Camera looking dark

[Mr. Jones]

I have my equipment out of town at another location and when i showed up Friday, I noticed that two of my cameras looked dark. I noticed the power was triped because one of the clocks was flashing 12. Both of the cameras are on a ground fault on the same curcuit. When I reset the ground fault I noticed that one of the cameras came back to normal. Do you think that the other camera was damaged by a power surge? Do you think that the camera will just fail over time? or do you think it is what it is? not improve or fail?  Thanks!

[dave w]

I have my equipment out of town at another location and when i showed up Friday, I noticed that two of my cameras looked dark. I noticed the power was triped because one of the clocks was flashing 12. Both of the cameras are on a ground fault on the same curcuit. When I reset the ground fault I noticed that one of the cameras came back to normal. Do you think that the other camera was damaged by a power surge? Do you think that the camera will just fail over time? or do you think it is what it is? not improve or fail?  Thanks!

"Dark" as in: you can see an image but it is very dark, or do you mean "dark" as in no picture at all?
Can you take a power supply from a working camera and try it on the dark camera to determine if it is a power supply problem or a camera problem.

As far as answering your questions, your guesses will likely be as accrurate as anyone elses. An "underexposed" image might indicate a bad video amp. There is an adjustment for video gain in the camera base, but I do not know which pot it is. This thread has some additional information.
http://forums.x10.com/index.php?topic=20103.0

If me, I would replace the camera.

[Brian H]

The switchable power supply may have been damaged.
Trying one from a working one. As dave w suggested, is a good way to test for a bad supply.

[Mr. Jones]

When I say dark I mean; the light level is 50% less than it was. Plus, I notice a line going across the screen at the top part of the screen. Thanks for the feedback guys! I would have never thought about switching out the power supply. Also, I forgot about the video adjustment at the base of the camera. Thanks again!

[dave w]

When I say dark I mean; the light level is 50% less than it was. Plus, I notice a line going across the screen at the top part of the screen.

IMHO the line across the screen probably indicates the problem is with the camera and not the powersupply. .

[Mr. Jones]

Really! Do these cameras fail often? Should I maybe invest into another system? Which brings me to a question (maybe I should post it in another forum section) knowing what you know about X10 would you invest in another system of theirs? Or would you go with someone else? If so, who?

[Brian H]

I would try the supply anyway.
If it is low voltage and hum bars. It could be the supply.

[Tuicemen]

I've been running a x10 cam since they first started selling them.
It has been outside under a over hang (Only protection from the elements) and it still works fine other then a slight image burn in.
There certainly are other systems with more bells,whistles and a better picture.
However if a power surge was the culprit it is likely other systems would have suffered the same way.

[Mr. Jones]

That's where I have my cameras....under the over hangs. The system was running fine for a year now until this last weekend. Then when I reset the ground fault that one came back, and the other came back (like I said) 50%.

[Phil45680]

I also have one camera (out of 7) that is "dark". I hadn't looked into it yet as I wasn't sure what to change to fix it other than replacing it. I will try the power supply first. This happened after a severe thunder storm that made the electric "flicker". There is so much to be learned on these forums and I thank all of you for sharing your expertise with the rest of us! You are way more helpful then you know!

[dave w]

Interesting that you also have a "dark" camera after power interuption. Perhaps X10 decided to remove another zener to save a nickle (how old are your cameras).
Please let us know if a different power supply fixes the problem.

[Mr. Jones]

I bought my X2 cameras last summer. Can you buy just a power supply from x10? or should I do an ebay search?

As Phil45680 mentions, you guys are a great help and this shows what the word "community" means. I would have no clue how the tackle the issuses I'm having if it wasn't for the people who post. Even if you agree or disagree with others, it's good to see all feedback. Thanks Boards!  

[Mr. Jones]

Okay folks, I bought two new power supplies for the two dark cameras and they are back to normal. It was the power supplies after all. I noticed a difference as soon as I plugged them in. Also, I did buy the power supplies from X10 and they were $20 a piece. I think that was a bit steep but I thought that I would pass it on. I hope this helps!

[dave w]

thought I would pass it on. I hope this helps!

Yes it does. One for the archives.

[js349]

I have the same problem with a camera, unfortunately changing the power supply, camera, and or receiver has not fixed my issue. So, if anyone has any other ideas about what it could be, I'd love to know. This is the only X10 camera I use and I have a spare camera, receiver and power supply so that is how I tried the others.