For the kid who likes to read in bed

September 29, 2014 7:10 AM

Micropanda (3) likes to read in bed after lights out, but for obvious reasons we don't want a light to stay on after he falls asleep. He has a flashlight that stays on as long as he squeezes the trigger switch, then shuts off on release, but it has died. He is sad and we are sad. We are having a devil of a time replacing it. Please help.

This is the flashlight in question. It is a Bob the Builder worklight that we got in a freecycle bag, and it has made bedtime immeasurably better over the last couple of years. It's always gone through batteries kind of fast, but the last set we put in only lasted about a day and so it's time for this poor thing to retire.

It currently only seems to be sold as part of a giant workbench set, which we neither want nor need.

There's currently one for sale on eBay, and though there's no way in hell the thing is worth ten bucks, I may buy it anyway. My main reservation is I can't tell how many miles that one has on it (though, odds are, probably less than ours...)

Parents of night-readers: What is your solution? And do you know of a flashlight holy grail that my google-fu has not uncovered? I really want something that he has to actively work to keep on, and will shut itself off when he falls asleep.

posted by telepanda to Human Relations (23 answers total)

This is a four pack, but is pretty reliable. Charges by squeezing, has a dedicated on/off switch as well.
posted by Buttons Bellbottom at 7:17 AM on September 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

What about one of those little ubiquitous led button keychains? Is that too small?
posted by phunniemee at 7:17 AM on September 29, 2014

In the basement of my apartment with the laundry machines, there are 2 lights. One is on a timer you have to turn that ticks down til the light turns off. The other appears to be in some sort of socket extension between the actual socket and the lightbulb itself. It appears that this socket extension has a timer in it that gets toggled by turning the light switch on and off.

Growing up, reading in bed I had a lamp made from a parking meter. You had to put coins into the meter to turn on the light, and it would tick down and eventually turn off.
posted by garlic at 7:18 AM on September 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

Amazon search for squeeze flashlight has some good ideas.

A crank flashlight might be more comfortable. I can't imagine that squeezing a trigger and trying to read a book is very nice for his hands. The crank would require some effort at intervals but not require constant pressure...though maybe the shut-off would be disconcerting to a kid.
posted by barnone at 7:19 AM on September 29, 2014

Just as aside, are you using rechargeable batteries? If so, it might be the batteries dying, not the flashlight. They gradually hold less of a charge as they get used.
posted by jacquilynne at 7:23 AM on September 29, 2014

Is it too soon for him to have his own e-reader? They auto shut off after so long.
posted by MadMadam at 7:24 AM on September 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

Why do you want him to have to keep squeezing the trigger? That sounds so uncomfortable. If that's not an absolute requirement, then I recommend this light that my two-year old has to read in bed. He presses a button to turn it on, and it shuts off automatically in 20 minutes.
posted by amro at 7:30 AM on September 29, 2014 [11 favorites]

I own the light I linked above, and how it works is: squeeze a while to build up a charge (the light flashes as you charge). Switch it to "on" to use up the charge. It is not a difficult squeeze for the half a dozen children I've had try it.

I own this one as well, bought at Walgreens. The children found it more difficult to use, but also flashes during charge and can be turned on and off with a dedicated switch. More durable in construction.
posted by Buttons Bellbottom at 7:30 AM on September 29, 2014

Response by poster: The light that he has requires very little hand pressure to keep it on (just a normal grip, really), so I don't think it's terrible for his hand. The little LED flashlights phunniemee suggested are not a bad idea, but I think that would require too much hand pressure.

Mostly, the rationale is: while I want to let him read in bed, because it helps him unwind, I want to gently discourage overdoing it, because we are battling chronic tiredness secondary to starting preschool. That's why I like something that requires a bit of effort. Plus it seems like he'd drift into sleep more effectively without a flashlight shining in his eyes.

I LOVE the parking meter idea, though it doesn't sound readily available.

I am open to all ideas, and interested in hearing what works for others' kids.

He is definitely too young for an e-reader. We are not using rechargeables, and it's definitely the light that is going. Probably the bulb, but it's not really designed to be replaceable.
posted by telepanda at 7:38 AM on September 29, 2014

As Amro says, one of the rechargeable night lights for kids might work well. They turn off after 20-30 minutes. The light is fairly dim which would inspire sleepytimes.

And if possible, you might want to move up bedtime by 30-45 minutes. This will let him have time to read in bed and still get enough sleep while his body (and mind!) adapts to the new daytime environment.
posted by barnone at 7:50 AM on September 29, 2014

What about setting a lamp to a digital lamp timer? If you know about when he falls asleep, you can just set the timer to turn off around that same time.
posted by astapasta24 at 7:53 AM on September 29, 2014

I've been researching making a sunrise alarm clock, but it occurs to me that you might want the exact reverse— a lamp that gradually goes darker over a 30 minute period.

Here is one blogger talking about making her own.
posted by fontophilic at 7:54 AM on September 29, 2014

What about a clip-on reading light? I haven't used this particular one, but I always liked Mighty Bright as a brand, and this one can be set to go off in 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes.
posted by jeather at 7:54 AM on September 29, 2014

My girl has this one. It goes for 15 minutes (or more, it's adjustable) and then if you want more time you hit the button again.
posted by fingersandtoes at 7:55 AM on September 29, 2014

Our 4 year old likes to read in bed as well. What we ended up doing was setting up a remote control dimmer switch on the plug for a lamp mounted over his bed. He knows how to work it and can turn the light on/off himself (which is great in dark mornings when we want to sleep in and he wants to be up and play with his toys), but usually what happens is after reading for 20 minutes or so, he calls out for his light to be turned off, after which we just dim the light down to its lowest level and tuck him in. Then when we check on him after he's asleep, it's pretty easy to use the remote to turn the light all the way off.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 8:38 AM on September 29, 2014

This previous question may be of some use.
posted by gnimmel at 10:07 AM on September 29, 2014

http://www.amazon.com/Playskool-Color-Glow-Flashlight/dp/B00000IW2Y/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Does everything you want. Not for sale via amazon anymore, but if you don't mind dropping $40 on it to buy it third party, it should solve your problem.
posted by zug at 10:53 AM on September 29, 2014

Here's another one, currently being sold.
posted by zug at 10:54 AM on September 29, 2014

This may be a little left-field, but have you considered something like these Philips Hue lightbulbs. If you have wifi, these have been an absolute miracle for my little one. We have them recorded to go off gradually at night (over a 30min period) and come on gradually in the morning. At night, they help her wind-down and understand that its time to sleep and in the mornings, they simulate daybreak so give her a gentle prompt to start waking up.
posted by apcmwh at 12:25 PM on September 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

We had that playskool one when I was a kid, those things are amazingly durable and long-lasting. They still had it kicking around years later and the battery hadn't even died yet.
posted by lizbunny at 12:59 PM on September 29, 2014

My kids both have this capacitor flashlight from IKEA. To keep it going, they have to turn the crank every few minutes. So, it will go out on its own shortly after they fall asleep. So far, they've proven to be pretty durable.
posted by GeekDad at 3:54 PM on September 29, 2014

My kid also had a flashlight that needed to be cranked. It was good not only because it would turn off, but because I could hear if he was still up.

It's not so good if you have more than one kid sharing a room, though.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:26 AM on September 30, 2014

http://smile.amazon.com/dp/B006HDF338 though the "ticking" sound might be annoying.
posted by Buttons Bellbottom at 12:51 PM on December 1, 2014