Why Is My Night Owl Camera Not Recording Events? (Fixed!)

Wondering why your Night Owl camera not recording events like intended? You’re not alone!

It can be quite security-compromising when your camera picks up motion, but just doesn’t start recording, or does not detect the motion at all. 

In this guide, we will go over all of the possible recording faults, such as misconfigured motion detection or storage problems, that could pinpoint the exact failure of your Night Owl camera.

How to Fix When Night Owl Camera Not Recording Events?

Note: Have you made sure that your phone is not muted and the Airplane mode is not active?

1. Enable the Night Owl Motion Detection

Without the motion detection, the Night Owl camera will not initiate a recording in the first place, even if there is captured movement.

The feature, accessible via the Night Owl app or your DVR client, allows you to set up motion detection and access custom recording features. 

Here’s how to set up the motion detection for your Night Owl:

• Open the Night Owl app or access your DVR/NVR via a monitor.
• Navigate to Camera Settings → Detection Settings in the menu.
• Enable the Motion Detection for the specific channels or cameras.

Test the motion detection by moving in front of a camera and checking for alerts in the Night Owl mobile application.

Also, check the cloud, SD, or NVR storage for new recordings initiated by the motion detection tests. 

2. Configure the Motion Detection Settings

The next step is to ensure each of the Night Owl camera motion detection settings is configured appropriately.

Adjusting the sensitivity, detection zones, and recording schedules ensures the system picks up each movement and initiates a recording. 

To access the detection settings, open the Night Owl app on your phone or connect a monitor to your DVR/NVR, then go to the main menu, select Camera Settings, and choose Detection Settings to access the options. 

Now, assign the following values for each motion detection setting:

2.1 Adjust Motion Sensitivity

Increase the motion sensitivity level in the Detection Settings to ensure the camera picks up all of the events. ZontSound recommends setting the sensitivity at about 60% to 70%.

2.2 Adjust the Detection Zones:

Proceed with defining custom motion zones. The mobile application or Night Owl client will bring up a picture of the camera’s view, and you will be able to select the areas for motion detection.

2.3 Adjust the Recording Schedule:

In the Detection Settings or Recording menu, check the recording mode of each channel and ensure it is not set to “None.”

Then, choose Motion, Continuous, or Scheduled recording based on your security preferences. 

Now, trigger a motion in the monitored zones to confirm that recordings or alerts appear in the app.

Also, configure the sensitivity or zones further if you are getting too many or too few alerts. 

3. Check the Night Owl Application Alerts

The next step is to verify that the Night Owl application is fully allowed to send motion detection notifications, because otherwise, you won’t know whether the system has started a recording.

These steps allow you to ensure and activate notifications on your iPhone or Android device.

3.1 How to Check Notifications on iOS:

• Launch the Settings application on your iPhone.
• Tap Notifications and select the Night Owl app.
• Enable Allow Notifications at the top of the tab.
• Scroll to adjust alert styles to modify the alerts.
• Test the alerts by standing in front of the camera.

3.2 How to Check Notifications on Android:

• Launch the Settings app on your Android device.
• Tap Notifications, then select App notifications.
• Locate the Night Owl application at “Most recent”.
• Tap the Night Owl app and enable the notifications.
• Start a motion event to verify that alerts are working.

Note: Do not forget to also check the DND mode’s status and Airplane mode of your phone!

4. Inspect the NVR/DVR Storage Capacity

Yet another reason why the Night Owl security camera is not recording could be because of a full DVR/NVR hard drive storage with overwrite disabled.

This does not stop the Night Owl camera from recording, but prevents the new footage from being stored on the HDD. 

Navigate to Device Settings → HDD Management in the Night Owl app or DVR/NVR menu to view available space.

Activate the Overwrite Mode to automatically replace old recordings with new ones, or manually clear space by deleting the older recordings.

Now, start another motion detection event by moving in front of the camera and check if new footage will appear on the NVR/DVR HDD.

Tip: Enable the “Overwrite” function via the Night Owl app or recorder settings!

5. Manually Update the Night Owl Recorder OS

New firmware can often resolve underlying issues with the motion detection and the NVR/DVR or camera functionality.

All you need is a USB flash drive, along with a computer to download the firmware through and upload it to the drive.

Follow these steps to update the Night Owl recorder firmware:

1. Visit your product’s support page, click the download link in the Update Firmware box, and save the installation .iso file.
2. Insert a USB flash drive (formatted to FAT32) into your PC or Mac, then drag the firmware file into the USB drive.
3. Power on the recorder and ensure the live image is on your TV/monitor, then insert the USB into the recorder’s USB port.
4. Sign in with your credentials, right-click to open the Main Menu, and navigate to the Firmware Upgrade NVR section.
5. Select Manual Upgrade or Upgrade from USB, double-click the firmware location, and press “Submit” or “Upgrade.”
6. Wait for the progress bar to complete, then allow the recorder to reboot automatically to apply the latest firmware version.

After the update is complete, safely eject the USB flash drive and power cycle the Night Owl recorder.

Wait for at least ~30–60 seconds before rebooting and test the camera recording. 

6. Reinsert/Format the Night Owl SD Card

Standalone Night Owl Wi-Fi cameras rely on an SD card for saving footage viewable through the app rather than a physically connected NVR or DVR.

Reinserting or formatting the SD card can resolve issues with the registration of footage and the functionality of the motion detection.

Step #1: Reinsert the MicroSD Card

Power off your Night Owl Wi-Fi camera, locate the microSD slot (often under a rubber cover labeled “MicroSD/Reset”), and remove the card.

Now, check for dust or debris in the tray, wait for 20 seconds, then reinsert it securely. Now, power on and test the camera before proceeding. 

Step #2: Format the MicroSD Card

If reinserting did not work, format the microSD card to FAT32 using your computer along with a microSD card reader device, then reinsert it into the camera.

Power on the unit, and trigger a motion detection event to check if a new recording will be made and stored on your SD card.

7. Check the Camera Alignment & PIR Sensor

Night Owl Wi-Fi cameras use PIR (Passive Infrared), and obstructing the sensors or facing the camera away from the motion zones might disrupt the motion recording.

Adjusting the camera angle and ensuring the PIR sensors are not covered or obstructed should resolve the problem.

Camera Realignment:

Reposition the Night Owl camera to face an area that is part of the assigned motion zones, like your doorway or driveway.

We also recommend avoiding angles with thick walls or bright light sources, as this could interfere with the night monitoring and prevent the movement recognition.

Check the PIR Sensor:

Also, verify the PIR sensor is not blocked by dirt or objects, and mount the camera at an optimal height of 7–10 feet.

The PIR sensor can be found right under the lens of the Night Owl camera on the front plate, so use a microfiber cloth to thoroughly clean any dust accumulation or debris. 

8. Factory Reset the Night Owl Camera

So, if the Night Owl camera is not recording events after all steps so far, a factory reset can eliminate software issues by restoring the default settings of the camera.

As mentioned, the procedure erases all configurations, including motion detection settings and all recordings.

Here’s how to factory reset the Night Owl camera easily:

• Locate the small Reset button under the plastic cover on the cam.
• Hold the button for 20 seconds until the LED stops blinking yellow.
• Re-register the camera in the Night Owl mobile application and test.

Now, follow the instructions earlier in the guide to reconfigure the motion detection settings and test if new recordings will be made.

If not, consider contacting the Night Owl customer support. 

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