Frequently asked questions about the Volusia County beachcams
The Volusia County beachcam photo pages are some of the most popular pages on the County’s website. They even receive get well e-mails when they are down for servicing! Here are some of the most common questions we receive about the cams.
Q. Where are the cameras located?
A1. The Daytona Beach camera is located in the Lifeguard Station at the Dunlawton approach in Daytona Beach Shores. It points from one of the station’s north windows.
A2. The New Smyrna Beach camera is located on the north side of the Lifeguard Station near the Flagler Avenue entrance.
Q. Why do I sometimes see a nighttime image instead of a photo on the beachcam?
A. Often there are power surges in the lifeguard station and the beachcam loses the connection to the server. Occasionally this causes issues with the cameras and they are unable to reconnect until they are either reset or repaired. If the camera image is black, it means the last image saved was the beach at night! This failure to connect also is why the photo sometimes appears stuck.
The beach environment (wind, salt, sand) also may contribute to the cam’s capricious nature.
We monitor the cam and are usually aware of outages. However, staff is not always immediately available at the Lifeguard Station to make corrections.
Q. Why doesn't the picture change on my computer?
A. If the beachcams are not changing every 30 seconds, it may be down temporarily or your browser may not be set to refresh every time you visit the page. (If you have Internet Explorer as your browser, check your Temporary Internet File Settings under Internet Options). Some versions of Netscape, on the other hand are not always designed to check for new images so you may need to empty your cache every time you want a new image.
Q. Why don’t you point the camera at the water so we can see the surf conditions?
A. The cams are not meant to be surf cameras. Their purpose is to showcase the beach. There are links to local websites that have surf cams for those interested in viewing the conditions on our beach cam pages below the image. Surf information is also provided in our beach report, which is compiled by County Lifeguards.
Q. Is that a tape of the ocean being played when I access the cam pages?
A. What you hear is a wav file of the ocean which loops continually.
Q. Can I get a copy of the wav sound for my computer?
A. You may download a compressed or "zipped" copy of the sound by clicking here.
Comments or questions?
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Volusia County, Florida.