CCTV Night Vision Problems: Black Screen or No IR at Night

12 min read · Oct 17, 2026

Most cctv night vision problems that end in a completely black picture come down to one of four things: the infrared LEDs are not switching on, the night-mode setting is stuck on day or colour, the power supply is too weak to drive the LEDs, or a nearby light is keeping the camera in day mode so it never turns its infrared on. You can tell which one you have in a few minutes, standing outside after dark with the live view open on your phone. Work through the checks below in order: the first ones are the quickest and rule out the most common causes.

This article is about a picture that goes dark or black at night. If you can still see the scene but it is hazy, white or foggy, that is reflected infrared rather than missing infrared, and the fixes are different — see why a security camera is blurry at night instead.

First, name the symptom exactly

Open the live view after dark, then open a night clip in playback, and compare what you see with these four pictures. Each points somewhere different.

Totally black, but the timestamp and on-screen text are still there. The camera is running and streaming; it simply has no light to see with. This is the classic "IR is not on" fault. Start with step 1.

Black or very dark, but still in colour, with street lamps or windows showing as bright spots. The camera thinks it is still daytime. It is in colour mode with the infrared off, and the few lights in the scene are all it can pick up. Go to step 2 and step 4.

A good black-and-white image for a moment, then it goes dark, or it reboots, or the picture keeps dropping out. The infrared is trying to switch on but the camera cannot sustain it. This is very often power. Go to step 3.

The centre of the frame is visible but everything beyond a certain distance is black. That is not a fault. Infrared has a working range that depends on the model, and past it there is nothing lit to see. Check the range stated for your model and either cover a shorter distance or add a light.

If the picture is black in daylight too, or the app shows the camera as offline, the problem is not night vision at all. Start with fixing an offline Yoosee camera.

Step 1 — Check whether the IR LEDs glow

Go outside after dark, or cover the camera's light sensor with your finger in a dark room so the camera thinks night has fallen. On most models the light sensor is a small window near the lens or among the LEDs; the manual for your model shows where.
Look straight at the ring of LEDs around the lens from a short distance. On many cameras the infrared LEDs give off a faint, dull red glow you can see with your own eyes. Some cameras use a type of infrared that shows no visible glow at all, so a lack of glow alone is not proof of a fault.
If you see nothing, point your phone's camera at the LEDs and look at the phone screen. Phone cameras often pick up infrared as a white or purple light. The front (selfie) camera tends to show it more clearly than the rear camera, because some rear cameras filter infrared out.

What the result tells you:

LEDs glow, but the picture is still black. The infrared is working. Either the lens is covered (a protective film left on, paint, a lens cap, a cobweb thick enough to block it), or the camera is not switching its sensor to night mode. Peel off any film, wipe the cover, and move to step 2.
No glow at all, even through the phone camera, with the sensor covered. The LEDs are not being switched on. The cause is a setting (step 2), not enough power (step 3), or failed LEDs or a failed light sensor (see "When to get help").
The glow flickers, or comes on and then goes out with a click. Suspect power first.

Step 2 — Check the night vision setting in the app

Menu names vary between app versions and camera models, so look for anything that sounds like night vision, infrared, IR, light mode, day/night or image settings.

Open the Yoosee app and tap the camera.
Open its settings (usually a gear icon) and look in the image, video or night-vision area.
Check which mode is selected. Typical options on many models look something like:
- Auto — the camera decides from its light sensor. This is the right choice for most people.
- Day / colour / off — infrared stays off permanently. If this is selected, the camera will be black at night by design.
- Night / black-and-white / IR on — infrared stays on permanently.
- Full colour or smart light — on models with a white spotlight, the camera uses visible light instead of, or as well as, infrared.
Set it to Auto, save, and test again after dark.

Two settings catch people out on models that have a white spotlight:

Full colour mode with the spotlight turned off or set to only light up on motion. The camera stays in colour, waits for a white light that never comes, and shows black until something moves.
Light brightness set to the minimum. Some apps have a separate brightness slider for the infrared or spotlight. If it is at the bottom, the picture can look black.

If the menu is missing or behaves oddly after an app update, update the app, restart the camera by unplugging it for a moment, and look again. As a last resort, resetting the camera returns its image settings to factory defaults, but it also means pairing it again, so leave that until after step 3.

Step 3 — Check the power supply

Infrared LEDs draw noticeably more power than the rest of the camera. A supply that is good enough in daylight can fail the moment the LEDs come on at dusk. The tell-tale signs:

The camera works perfectly all day and drops offline, reboots, or goes black only at night.
The picture appears for a second in black-and-white, then cuts out.
The LEDs glow weakly or flicker.

