Unifi switches in the dusty barn

Hey all. I’m wondering about the hardware I should be using in my barn.

I currently have cat5 going out to the barn with a UniFi AP-AC-Mesh connected. Works great.

However, I want to put a bunch of UniFi cameras out there to watch the animals (ie: when they are giving birth). I plan to put about 12 cameras up. Mostly the UniFi Protect G3 Bullet. I’ll have at least 1 UniFi Protect G4-PRO Camera, maybe 2.

Here is my dilemma. It is pretty dusty out in the barn. Dirt floors. Grass/straw dust. Etc. Do I go with several UniFi Switch Flex switches? Or are one of the indoor 24 port switches ok in a dusty environment. It would definitely be out of the weather. My hunch is no, but curious what others think or know.

Thanks!
-bfcoder

The Flex switch should be good, the important part is the one that does not have fans that will pull the dust in.

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Sounds good. Thanks Tom!

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I think the flex switch is a great option as it is fanless. Question can you build a very small cabinet for the switch that could be outside of the dust zone?

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Unfortunately there is no office area or loft area. It is a 50’ x 50’ barn with all the stalls open and “vaulted ceilings”. It’s all in the dust zone.

I could build a cabinet, but wouldn’t that lead to possible overheating?

Another thought I just had is operating temperature. I just looked at the specs. Going fanless I have the option of either the USW-Flex or the US-8-150W. The US-8-150W is only rated for 23 to 113° F. While the flex has a much wider range rated with -40 to 131° F. Which will be important in a barn with no HVAC. It’s not uncommon where I live to get down to -20° and go over 100° F.

And one more plus for the flex is power consumption. I’ll be using 4 flex switches. One base flex and 3 plugged into that base. Giving me 13 usable ports. Each flex uses 7w excluding POE. So I’m at 28w for my 4 flex switches. And if I needed 16 ports I could get one more flex and be running at 35w. With the US-8-150W I would have to get 2 switches which would give me 16 usable ports(utilizing the sfp ports of course). Each switch uses 20w excluding POE. So I’m at 40w to run them both. Not a huge deal here, but it is worth noting.

On the downside is price. Currently, to get 16 usable ports I would have spend $500 on the flex switches and only $400 on the US-8-150W switches.

I think I have convinced myself which switch model to go with(the flex). haha

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Year given many of your issues the flex seems like a reasonable choice.