Cuddelink general Q&A recommendations

[tn4hunting]

If its dropping that much the lower number is probably when its linking to home and not another unit. If you dont have any other option on where to place it i would use it as is.
a camera or repeater that is used as a link will use more battery than one that is linking directly etc. The more cameras that are linking thru a repeater or camera will cause more battery usage.

So will the repeater connect to a camera that's set to remote, like a home/repeater, or will it look for a Home/repeater signal only to link too? then the remote camera looks for a repeater/home signal to connect too?

just trying to get the sequence and priority of connections from a set up standpoint.

 

[john volkman]

So will the repeater connect to a camera that's set to remote, like a home/repeater, or will it look for a Home/repeater signal only to link too? then the remote camera looks for a repeater/home signal to connect too?

just trying to get the sequence and priority of connections from a set up standpoint.

it will take the shortest way to the home if that means it goes from repeater directly to home or if it needs to go thru anther remote it will.

 

[PatinPA]

Sorry couldn't find a thread for this and didn't want to start an new one. Anybody have experience with Cuddeback C series? I'm getting an error 04. Looks like it has something to do with the motion/heat sensor. Twice I checked it and it had that error code. Brand new batteries were dead in two weeks. Something must be running all of the time but it still only took pictures when deer were there.

 

[tn4hunting]

John,

In the report above the mineral lick and back ridge is suppose to be going through the repeater. As you see it's shows in the 40's for connections.
1. Does that mean they are connect to the repeater with a connected signal in the 40's
2. Then the repeater being at 6 to the home camera technically shouldn't transfer any pictures from either connected camera, I assume.

I have everything set up to transfer pictures once an hour since i don't get a ton of activity.

This is what happened this afternoon and happens a lot from both the mineral lick and back ridge cameras.
1. Bear pics were taken at 4:50pm and then transferred to me at 5:58pm which is very close to the hourly schedule.
Anyway to tell if it used the repeater to get to the home camera because as you see the repeater is in single digits.

 

[Trlblzr3]

View attachment 31708
John,

In the report above the mineral lick and back ridge is suppose to be going through the repeater. As you see it's shows in the 40's for connections.
1. Does that mean they are connect to the repeater with a connected signal in the 40's
2. Then the repeater being at 6 to the home camera technically shouldn't transfer any pictures from either connected camera, I assume.

I have everything set up to transfer pictures once an hour since i don't get a ton of activity.

This is what happened this afternoon and happens a lot from both the mineral lick and back ridge cameras.
1. Bear pics were taken at 4:50pm and then transferred to me at 5:58pm which is very close to the hourly schedule.
Anyway to tell if it used the repeater to get to the home camera because as you see the repeater is in single digits.

Your Repeater is connecting through either 2 or 4 to home since it has 2 links. So 3 and 5 are not going through the Repeater or they would be showing 3 links. Do you have your cameras marked on a map. HuntStand or OnX?

 

[tn4hunting]

Your Repeater is connecting through either 2 or 4 to home since it has 2 links. So 3 and 5 are not going through the Repeater or they would be showing 3 links. Do you have your cameras marked on a map. HuntStand or OnX?

thanks for the feedback this is very new to me.

1. so how does that work? if all the other cameras are set to remote with only a repeater and home unit in the chain
2. why would 3 and 5 show 3 links? 1 to the repeater and 1 to the home unit, which would be number 3?
3. i do not have either of those apps, where you wanting to see the set up of my cameras? I will see what i can do
4. how do you set the links ups to make sure they are connecting correctly?

thanks!

 

[SwampCat]

Since I never could get all my cameras to get a satisfactory link level on 80 acres - I pulled them all and moved them to a other piece of property - 33 acres. I set each camera in an area that was showing a link level of at least 40 before I shut the door on each unit. Before I left the area - the report showed three of the four remotes/repeaters had link levels under 40 - 22,24, and 32. How did that change so much in 30 minutes?
I have a K cam, three J cams, and a home used as a repeater. I expected one camera to link through the repeater and the other two cams to link straight to the K cam. But the only cam that has one link is the repeater. One camera has three links. Cant even figure that out since the K cam is in the middle.