What to check:

Use the adapter that came with the camera. Compare the output printed on the adapter with the input printed on the camera label or in the manual. Both the voltage and the current rating need to match what the camera asks for; an underpowered phone charger or an adapter borrowed from another device is a common culprit.
Look at the cable run. Long, thin extension cables lose voltage along the way. If the camera is at the end of a long run, test it temporarily with the adapter plugged in close to the camera. If night vision suddenly works, the cable run is the problem.
Inspect the connectors. Outdoor plugs and joints corrode, especially if they were not sealed. A green or white crust, or a loose barrel plug, can pass enough power for daytime and not enough for the LEDs.
Battery and solar cameras. On battery models, night vision is one of the biggest drains. A low battery can make night footage dark or patchy, and some models reduce or skip infrared to save power. If your solar camera's battery is running down overnight, work through why a solar camera is not charging before blaming the night vision.

Safety: if checking the supply means working on mains wiring, a junction box or a camera mounted high on a wall, switch the power off at the source first, use a stable ladder with someone holding it, and call a qualified electrician for anything beyond unplugging and replugging a low-voltage adapter.

Step 4 — Check for light that keeps the camera in day mode

The camera's light sensor decides when it is dark enough to switch to infrared. If that sensor sees light, the camera stays in colour mode, the infrared stays off, and everything except the brightest objects looks black.

Common sources:

A porch light, garden lamp or street lamp shining on or near the camera body — not the scene, the camera itself.
A lit window or a reflective surface right next to the camera.
A motion-activated floodlight that switches the camera into day mode, then off again, so the picture alternates between colour and black.
Headlights sweeping across the camera from a driveway or road.

How to test: on a dark night, switch off any lights near the camera, or shade the camera body with a piece of card without covering the lens. If the camera clicks and the picture turns to a clear black-and-white image, outside light is your problem.

Fixes, in order of effort:

Turn the light off, move it, or point it away from the camera.
Fit a small shade or hood so the light sensor cannot see the lamp directly.
Move the camera a short way along the wall so the lamp sits out of its line of sight. When you remount, apply the same thinking you would use when choosing where to place security cameras around a house: walk the spot after dark, not just in daylight.
If the area is well lit at night anyway, set the camera to full colour mode (if your model has it) and let the existing light do the work.

Step 5 — Rule out the lens and the scene

Once power, settings and stray light are cleared, a few simple causes remain:

Protective film still on the cover. New cameras often ship with a clear film. It can block or scatter infrared and is easy to miss.
Paint, sealant or dirt across the LEDs after the wall was painted or the camera was fitted.
Nothing in range to reflect the light. A camera aimed at an open field, a long garden or the sky has nothing near enough for its infrared to light up, so the picture looks black even though the LEDs work. Aim it at a surface or path within range and test again.

When to get help

Contact the seller or the shop that installed the camera if:

The LEDs do not glow (not even on the phone camera) with the original adapter, Auto mode selected and the light sensor covered.
Only some of the LEDs glow, or one side of the image is always dark.
You never hear the day/night click and the image is pink or purple in daylight, which can mean the filter is stuck.
There is moisture or corrosion inside the housing.

Before you contact them, note your camera model from the label, the adapter details, which steps you tried and what you saw. A short screen recording of the night live view helps. If the camera is under warranty, ask the seller before opening it.

Install or resell cameras?

Many night vision call-backs can be avoided on the day of installation:

Test every camera after dark before you sign off the job, or at least cover the light sensor and confirm the switch to infrared on site.
Supply and label the correct adapter, and keep long low-voltage cable runs as short as you reasonably can.
Ask the customer which outdoor lights they use at night, and position cameras so those lights do not hit the camera body.
Leave the night mode on Auto and show the customer where the setting lives in the app, so they can check it themselves first.
Peel the protective film off and seal outdoor connectors.

If you fit or sell cameras for customers, details of the dealer program for the Yoosee range are at business.yoosee.com.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my CCTV camera work in the day but show a black screen at night?

In daylight the camera sees by ambient light; at night it depends on its own infrared, so anything that stops the LEDs switching on shows up only after dusk. The quickest first test is to look for the LED glow (or check it through your phone camera) after dark: a glow points to the lens, settings or scene, no glow points to settings, power or a hardware fault.

Is it normal not to see any red glow from a night vision camera?

It can be. Many cameras show a faint red glow, but some use infrared that is invisible to the eye. Point your phone camera at the LEDs in the dark: if they show up as a bright spot on the phone screen, the infrared is working even though you cannot see it.

Can a power cut or power fluctuation damage night vision?

A sudden surge can damage any electronics, including the LEDs or the light sensor, and an unstable supply can make night vision cut in and out. If the problem started right after a storm or a power cut, test with the original adapter on a different socket. If the LEDs still do not light, ask the seller, especially while the camera is under warranty.

Why does my camera keep clicking at night?

The click is the filter switching between day and night. Repeated clicking means the camera keeps changing its mind, usually because light levels sit right on the threshold or a light near the camera keeps turning on and off. Shade the camera body from that light, or set a fixed mode if your model allows it.

Will a firmware or app update fix night vision?

Only if the cause is software, such as a setting that did not apply properly. It is worth updating the app and restarting the camera, but an update will not fix a weak adapter, a light shining on the sensor or failed LEDs. Work through the physical checks as well.