In April, X10 customer Jesse Harris introduced us to a fascinating use for the XCam2 he called the PoleCam. The PoleCam was the perfect solution for his spring chores, such as checking out the gutters. With the PoleCam, Jesse could raise the camera above the gutters of his house and angle the camera just right so that he could see inside. He also used it to look into that overhang in the garage, and take inventory on what was up there, without going up there himself. He had a whole list of things he used the PoleCam for. And when he was done with it, his son used it to look around corners in the house to make his "gotcha’s" more precise when he wanted to jump out and frighten his brother and sister.

So in this How2, we’re going to teach you just how to make your own PoleCam so that you will have access to those tough to reach spots in your own homes and garages.

The first thing you’re going to need for your PoleCam is a pole. You can make your own pole using a dowel or another piece of lumber, or you can stop by your local home improvement store and pick up a painting pole. For our PoleCam, we used the "Mr. Longarm." This pole has two sections. The top section is adjustable so that you can control the height.

On the adjustable section of the pole, there’s an adjustable arm that slides back and forth, allowing you to change directions. On this arm is a screw that adjusts the angle, and a screw that allows you to hook up your appliance, i.e. a paintbrush or your XCam2.

The screws on the arm are a ¼ inch, which turns out to be very convenient, as that’s the size of the screw on the XCam2 Battery Pack.

At the bottom of the XCam2 battery is a ¼ inch screw in the front of the camera.

Make sure that your battery pack and camera are connected.

Then attach the camera via the battery pack to the pole simply by screwing the ¼ inch screw into the bottom of the XCam2 Battery Pack. When you attach the camera, make sure that the top of the camera is facing up.

If you choose to use a pole or piece of lumber, all you need to do is determine the size of the pole you want, and then with a drill screw in a ¼ inch screw through the board into the bottom of the XCam2’s Battery Pack.

Now when you use the PoleCam outside, there will be plenty of light for the camera to see. When you use the camera indoors, though, be aware that there may or may not be enough light. In those cases, you’re going to have to add some light. Again, visiting your local home improvement store can do this.

At the home improvement store, you can purchase a light that clamps onto the pole. The Snake Light is a good example. Simply take whichever lamp you like best, and attach it to your PoleCam.

If you’re using your own piece of lumber, this should still work. If you find that you need a little more support, then there’s the carpenter’s standby. Duct tape.

That’s it for today’s How2. If you have anything you would like to see done, let us know, and we’ll use your ideas for our next How2.

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