Fancy

I recently purchased an inexpensive Defender 4cam system for a few hundred dollars. I like everything about this cheap little system except I sometimes get a black spot (large blacked out area or thick black stationary line) when one of the cameras is in night vision mode. I went outside to see if some huge black spider or something was sitting on the lens and I shined a bright flashlight on the camera to inspect it. Presto the camera was fine after that. This problem has happened 3 times now and each time, I can fix it by directing a bright light at it for a second. Anyone know what is wrong with this camera? It this maybe a common problem with cheap ir cameras? I just wanted to get my feet wet in setting up a surveillance system and monitoring it remotely without spending a lot of money. I'm surprised at the nice clear day and night images and how easy it all was to set up and view online but this black line/spot issue has me worried. Thanks!

I will take your advice and switch the problem camera with another one in a different location. Two of the cameras are facing a motion sensor light that comes on and off occasionally but only one of cameras is having the black spot problem. I'm afraid it will take some time to isolate the problem by switching the cameras around because the problem is not happening very often. The cameras have been on 24/7 for almost 3 weeks and the problem has only occurred 3 times. The power supply is a standard looking DC converter 12V 2A and it splits off to supply power to all 4 cameras. Wouldn't you know it....the problem camera is the one located way up on the second story eave. The lower cameras are all doing fine. At this point I'm becoming more concerned about the problem I'm having getting support from the Manufacturer due to the model number / serial number issue than I am with the black spot. I'll post an update if the problem happens with a different camera when I switch them around. I guess that will mean a possible bad cable? And, if the same camera continues to have a problem in a new location...then its maybe the camera itself? Thanks for the help!

Well, guess what Shockwave....I contacted Defender at their support number and it turns out that cameras and DVRs purchased from Sam's Club and BJ's (an online store) have serial numbers and model numbers that are not standard for Defender products and support canot help me. This is a surprising turn of events. I contacted BJ's to see if they can give me a model number and s/n that Defender will acknowledge as being one of their systems. I'm still mostly pleased with the Defender system I purchased but getting support might turn into an issue. Maybe half the battle of obtaining a good system is to have good support behind it? Perhaps I'm learning an important lesson.

Thanks Shockwave, you're probably right and I will contact Defender and see how their customer support responds.