I’ve got a Ring floodlight cam in my driveway, but the light reflects off my two white cars and back into the camera. It makes it hard to see past the cars to the street.
Has anyone set up IR illuminators for home cameras so you can see at night without needing the floodlight on? Any tips or product recommendations?
Yep, I’ve done this! I used a pair of these: Univivi Infrared Illuminator, 850nm 6 LEDs, 90 Degree Wide Angle - Amazon link.
They’re about $22 each, so not too expensive. Mine have lasted for years through all kinds of weather. The difference in camera footage at night is huge with IR floodlights.
@Winter
I have the same one, and it works great. Highly recommend!
Anything with 850nm wavelength IR LEDs should work fine. Just check the beam angle so it covers the area you need.
One thing to note: you’ll probably need to disable the floodlights on your Ring camera for the IR setup to work well, which kind of defeats the point of having a floodlight cam.
If you’re open to alternatives, adding a couple of Ring battery cams at different angles might be a better option. Pair them with solar chargers, and you’re good to go. The setup isn’t too pricey—battery cam plus solar panel should cost about $80 total. If you need better Wi-Fi coverage, you could throw in a weatherproof Wi-Fi extender for around $20.
Yeah, I use some cheap add-on IR cams from Amazon, about $12 each. A couple are plugged into wall outlets, and one runs off a solar panel with a deep cycle battery. They work way better than the built-in camera light.
@Raleigh
Do you have a link?
Sure, here’s what I use. There are tons of similar ones under different brand names.