4 Simple Ways To Maintain Home Security Cameras

Home security is one of the significant issues in the present modern society, which has about $12. 6 billion in costs of crime. As a result, home security systems have a high demand in the market. In fact, almost every household in the United States is now equipped with security systems.  

The problem lay when these tools became ineffective due to lack of maintenance. Technical issues, system malfunctions, blurry shots, and low-quality images are some of the typical surveillance issues whenever cameras are not taken care of well. 

Maintaining home security might be difficult and time-consuming, but it would be more challenging to overlook burglars due to ineffective surveillance. To get the best optimal performance while ensuring gain from the investment, follow these four simple ways in maintaining home security cameras.

Prevent Spider Webs on Cameras

Expect that there will be spiders on your outdoor security cameras. Spiders like dark corners, wherein cameras are often installed. Also, spiders web in front of the camera lens, because bugs are attracted to IR lights emitted from camera lens and spiders, feed on insects. While bugs are attracted to IR lights, the spider webs on the cameras will trap and daze them. 

Get rid of these webs with a broom weekly. Regularly sweeping off the webs will let spiders realize that your camera is not a safe place to stay at. You can also periodically use a spray repellent to ward off spiders. As stated earlier, make sure you are not spraying the camera lens as most repellents contain diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET), which is a kind of solvent. 

If you do not have much time to clean spiders on cameras, use dome cameras. Due to its round shape, spiders will have limited grab point to latch onto and build webs. Place dome cameras beneath eaves to be protected from inclement weather.

Remove Moving Spots on Cameras

Other than spider webs, you may encounter other moving spots in front of your cameras that negatively affect the quality of video taken at night. This can be due to foggy weather. In a fog type weather condition, water droplets that are suspended in the air can reflect the infrared and lead particles to rise and fall, appearing as what you thought as moving spots. 

To remove moving spots in cameras, cover the security cameras with a hood or visor. Also, avoid placing the cameras in dusty areas. On the one hand, other cameras like that of Frontpoint Security System have better night vision features, so you do need to worry about video quality on foggy days. Try checking out frontpoint full review. 

Brush Off Loose Dust and Dirt on Camera Lens

Security cameras often become dirty and dusty when mounted outside, especially when installed in uncovered areas. Your security camera lens’ night performance will be severely affected when dirt and dust will reflect infrared (IR) light back into the lens. 

It is recommended to clean your security cameras’ lens a few times a year, or it is indispensable so you can optimize both day and night picture and video quality. To safely clean the lens, use compressed air to blow off the dirt and dust from the lens. If you do not have one, blow air with your mouth. 

Blow at a shallow angle. This would make sure that the dust is blown off away and would not be driven into or down back into the other parts of the lens. Better start with the lens before other parts of the camera. Keep the tin upright to prevent liquid from coming out. 

Ultimately, wipe the lens with a microfiber cloth with gentle pressure. Pour a small amount of lens cleaner solution on the microfiber cloth. If you do not have any cleaner solution, damp a tiny amount of water on the fabric or softly exhale on the lens to produce moisture.  

Do not ever use ant-bacterial (harsh/extra-strength) detergents, solvents like ammonia and alcohol, or rough materials like newspaper and paper towels on the camera lens. Instead of improving the camera’s lens qualities, these materials would instead damage the cameras, causing IR clarity and distortion. 

Protect Camera Connection from Cable Corrosion

Corrosion occurs when security cameras and its system cables are exposed to the marine environment and moist.  It triggers refined materials to convert. It causes poor connection that can result in loss of video feed or camera image quality issue. 

Regularly cleaning the cables can prevent corrosion, though. You can use a mixture of baking soda, vinegar, and salt as a cleaning agent. Another standard way is to utilize tensioned electrical wrap with a silicone dielectric grease, which can fill air spaces and keep moisture out of the connections. You may also use heat-shrink tubing over the connection. 

Author’s Bio:

Tyler Pack is a real estate consultant and journalist, with a passion for smart homes technology. He is keen on writing about home and property security, and cybersecurity.