Your Complete Guide to Stopping Blink Camera False Alerts
A stream of unwanted notifications from your Blink security camera is not only annoying, but it can also drastically reduce the battery life of your device. Taking the time to properly configure your camera's settings is the key to receiving only meaningful alerts and ensuring your batteries last as long as possible. This guide will show you exactly how to fine-tune your Blink system to eliminate false motion alerts.
We will focus on the three main tools at your disposal within the Blink app: adjusting sensitivity, setting up activity zones, and optimising the camera's configuration.
## Understanding the Cause of False Triggers
Blink cameras use a passive infrared (PIR) sensor to detect motion. This sensor is triggered by a change in heat signature moving across its field of view. While this is very efficient for battery life, it can be fooled by a number of common environmental factors.
Common Culprits for False Alerts:
- Moving Trees and Bushes: The motion of leaves and branches, especially on a sunny and windy day, can cause constant triggers.
- Shadows: A cloud passing in front of the sun creates a large moving shadow across your property, which the PIR sensor can detect.
- Sunlight: Direct sunlight hitting the camera lens can cause false triggers, especially at sunrise and sunset when the light angles are changing rapidly.
- Heat Sources: Be mindful of boiler flues, air conditioning units, or dryer vents in the camera's view, as a puff of warm air can trigger the sensor.
- Insects and Animals: From a spider building a web directly in front of the lens to the neighbourhood cat wandering past.
## Step-by-Step Instructions for Accurate Alerts
Follow these steps in your Blink Home Monitor app to take control of your notifications.
### 1. Adjust the Sensitivity Setting
This is the most straightforward adjustment and your first line of defence.
- From the app's home screen, tap the settings icon next to the camera you want to adjust.
- Go to Motion Settings.
- You'll find a Sensitivity slider, typically set to a default of 7.
- Lower this value. A setting of 5 or 6 is often a good balance. If you have a camera in a very busy environment, you might need to go lower.
- Save your changes and monitor the results before making further adjustments.
### 2. Configure Activity Zones
This is the most powerful tool for eliminating predictable false alerts. Activity Zones allow you to make parts of the camera's view 'inactive' for motion detection.
- In the camera's settings, tap on Activity Zones.
- You will see a grid overlaying your camera's view. Tap on the squares to disable them (they will turn grey).
- Carefully disable the squares that cover areas of constant, irrelevant motion. This could be a public footpath, a busy road, or a large bush that sways in the wind.
- Be precise. By leaving only the areas you care about active (like your walkway or porch), you tell the camera exactly where to look for motion.
### 3. Optimise Retrigger Time and Clip Length
These settings help manage the number of clips you receive.
- Clip Length: This determines how long the camera records after detecting motion. A shorter clip length can help save battery but might miss the end of an event.
- Retrigger Time: This is the cool-down period after a motion clip is recorded before the camera will start recording again. If you are getting lots of clips of the same event, increase the retrigger time to 30 or 45 seconds. This will give you one clip of the event starting, rather than five clips of it continuing.
### 4. Check Camera Placement
- Avoid Direct Sun: Do not point the camera directly at the rising or setting sun.
- Look Down: Angle the camera so it looks down at the area you want to monitor, reducing the amount of background 'noise' from streets or neighbours' properties.
- Stable Mounting: Ensure the camera is mounted securely. A wobbly mount can cause the camera to move in the wind, triggering its own motion sensor.
By carefully working through these settings, you can significantly reduce false alerts, extend your camera's battery life, and ensure that when you do get a notification, it's one that deserves your attention.