Getting Too Many Motion Alerts from Your Canary Camera?
The Canary camera is a simple yet effective home security solution, but its high sensitivity can sometimes lead to a constant stream of notifications on your phone. Alerts for your cat chasing a toy, shadows moving as the sun comes out, or car headlights sweeping across a room can be distracting. This overload of information may cause you to mute notifications entirely, which could mean you miss a real security event.
This guide will show you how to use the features within the Canary app to take control of your motion alerts and ensure you only get notified when it counts.
Why Canary Sends So Many Alerts
Canary uses passive infrared (PIR) sensors to detect body heat in motion, as well as analysing the video feed for changes. This dual approach is effective but can be triggered by a variety of non-threatening sources:
- Pets: Cats and dogs are the most common cause of false alerts.
- Heat Sources: Direct sunlight, radiators, or heating vents can cause changes in infrared energy that trigger the PIR sensor.
- Environmental Movement: Swaying curtains, moving plants, or even insects close to the lens can trigger video motion detection.
How to Reduce Unwanted Notifications
You can fine-tune how and when you receive alerts using Canary's powerful 'Modes' and 'Masking' features.
1. Adjust Motion Sensitivity in Modes
Canary's 'Modes' (Home, Away, and Night) are the key to customising your experience. You can set different notification rules for each state.
- Open the Canary App: Tap the gear icon in the top right corner to access your location's 'Settings'.
- Select 'Modes': Here you'll see your settings for 'Away', 'Home', and 'Night'.
- Customise a Mode: Let's say you want to adjust alerts for when you're away. Tap on 'Away' mode.
- Find the Sensitivity Slider: Tap on 'Motion notifications'. You will see a slider for 'Motion sensitivity'.
- Lower the Sensitivity: If you're getting too many alerts, this is likely set too high. Try reducing the sensitivity. This tells the camera that it needs to detect a more significant motion event before it sends you an alert. It may take some experimenting to find the perfect level for your home.
- Repeat for Other Modes: You can set different sensitivity levels for each mode. For example, you might want high sensitivity when you're 'Away' but low sensitivity when you're in 'Night' mode.
2. Use Masks to Exclude Problem Areas (Premium Feature)
If you have a specific area in the camera's view that constantly causes false alarms, like a window overlooking a street or a plant near a vent, 'Masking' is the perfect solution.
- How it Works: Masking lets you draw a box over a part of the camera's view. The camera will then completely ignore any and all motion that happens within that box.
- How to Set it Up:
- In the Canary app, go to your camera's 'Settings'.
- Scroll down and tap on 'Masking'.
- You can then drag and resize a mask to cover the problem area precisely. You can create multiple masks if needed.
3. Configure Auto-Mode Switching
The best way to manage alerts is to have them on when you're out and off when you're home. Canary can do this automatically based on your phone's location.
- Enable Auto-Mode Switching: In your location 'Settings', go to 'Manage geofence'. Ensure the address is correct and the geofence (the virtual perimeter around your home) is an appropriate size.
- Add Members: If you live with others, invite them to be members of your location. Canary will then only switch to 'Away' mode when everyone has left the house, and will switch back to 'Home' mode as soon as the first person arrives.
By customising your modes, lowering sensitivity, and using masks, you can significantly cut down on unwanted notifications and turn your Canary into a smarter, more effective security device.