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  • Significant Moisture inside OAK-D-POE

After leaving an OAK D PoE camera outside (probably with light rain), the camera became unusable due to the amount of water inside the case. The images below show the water damage. It is my understanding that these cameras are rated IP65, so does this seem like a one-off issue or something we should expect to see if the PoE cameras are left outside for extended periods of time?


Just to check - by any chance did you open and then reseal the device in a humid warm environment?
(and then put the device outdoors in a cooler environment where the warm humid air inside would condense)

Generally when something is sealed shut with an o-ring (like this device), humidity can not enter/exit the device either in liquid form or in air. If it enters as a liquid then there should be a tell-tale sign where the leak occured (e.g. water pools near to where the leak occured / there's a 'wetter area' inside near to where the liquid entered).

If water entered by condensing humid air, then you'd see the humidity evenly spread across all the components (which appears to be the case here), which might mean that it has been previously sealed in a warm, humid environment.

However, it's very difficult to say for sure. You could try:

  1. Dry off the device
  2. Submerge it in water, move it into a few different orientations, shake it a bit
  3. Bright it back out, dry off the exterior
  4. Open it up and check if there was any water ingress

I know this isn't useful if all you want is a working device and all you have right now is a wet one 🙁. But it might help for testing the cause of the issue.

    ElliotWoods That's great advice! I don't think that the device was ever opened until after we noticed the water damage. I will try that to see if there are leaks in the case!

      7 days later

      Hi @CamiAmein ,
      We have replicated the setup and are now testing this:

      Nice!! That looks great, really excited to see if it works!

      • erik replied to this.

        Hi CamiAmein , after leaving it for a weekend we discovered similar findings - at that angle, we also get water leakage. We suspect it's through the crew holes, but will be doing some additional tests and fixing the issue asap. Sorry again for the inconvenience!

          Hi Eric,
          Thanks for doing the testing! Since we have 10 cameras in this setup (and are only replacing 2) is there a temporary fix, like silicon at that screw? Currently our solution is cover them in plastic bags when not in use.

          • erik replied to this.

            Hi CamiAmein , I just asked the ME team, we will try to get back with a potential solution asap.

              10 months later

              Hey Folks - any solution to this issue? We just saw some similar condensation with two cameras after some hard rain. This is the first time its been an issue for us in 30+ units.