Wyze Cam Outdoor Foggy Image

Has anyone else experienced the image quality of their Outdoor cam getting foggy?

My camera has developed a foggy image that seems to be inside of the camera, or on the inside of the lens.

The camera has been sitting exposed for a few weeks with almost no protection overhead. Makes me wonder if moisture didn’t somehow get into the camera despite its water resistant rating?

I have tried cleaning the outside of the lens using soft dry cloths, soft damp cloths, and most recently a damp cloth with a mild detergent. It seems to brighten the image a bit. But nothing seems to fix it completely. Leading me to believe there is something going on inside the camera.

A picture taken About a month ago using the camera:

Picture taken today 9/25:
image

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Hi @StickyWhippit I’ve seen this in the other cams but not to this degree.
Opening the WOC to clean would void the warranty. Suggest opening a Support Ticket.

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@StickyWhippit Welcome! I’ve seen only a few users that have run into this on the outdoor camera.

It is recommended to let the foggy lens clear up on its own. See this support article.

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I have read the same support article. The only difference seems to be I can wipe down the lens on the outside and really see no results. I do live in a humid area however once 90+ degree temps arrive in the afternoon there is still no real difference in the image.

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Because you have 90 deg. temps, wonder if the Li-ION battery is offgassing. You could open one of the protective covers and see if there is a smell of volatile organic, like a solvent smell.

Understood. We’ve had a lot of temperature swings in the last couple of weeks here in the mountains of Virginia, but haven’t experienced anything like this so far.

If this issue continues I would start a support ticket with Wyze. There is always a possibility that you have a defective camera.

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Is it fogy all the time? Night and day? If you take it inside the house does it go away?

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@Omgitstony You’re a poet and don’t know it.
Sounds like the beginning of a country song.

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I’m definitely not a bloodhound however nothing seems to smell…weird.

However opening the charging port and more specifically the sd car port to sniff for a bad battery does lead me to confess that the camera has been mounted upside down to ensure that the motion detection zone was in the appropriate area.

There is some “mold”??? that seems to be establishing itself on the camera. Not sure if this is a sign of the excessive humidity in this area, some sort of flaw in the camera, or something that should usually not cause a problem.

Picture of mold below:

Couldn’t say if this is evidence or a contributor to the issue. I do however have three V2’s, one V1 ( AKA the old guy), and one Pan all mounted outside that don’t seem to suffer from the same humidity issue. They are all however under eaves so would be much less susceptible to moisture damage.

It is definitely foggy both night and day.

I just brought it inside for the night to test this idea.

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I’m guessing that fungus is growing on the lens inside the camera. That foam base is an excellent medium for growth.
Try a mixture of half distilled white vinegar & water with a disposable wipe to clean. Don’t know about the inside since it’s sealed and wouldn’t be an “outdoor cam” if opened.

To this point I have avoided any harsh cleaners. Might give the vinegar and water solution a shot to clean the outside of the camera.

I have little desire to open the camera to fix anything that is happening inside as I would have no idea what I’m doing in there so I wouldn’t be if much help in troubleshooting.

I have now opened a trouble ticket with wyze to see if they have any idea what’s happening here.

This is kind of a bummer as the outdoor cam was something I was anxiously waiting on for some time.

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How in the Holy Hell could this actually be happening???

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Unlike the v2 cams and Cam Pan, the outdoor cam does not generate any heat. This allows condensation to fog up the lens.

If I understand correctly, the constant heat coming from the indoor cams prevent them from fogging up. So the v2 and the cam pan have an advantage over the outdoor camera. Outside of that I don’t have any other explanation. :man_shrugging:

However, I haven’t experienced this issue on my outdoor cam YET, but that may change when winter kicks in.

Just pointing out in case you did not know, the camera can attach to the base from both the top and bottom of the cam so you dont have to put the cam upside down.

Considering the ship date of the camera, no one has had the opportunity to view it’s reaction to cold, wet weather… I pray that This is an isolated incident and not an expectation that we will need to deal with

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Beta testers have had the cameras in cold snowy conditions. I don’t recall any reports of mold forming.

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This is an odd situation. I have run my original test WOC since last December thru all kind of weather, temps from mid 20’s to high 90’s and not had anything like this. My guess, and it’s just that, is that it’s a failure somewhere in the waterproofing letting moisture in.

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Hum …strange it supposedly sealed at the factory…or factory environment humidity not controlled ?
Mosture must be traped inside for something like that to occurs.

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Fungus spores are only 5-30 microns + a little moist air + 90 deg, heat + sealed environment.
Did Wyze test the WOC upside down to facilitate a desired motion detection zone.

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