 

[Trlblzr3]

thanks for the feedback this is very new to me.

1. so how does that work? if all the other cameras are set to remote with only a repeater and home unit in the chain
2. why would 3 and 5 show 3 links? 1 to the repeater and 1 to the home unit, which would be number 3?
3. i do not have either of those apps, where you wanting to see the set up of my cameras? I will see what i can do
4. how do you set the links ups to make sure they are connecting correctly?

thanks!

You cannot force the cameras to link through the camera you want it. Ideally the home camera would be in the middle of your network and the remote and repeater would be placed around it.
The reason I said 3 is the repeater is not going directly to the home camera. It is also showing 2 links to home, so it is linking through either 2 or 4 which only have 1 link to Home. So if 3 and 5 went through the Repeater that would be 1 then the Repeater went through 2 or 4 that would be 2 links and then 2 or 4 went to home that’s 3 links.
Can you draw a map of the property and where the cameras are located, take a picture of the map and post it.

 

[tn4hunting]

You cannot force the cameras to link through the camera you want it. Ideally the home camera would be in the middle of your network and the remote and repeater would be placed around it.
The reason I said 3 is the repeater is not going directly to the home camera. It is also showing 2 links to home, so it is linking through either 2 or 4 which only have 1 link to Home. So if 3 and 5 went through the Repeater that would be 1 then the Repeater went through 2 or 4 that would be 2 links and then 2 or 4 went to home that’s 3 links.
Can you draw a map of the property and where the cameras are located, take a picture of the map and post it.

yeah my property is in the mountains so I will work on a picture that shows elevations etc. and post it.

thanks

 

[Hoytvectrix]

Since I never could get all my cameras to get a satisfactory link level on 80 acres - I pulled them all and moved them to a other piece of property - 33 acres. I set each camera in an area that was showing a link level of at least 40 before I shut the door on each unit. Before I left the area - the report showed three of the four remotes/repeaters had link levels under 40 - 22,24, and 32. How did that change so much in 30 minutes?
I have a K cam, three J cams, and a home used as a repeater. I expected one camera to link through the repeater and the other two cams to link straight to the K cam. But the only cam that has one link is the repeater. One camera has three links. Cant even figure that out since the K cam is in the middle.

The levels and the number of links we will be fairly variable in the first few hours. The system will figure out the most efficient way to connect all cameras to the home unit. Give it a day or so to see how they are reporting. The connection level should go up and if you put the Home unit in the middle of the remotes, the number of links should go down.

 

[Mejohnso2020]

Starting this thread for anyone using the Cuddelink system that needs help. Hopefully others can learn from these posts ,shorten the learning curve and simplify things. As always, i'm available via PM if you need specific help as well. Ill add to this thread the process I use for setting up my networks and others are welcome to do so as well. If you have a specific issue with cuddeback CS or myself i just ask that you start another thread or add to an existing one that isnt mine. i want to keep the posts on mine specific to those needing help. As i stated in the other thread I cleared this with Bill ahead of time earlier this fall.

Hi- last year I put out 4 cuddelink remotes and a cclink home unit. After about a month one remote stopped transmitting (when I picked it up it had a locked message saying ERROR 04. I hadn’t done anything with it because it’s clear on the report when it stopped transmitting...

last weekend I put out 2 remotes and a home unit, and already the 2 remotes have stopped transmitting. Heading up this weekend, but am anticipating an ERROR 04 msg.

Each time, I put in brand new Energizer Max batteries.
Any ideas?
Thanks!!

 

[john volkman]

Hi- last year I put out 4 cuddelink remotes and a cclink home unit. After about a month one remote stopped transmitting (when I picked it up it had a locked message saying ERROR 04. I hadn’t done anything with it because it’s clear on the report when it stopped transmitting...

last weekend I put out 2 remotes and a home unit, and already the 2 remotes have stopped transmitting. Heading up this weekend, but am anticipating an ERROR 04 msg.

