Why Are My Security Cameras Not Working?
The Short Answer
When security cameras stop working, the problem is almost always in one of three places: the recorder, the power supply, or a cable run, and only rarely in the cameras themselves. Several cameras going dark at once points to the recorder or a shared power supply. One camera going dark points to its cable or its own power. Footage that is missing points to recorder settings or a full drive. Tulsa Surveillance Technologies diagnoses most of these on the phone, and the ones that need a visit are usually a part swap rather than a new system.
This matters because the first quote many Tulsa owners get for a dark system is a full replacement. In our experience the hardware is usually fine. The sections below walk through the common causes in the order we check them.
Several Cameras Dark at Once
Start with the recorder. If the recorder has lost power, locked up, or has a failed drive, every camera on it goes dark together and the app shows them offline. Check that the recorder is powered and that its lights are on; a reboot clears a locked-up unit more often than people expect. If the cameras are powered through the recorder or a shared power-over-ethernet switch, a failed switch or power supply takes down the group it feeds, which is why the cameras on one side of a building can go dark while the others keep working.
The network is next. A new router, a changed password, or an internet outage breaks remote viewing without touching recording at all, so check whether the cameras are visible on the recorder’s own screen before assuming they are dead. If they are recording locally and only the app is blank, it is a network configuration, not a hardware failure.
One Camera Dark, Fuzzy, or Dropping Out
A single camera failure is usually its cable or its power. Outdoor runs get chewed by squirrels, baked on a south-facing wall, pulled by a storm, or nicked by a contractor, and a cable that is damaged will drop the camera intermittently before it fails outright. A camera that works at night and fails in the afternoon, or the other way round, is a classic sign of a heat-affected cable or connector. A fuzzy image is often a lens covered in dust, spider webs, or water behind a cracked housing rather than a sensor failing.
None of this should be chased from a ladder by the owner. Attempting a repair can cause more damage or void a warranty. A technician who knows the system, or has the camera map for it, traces the run and tests the camera in minutes.
Footage Missing or Overwritten
If the cameras are live but the clip you need is gone, the recorder was set to too few days of retention, the drive is full or failing, or motion recording missed the event because the zones were set badly. Those are settings and sizing problems, and they are fixed by configuring the recorder properly and, where needed, adding storage. Retention is written in days on every quote we issue so this does not happen on a system we installed.
If your system was installed by another company and you cannot get support, the system takeover page explains how we pick it up, and the service and repair page covers what support looks like. Call (918) 221-3226 and describe what you see; most of the time we can tell you where the fault is before anyone drives out.
Related Questions
Also Asked
Should I unplug the recorder and plug it back in?
A reboot clears a locked-up recorder and is safe to try. Do not open the recorder or pull drives.
My cameras work but the app shows nothing. Why?
Almost always the network: a new router, a changed password, or an outage. Recording continues on the recorder and the app comes back when the connection is restored.
How much does a repair visit cost?
It depends on the fault and the parts. Many issues are diagnosed on the phone at no charge, and the visit is quoted before a truck rolls.
Let Us Look Before You Replace Anything
A free site walk tests every camera, cable, and recorder. If it can be fixed, we fix it.