall. Make the exterior hole just large enough so that the LB fits very tightly into the exterior wall (you may have to use a hammer gently to insert the LB into the wall). When you are satisfied with the hole, remove the LB and apply the caulking around the outside circumference of the LB hole on the back side of the LB itself. Ditto to the inside circumference of the hole you just made in your exterior wall (an index finger work best).Using a sharp knife (or even a kitchen serrated knife), make a v-shaped slot in the “side” of the rubber stopper, just deep enough for the flat camera wire to clear the “edge” of the stopper.Insert the stopper into the bottom hole of the LB.One the camera is tested and exterior cable clamps are in place, you can cover the inside hole using a single-gang blank outlet plate. Simply file a small notch for the flat cable at the bottom of the plate. You can attach the plate to the wall using small sheet metal screws, or more professionally attach the plate to the wall, using a “single-gang low voltage box”: https://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Betts-SC10..."

"I want to go through the wall and then extend the wire 200ft to the end of my yard.

Q = Do you think there will be any issues with power that distance?

Q= Would I be better putting some kind of car battery down there? for the power wires?

Q = which 2 are the power wires?

Obviously I also have to extend my wifi range...

Thanks Ben Montclair USA."