Each time, I put in brand new Energizer Max batteries.
Any ideas?
Thanks!!

take the energizers out, throw them away, wait until the cameras lcd screen goes blank , insert new rayovac high energy batteries. Dont ever buy energizers again. We have continual issues with them. Im not joking.

 

[SwampCat]

The Cuddelink system has been a real struggle for me. Started with it on 140 acres and realized I was probably going to have to have a repeater for almost every camera - I was getting around 250 yards between cameras and was going to end having to link them all through one repeater to get to the cell cam. Picked them all up two days ago and moved them to another area of about 35 acres - flat as a pancake - where I could more centrally locate the cell cam. Not sure that is going to work, either. When I set them up, I made sure the cell link was at least forty to fifty. However, the first report showed that really dropped. Some of the reports show some of the cameras have three links - that has to be circling around the cell cam. I was hoping this system would simplify my game cameras - but it has greatly increased the work. It has become really frustrating. I am not giving up - yet - but I am not reaping any reward, yet. I need some suggestions.

 

[springer01]

take the energizers out, throw them away, wait until the cameras lcd screen goes blank , insert new rayovac high energy batteries. Dont ever buy energizers again. We have continual issues with them. Im not joking.

That sucks I just bought a 48 pack of D energizers for my cameras.

 

[john volkman]

The Cuddelink system has been a real struggle for me. Started with it on 140 acres and realized I was probably going to have to have a repeater for almost every camera - I was getting around 250 yards between cameras and was going to end having to link them all through one repeater to get to the cell cam. Picked them all up two days ago and moved them to another area of about 35 acres - flat as a pancake - where I could more centrally locate the cell cam. Not sure that is going to work, either. When I set them up, I made sure the cell link was at least forty to fifty. However, the first report showed that really dropped. Some of the reports show some of the cameras have three links - that has to be circling around the cell cam. I was hoping this system would simplify my game cameras - but it has greatly increased the work. It has become really frustrating. I am not giving up - yet - but I am not reaping any reward, yet. I need some suggestions.
View attachment 31732View attachment 31733View attachment 31734

Leave your system as it is and you will be fine, all your cameras will link on the 33 acres, stop stressing about link level if it’s over 20. On the other property you simply didn’t have enough cameras to cover it and the need to have your cell cam on one end of the property created the challenge . I would play with some aftermarket booster cell antennas that cost $12 on that piece next year or after hunting season to see if you can get a cell signal in the center of your property and that will help immensely .

 

[SwampCat]

Leave your system as it is and you will be fine, all your cameras will link on the 33 acres, stop stressing about link level if it’s over 20. On the other property you simply didn’t have enough cameras to cover it and the need to have your cell cam on one end of the property created the challenge . I would play with some aftermarket booster cell antennas that cost $12 on that piece next year or after hunting season to see if you can get a cell signal in the center of your property and that will help immensely .

One of the reasons I am “stressing” over the system - and particularly the link level is I am trying to understand how it works so I can set up a system without having to buy additional repeaters. I still need a camera in the SW corner of this property - but it that location currently does not have a high enough link level for it to work. That means I have to buy another repeater. Why is camera number 4 not hitting the repeater - I thought they automatically went to the best link level. When I placed camera 4 - it would not hit the cell cam, so I had to deploy the repeater to get it to work. Now it appears it is not using the repeater. So I dont know if I can move that repeater or if I have to buy another repeater to get a camera in the SW corner to work. The number of links is all over the place on the various reports. That inconsistency makes it difficult to plan a system. I really hate to throw any more money at it. I am not getting anywhere near 1/4 mile between cameras in the woods - more like 250 yards.

 

[Hoytvectrix]

That sucks I just bought a 48 pack of D energizers for my cameras.

