CCTV cameras typically use 12V DC or 24VAC power supplies. Some security cameras are dual voltage which means that they can be powered by either 12V DC or 24V AC. AC and DC low voltage power supplies have limitations as to how far cable can be run before the voltage drops too low for your device to use. The maximum length that cable can be run for low voltage power varies based on these factors.

Low Voltage Power Drop Charts

12V DC Power Drop / Max Cable Distance Chart

The below DC voltage drop cable distance chart works as follows. The left column notes the amount of power that the device you are powering requires (red text). The “mA” after the number stands for milli-amps. For example, say you are using a CCTV camera that requires max 300mA. Using 18 gauge power cable, you can run your cable up to 289 feet.

	24 AWG	22 AWG	20 AWG	18 AWG	16 AWG	14 AWG	12 AWG
DC 100mA	216 ft	342 ft	594 ft	867 ft	1,379 ft	2,197 ft	3,508 ft
DC 200mA	108 ft	171 ft	297 ft	433 ft	689 ft	1,098 ft	1,755 ft
DC 300mA	72 ft	113 ft	198 ft	289 ft	459 ft	732 ft	1,169 ft
DC 400mA	54 ft	85 ft	148 ft	216 ft	344 ft	549 ft	877 ft
DC 500mA	43 ft	68 ft	119 ft	173 ft	275 ft	439 ft	701 ft
DC 750mA	28 ft	45 ft	79 ft	115 ft	183 ft	293 ft	467 ft
DC 1000mA	21 ft	34 ft	59 ft	86 ft	137 ft	219 ft	350 ft

 

24V AC Power Drop / Max Cable Distance Chart

The AC voltage drop cable distance chart works the same way as the DC one. However, most 24VAC power supplies are measured in voltage amps (VA), or Watts. The formula to convert voltage to watts is Watts = Amps x Volts. We have provided the conversion for you below the W value in the column on the left. For example, 10W is the same as 417mA.

Using the below chart, you can see that if you are using a AC powered or dual voltage security camera that requires up to 417mA of power, you run 18 gauge power cable up to 451 feet

	24 AWG	22 AWG	20 AWG	18 AWG	16 AWG	14 AWG	12 AWG
10 W (417mA)	103 ft	283 ft	286 ft	451 ft	716 ft	1,142 ft	1,811 ft
20 W (833mA)	52 ft	141 ft	142 ft	225 ft	358 ft	571 ft	905 ft
30 W (1,250mA)	34 ft	94 ft	95 ft	150 ft	238 ft	380 ft	603 ft
40 W (1,667mA)	26 ft	70 ft	71 ft	112 ft	179 ft	285 ft	452 ft
50 W (2,083mA)	20 ft	56 ft	57 ft	90 ft	143 ft	228 ft	362 ft

Some firmware files are encrypted. Please check following guideline to decrypt them.

Guideline

STEP 1

Try “S$3cc@” as password first. If it can’t work, go to step 2.

STEP 2

Try “S$3cc@” as password prefix then add the last 4 or 6 digits of file name as complete password.