How to Prevent Glare on a Surveillance Camera Looking Through a Window

Are you planning on installing a CCTV system inside your house to check up on your backyard? Then you must wonder how to prevent the glare on a surveillance camera that will be looking through a window. Or maybe you already have a CCTV system in place.

Have you noticed that the quality of the footage is poor and it’s difficult to get the details? Yep, that’s because of the glare. In this post, you’ll learn why this happens and how to fix it.  

Keep on reading if you’d like to learn more about:

• Why does glare appear when a security camera is behind glass;
• What are the possible infrared camera motion sensor problems behind glass;
• How to prevent the IR reflection of surveillance cameras.

Why does glare appear when a security camera is behind glass?

Many people decide to install their CCTV cameras inside the property, looking through a window towards the front door or the garden. This is less expensive than installing an outside security camera and definitely saves a lot of drilling and cable fitting. It also, however, comes with some drawbacks and potential problems.

The biggest issue you can encounter when you install a surveillance camera looking through glass is the window glare. This will cause the images to get blurry or whiteout, or the videos to be washed out, making it extremely difficult and most times impossible to see any details, such as the face of an intruder or some other piece of crucial information. This is a common issue, especially with night footage.

Another thing you may experience is the issue with reflection in surveillance cameras during the night. This happens due to the fact that most CCTV cameras use IR (infrared) light in night vision mode. You will end up being able to see only the reflection of your camera or some smears of light, which absolutely defeats the purpose of having a security camera installed in the first place.

IR camera motion sensor problems behind glass

Your CCTV motion detector uses either IR sensors, identifying heat when a human or animal approaches your property, or alternatively, they measure changes in the pixels in the video. A big issue is that, behind a window, motion detectors using IR sensors may not work properly or even at all.

This is because infrared light is bouncing off the glass of your window before it reaches any human. Pixel-based motion detectors, however, can perfectly operate behind windows, thus making them the better choice.

Ways to prevent glare on a surveillance camera

There are a few things you could do to prevent the IR reflection. We’ll review the most useful ones below:

Position your camera closer to a window

Install your CCTV camera as close to the glass as possible. This will prevent light from reaching the camera’s lens, ultimately improving the footage’s quality.

Find another spot for your surveillance

You should remember, however, that you cannot use your inside surveillance camera outside. Most CCTV cameras meant to be installed inside the property are not weather-resistant and will definitely not work well outdoors.

Leave an outside light on

This could be very useful to prevent the IR reflection of your security camera. The best thing to do is to install motion-activated lights, as this way you’ll save energy and money, and minimise environmental impact.

Once you have the lights, you can easily turn the night mode off, which will eliminate the need for IR light, thus solving the issue.

Disable the night vision mode

Or at least the IR light or any other status lights on your camera. This won’t always work and depends on the type of camera. Some cameras will allow you to disable only the lights without having to turn off the night mode, while others won’t.

If it’s the latter, you can use insulation tape to cover the infrared light on the camera.

Get an IR illumination light

This is one of the best solutions to stop IR reflection. To the naked human eye, IR illumination lights are simply dim purple lights. But it is extremely powerful when it comes to your security camera.

Once you buy the IR illumination lights, carefully test what is the optimal position to install or mount them. In the best-case scenario, they should look exactly towards the front yard or garden.

Once they are installed, you should either turn off the IR light on your camera or cover it up (in case turning it off is not an option). 

Consider investing in an outdoor CCTV camera

This is, indeed, the more expensive option. Nonetheless, it’s the best one to invest in since it will save you a lot of time and the hassle of trying to resolve issues in the long run. Outside security cameras are more trustworthy and also weather-proof. 

Book professional CCTV system installation

The best way to ensure that your cameras will be properly installed is to hire an expert. So if you have any doubts or simply want someone to take care of this for you, the Fantastic professionals will be happy to help out.

Have your CCTV system installed by certified experts and with a 6-month guarantee on the workmanship.

Takeaways

• Security cameras are usually the preferred way of increasing the safety of your home and family.
• To avoid a lot of potential problems and headaches from various issues caused by window glare or IR reflection, the installation of CCTV cameras inside the house looking outside through a window should be carefully researched and carried out.
• If neither of these tips helps, consider installing an outside CCTV camera instead.

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Do you have surveillance cameras? How did you prevent the glare? Feel free to share your thoughts!

Image source: Shutterstock / IAM PRAWIT