Welcome to the forum! I'd see if you can return them still. There are instructions in the Cuddeback box that go into further details about why the Rayovacs are better. The added bonus is that they are often significantly cheaper.

 

[iowathumper]

On a duel cell verizon camera adding the addition of a 6 battery external pk shows in email report Battery OK Where as the remote cameras show Ext OK
Do you have to turn something on in order for the Duel cell to show it has a Ext ?

 

[john volkman]

One of the reasons I am “stressing” over the system - and particularly the link level is I am trying to understand how it works so I can set up a system without having to buy additional repeaters. I still need a camera in the SW corner of this property - but it that location currently does not have a high enough link level for it to work. That means I have to buy another repeater. Why is camera number 4 not hitting the repeater - I thought they automatically went to the best link level. When I placed camera 4 - it would not hit the cell cam, so I had to deploy the repeater to get it to work. Now it appears it is not using the repeater. So I dont know if I can move that repeater or if I have to buy another repeater to get a camera in the SW corner to work. The number of links is all over the place on the various reports. That inconsistency makes it difficult to plan a system. I really hate to throw any more money at it. I am not getting anywhere near 1/4 mile between cameras in the woods - more like 250 yards.

The system is self healing and will change as needed, it will send to the home directly if it can, or thru another camera (or repeater) if needed. You cannot force it to use a particular route, and it doesnt automatically go to the best link level.
Here is the only process you need to do. Set your Home unit , arm it and then turn on one remote. Move that remote to the next closest location you want a camera , if the link level is approximately 20 or higher arm it, hang it, and then move to the next location, turn on the next remote and repeat. If at anytime during this process you cant get a link level or you have one in the single digits, then that is the point when you want to think about putting another camera or repeater out. Cameras will send images even down to the single digit link levels, we advise 20 as a minimum level to try and keep a camera from dropping off completely for a day or more.
On 33 acres you should really not ever need a repeater unless there is some abnormal terrain feature or its extremely thick and its hot and humid. Do not fret if one day your report shows 2 links and the next they are all 1 link , that is completely normal.
250 yards is on the short end of transmission distance , you will see that increase in the fall and winter. You will also see levels change by the hour or day. You can get different levels by moving even a few feet at times. Its great that you are trying understand how it works but dont worry about getting everything perfect as far as levels or links for now.

 

[tn4hunting]

The system is self healing and will change as needed, it will send to the home directly if it can, or thru another camera (or repeater) if needed. You cannot force it to use a particular route, and it doesnt automatically go to the best link level.
Here is the only process you need to do. Set your Home unit , arm it and then turn on one remote. Move that remote to the next closest location you want a camera , if the link level is approximately 20 or higher arm it, hang it, and then move to the next location, turn on the next remote and repeat. If at anytime during this process you cant get a link level or you have one in the single digits, then that is the point when you want to think about putting another camera or repeater out. Cameras will send images even down to the single digit link levels, we advise 20 as a minimum level to try and keep a camera from dropping off completely for a day or more.
On 33 acres you should really not ever need a repeater unless there is some abnormal terrain feature or its extremely thick and its hot and humid. Do not fret if one day your report shows 2 links and the next they are all 1 link , that is completely normal.
250 yards is on the short end of transmission distance , you will see that increase in the fall and winter. You will also see levels change by the hour or day. You can get different levels by moving even a few feet at times. Its great that you are trying understand how it works but dont worry about getting everything perfect as far as levels or links for now.

John,

So based on this it seems you don't really need a repeater because any camera set on remote will act like a link to the home camera. I thought if set to remote that locked that camera from receiving other remote cameras signal.

However, you state that a camera looks for the shortest distance to the home camera meaning a "remote camera" might connect to another "remote camera" if that is the shortest and best signal to finish the connections. Is that correct? For me it's just understanding the matrix of how the signal works on a camera set to remote. That will help in setting it up in the field for me.

If this is true when you set a camera out and the link comes back above 20 that could be a link to a "remote" or "home" camera, correct?