Possible source of interference?

[ryanr256]

I have 4 Pro cameras installed. 3 out of the 4 function as expected but 1 is nothing but problems.

The camera will drain the battery in less than a week with little to no activity. The other cameras have significantly more activity and the battery lasts for more than a month.

The camera constantly goes offline but will reconnect within minutes. The other cameras maintain a solid connection.

This camera is actually a replacement camera. The first one drained the battery so quick I didn't have a chance to replace it before it drained completely. After replacing the battery I could not get night vision to work. So the camera was replaced under warranty. The original camera in this location exhibited the same behavior as the replacement now does.

This camera is the closest to the base station (16 ft.).

The house is brick and this camera is at the gable end/side of the house, which is a ranch style house. The one difference is that this camera is mounted on aluminum clad wood trim whereas the other three are mounted on the brick. The camera is about 3 inches from the bottom edge of the trim. This trim is about 14 inches high and then there's vinyl siding up to the roof.

I just installed the Solar Panel in an effort to alleviate the battery drain issue but the battery went from 45% to 15% overnight with no activity.

Could the aluminum cladding be the cause of the issues? My thinking is that it's interfering with the wifi signal enough that the camera is draining the battery trying to maintain the connection.

Thoughts, ideas, similar experiences?

-Bob

[TomMac]

First... Take one of the other cameras and swap it with the current "troubled" one( after charging )..... see if the problem follows the camera or is it the location.

The fact that it is the closest to the base isn't a good indication of signal reception due to blocking metal, mirrors, etc ( and you say aluminum siding?, yes it may be the cause )

If the issue follows the camera and the swapped one functions fine there, then contact Netgear for possible warranty issue

[ryanr256]

This is the second camera I've had at this location.

The house is brick but the camera is mounted on wood trim that has an aluminum wrap on it.

I will see if I can temporarily lower the camera off of the aluminum.

-Bob

[ryanr256]

7/11 Update - 7/10 was the first day the camera was connected to the Solar Panel. At 7:30am I inserted a fully charged battery. No issues with connectivity or the battery.

Once the panel stopped charging, the camera went from 99%-100% to 89% charged in about 5 hours. No alerts or recordings during that time.

This morning the battery is at 68% and there were 3 recordings, each 2 mintutes long, overnight.

So, in a little over 12 hours the battery drained 30% on 3 recordings.

Again, this is the second camera in this location to exhibit this behavior.

-Bob

[jguerdat]

Open a case with support.  You may have an issue with the panel causing the battery to somehow flow backwards INTO the panel rather than just from it.

[ryanr256]

I don't think it's a case of the camera backfeeding into the panel. The previous camera had the same issue, rapid battery drain, ithout a panel connected to it.

The battery is now at 47%. I am going to move the camera lower, off of the aluminum and see how the camera performs.

-Bob

[jguerdat]

Ah! The aluminum may be blocking the signal between the base and camera, leading to battery drain. Blockage of signal causes the camera radio to work harder.

[ryanr256]

Around 6:00pm tonight I lowered the camera to be about a foot below the aluminum clad trim. It's mounted directly to the brick. I also installed a freshly charged battery.

As of 11:17pm the status of the battery is still 100%. And it's showing 3 bars on the signal strength rather than 2, as was the case when it was on the aluminum.

If the battery maintains a 90% to 100% status overnight, I will conclude that, yes, the aluminum was interfering with the wifi signal causing the battery to drain rapidly.

-Bob

[ryanr256 · Accepted solution]

It's been more than 12 hours since I moved the camera and installed a fresh battery.

The battery is still at 100%. 🙂 And, the motion detection seems to have improved.

The aluminum was more than likely the cause of the battery drain. I don't know, or have a way of determining if the drain was from wifi interference or if maybe the metal was causing issues with the motion detection by reflecting the IR. Or may a combination of both.

When I installed the camera I took the easy route. Drill holes in the brick or just screw into the trim? Didn't think about interference.

I'll still pay more attention to this camera but I think moving the camera solved the problem.

-Bob

[jguerdat]

Good show!  Glad you're making progress!

[ryanr256]

Thanks.

So far today the solar panel is charging and the battery hasn't drained. Now that I've moved the camera I don't think I need the panel, other than the convenience of not having to change the battery. I bought it with the hopes it would keep the battery topped off but it would drain faster than the panel could charge it.

Since the panel is installed and functioning I'll leave it connected for now.

-Bob

[Drewski]

Is there some other type of motion detector (other than an Arlo) between the camera and the base station?  I had a camera that only lasted two weeks (liitle recording during the time) twice with a new fully charged battery put into the camera.  Switched it out with another camera that did not have problem.  Soon enough the "new" camera had the same issue, while the camera I switched no longer had the problem that it had before.  Realized that I had recently put in a motion controlled shop light in thepath between the camera and the base station that I bought from Costco that was super senstive to begin with.  I turned off the motion detector on the light and I no longer had the problem.  I then put another motion detector tied into my Z-wave controller, and an controlled outlet to turn the shoplight on and off without a problem. I did some research and some types of motion sensors can cause interfence with the same WiFI radio frequency used by the Arlo cameras.  

Also of note, the camera was attached to aluminum siding, and it seems like the radio interference was the cause of my problem.  

Good luck.

[ryanr256]

No other motion sensors nearby. I do think it was the aluminum. Since I've moved the camera off of it I've had no issues the camera.

Makes me wonder what people with aluminum siding on their house are experiencing?

-Bob