One of the biggest downfalls of wireless security cameras is the constant need to charge them every few months. Now depending on the brand and how many record detections you have, this can be more or less frequent.
Some wireless security cameras have quick magnetic removals, while others like my Eufy wireless security camera that I use for the rental property take a few more seconds to remove.
The biggest problem I have is setting them up again after charging so that the image is in the correct position for recording. So I needed a way to charge the Eufy cameras quickly without removing them.
Table of Contents
Power banks for Wireless security cameras.
A really easy way to charge your wireless security cameras is to use a power bank. These come in many different sizes and shapes so it is best to get one that can fully charge your cameras. Some car jump starters even have USB ports.
Usually, these wireless cameras will take a few hours to charge up. To be safe I use some double-sided velcro tape to stick the power bank down to either the wall or the camera itself.
The Miro USB cable then can be plugged into the power bank and the camera.
On the Eufy security cameras app, you can see when they are fully charged 100%. Just grab a few power banks and charge them up all at once.
Portable solar Panel charger.
Another option is to use a portable USB solar panel charger. These are great options to charge USB devices when power is not available.
They only need a little hook to hang the solar panel up. The charge rates are comparable to many portable USB battery packs. On my Big Blue solar panel charger, I was able to get 1.94 amps at the full midday sun which is close to 2A.
Different charge and power options.
If you want to remove the wireless security camera for charging then, plug the camera into a phone USB wall outlet for best results. For PoE security cameras, just plug the Ethernet cable into a router.
Wall chargers rated at 2-amps or more will give you a quicker charge rate.
Wireless Security camera battery draining fast fix.
If you find that your wireless security camera is draining too fast you may have a bad battery or your detection setting are incorrect.
Check the following setting to save battery life:
- Record time should be less than 1 minute.
- Zone detection- eg don’t detect cars.
- Face recognition – Only record people, not animals.
- Infrared or spotlight activation. The spotlight will drain more power.
- Viewing live camera feeds will drain the battery faster.
- Not fully charging the camera battery.
- Having a wireless security camera in the full sun will cause the internal battery to fail faster than if it was shaded. Lithium batteries don’t like heat.
- Open up the power manager setting to get access to many more options to reduce the power drain.
Conclusion
By making a few minor tweaks on the Eufy security camera app I was able to reduce my battery drain from 3 months to 5 months before requiring a full charge.
Now with the portable power bank, I can charge up my wireless security cameras with minimum disruption and keep them in place. Just be sure to secure the power banks so they don’t fall down.
I am a qualified Industrial Electrician for the past 20 years and I love to share my knowledge on home repair and maintenance jobs.
I love fast toys like Motorcycles, Cars, Jetskis, Boats, and Computers so writing about them is easy. Working on them is fun.
To keeps costs down I do all my own mods, repairs, and servicing. These skills I want to share with everyone. DIY is a skill everyone can learn.
