What covering dims LEDs well?

September 12, 2021 6:42 AM

I have recently moved in with family, meaning that my personal living space has shrunk to one room. Since all my devices (computer and peripherals, TV, surge protectors, outlet multiplyers) now live in the room where I sleep, that means there’s a lot of glowing LEDs at night. Even several layers of masking tape does a poor job of dimming them. What actually works to cover these lights so my room can be properly dark?

Total blackout not necessary—it’s okay if I can still see a dot of light, but I need to get rid of the glow that lights up walls and other nearby surfaces.

posted by ocherdraco to Home & Garden (25 answers total)

Try electrical tape. Electrical tape is opaque, black, and readily available at any hardware store. A small piece cut from the roll will block the light from an LED. However, electrical tape will probably leave adhesive residue if you decide to later remove it.
posted by RichardP at 6:48 AM on September 12, 2021 [16 favorites]

Is total blackout okay, though? If so, aluminum/foil tape (either the stuff for ductwork from the hardware store or something decorative from the craft supply store) would do the trick handily.
posted by wreckingball at 6:49 AM on September 12, 2021

Simple aluminum foil from your kitchen will work. Just use any available tape to attach it (I use blue tape that's easily removable.) Looks ugly.

Blue LEDs are a scourge.
posted by Nelson at 6:50 AM on September 12, 2021 [2 favorites]

A small piece of actual aluminum foil under the masking tape should do the job.
posted by heatherlogan at 6:50 AM on September 12, 2021 [1 favorite]

If you have any of those camera-covering stickers, they work pretty well.
posted by trig at 6:59 AM on September 12, 2021 [2 favorites]

I use these stickers to cover most LEDs in my bedroom. They work brilliantly, and block (to me) 100% of the LED brightness.
posted by saeculorum at 7:09 AM on September 12, 2021 [3 favorites]

Light dim stickers that are specifically designed for routers and other electronic equipment are both cleaner and better looking that marking tape.

They work, and you can get them in different levels of translucency from "total blackout" to "dim the brightness a bit".
posted by underclocked at 7:10 AM on September 12, 2021 [10 favorites]

Response by poster: Since I have aluminum foil on hand, I'm trying that! Applying now with washi tape (so they hopefully won't leave much residue), and we'll see how well they work come bedtime. (I think they'll likely work splendidly. It'll just be a matter of whether I remembered where all the lights are and actually covered all of them.)
posted by ocherdraco at 7:35 AM on September 12, 2021 [1 favorite]

If you'd like to still see the LEDs for activity, but just have them dimmed, Kapton tape works great. One layer usually does it, a second may be useful for very bright blue LEDs. Hardware stores usually carry it, or Amazon.
posted by xedrik at 7:41 AM on September 12, 2021 [2 favorites]

Electrical tape works well and is easy to peel back and restick for total blackout. They also make LED dimming tape for this purpose. Just search online.
posted by Crystalinne at 8:06 AM on September 12, 2021 [1 favorite]

I use cut-out dots of gaffa tape (the black cloth-reinforced kind) for this. Opaque, sticks to anything, and the adhesive is nice and stable and still tends to come off with the tape rather than leaving bits of itself behind, even after having been in place for several years. The adhesive on electrical tape tends to absorb atmospheric moisture and go soft and gooey over time.
posted by flabdablet at 8:57 AM on September 12, 2021 [3 favorites]

Forgive me if this isn’t in the spirit of your question but when I’ve been in similar situations I found the best covering was the one closest to my face. That is, a comfy silk sleep mask. That single covering can be easier than fighting to cover all the possible light sources with separate, individual covers. Plus, it’s portable. Ymmv.
posted by iamkimiam at 9:13 AM on September 12, 2021 [4 favorites]

Gaffer tape is meant to be removed without leaving residue. It's pricey, but once you use it you love it.

Heck, I could stick a length to some light plastic and mail it to you!!

(On preview, this is the other spelling of gaffa tape, above.)
posted by wenestvedt at 9:16 AM on September 12, 2021 [1 favorite]

If you don't want to buy the purpose-made dimming dots, and you want to see a bit of LED, I just bought the most black washi tape I could find at Michaels and it works great.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:34 AM on September 12, 2021

Try a layer of tape, then use some black marker on it, if it's not dark enough, add another layer of tape, and black marker....

I can also second xedrik's suggestion of Kapton Tape -- wonderful way to turn horrible blue LEDs into a pleasant yellow.
posted by gregr at 9:57 AM on September 12, 2021 [1 favorite]

I always use the aforementioned electrical tape.
posted by Thorzdad at 10:42 AM on September 12, 2021

Your local auto parts store will have cheap rolls of translucent "red lens repair tape," made for repairing cracks in the tail/brake lights on your car. I used a couple layers of that stuff to redden a clock radio which was just too bright on its lowest setting, and it's great for toning down other random illumination. It absolutely clobbers blue light.

Here's an example from Amazon, but your local auto-parts store definitely carries the stuff.

I haven't actually removed the tape from anything yet, but it doesn't seem to be a residue-y as electrical tape, which is one of electrical tape's drawbacks (the other is that it's narrow, which is nice for a small light but not for much larger)-- otherwise, that stuff is opaque and cheap.

But if you are okay with dimmer red lights where you used to have white and blue lights, I'd go with the lens tape.
posted by Sunburnt at 11:07 AM on September 12, 2021

I don't suppose you can just install a roll-up curtain, pull it down when you don't want to see it, and retract it when you do? Could be as simple as the paper kind. If everything is concentrated at a shelf or desk, and there's some vertical space available...

Else, an accordion "divider" that can be retracted and unfolded to block the desk / shelf from view is another possibility.
posted by kschang at 12:19 PM on September 12, 2021

I have used electrical tape, or multiple coats of a paint pen or sharpie to dim bright leds.
posted by nickggully at 1:03 PM on September 12, 2021

I use nail polish.
posted by joeyh at 1:35 PM on September 12, 2021

I use those LightDim stickers and they work quite well at subduing the light without blocking it entirely if you still want to see the LEDs.
posted by Aleyn at 2:04 PM on September 12, 2021

I use cheap coloured dot stickers from the dollar store, layered as necessary to dim the LED.
posted by fimbulvetr at 4:33 PM on September 12, 2021

I like these Dim It stickers.
posted by nicwolff at 7:02 PM on September 12, 2021

Washi tape is really good at not leaving residue.
posted by sebastienbailard at 10:45 PM on September 12, 2021

Response by poster: I am delighted at the wealth of replies here! I hope they help others with the same problem. The foil/tape combo worked great for me last night!
posted by ocherdraco at 1:27 PM on September 13, 2021