We all share a common need to sleep, but that doesn’t mean we all sleep the same way! We all have different preferences, needs, and sensitivities when it comes to sleep. For instance, I’m one of those people who needs a room to be really dark in order to fall asleep. And one thing that makes that difficult is those bright LED lights on every electronic item in our bedroom! (Especially the ones that stay lit even when the device is turned off.)
I’m sure I’m not the only person who has ever been kept awake by those annoying LED lights on TVs, alarm clocks, and other electronic devices. So I thought that in today’s post, we could explore some creative solutions to that problem together! Below you’ll find three easy solutions for covering up those annoyingly bright LEDs on the following items:
- TVs
- Chargers
- Internet modem and/or router
- Alarm clocks
- Speakers
- Computers
- …and more!
These solutions are removable, so you won’t have to worry about causing any damage. And you can pick and choose your solutions based on whether you want to dim the lights or block them out completely! With the help of these creative solutions, we’ll all be able to sleep a bit more soundly! :-)
3 Easy Ways To Cover Bright LEDs In Your Bedroom For Better Sleep
1. Painted Tape
Start by placing a piece of clear scotch tape over the LED light you want to cover up. Then paint over the tape with a bit of black nail polish or a black permanent marker to prevent the light from shining through. (Black nail polish is more opaque than marker, so I would recommend using nail polish if you want to block the light completely.)
This is a great solution because it’s totally removable. Whenever you want to remove your light-blocking tape, it will peel right off easily!
2. DIY Blackout Stickers
Another way to cover up those bright LEDs is to make your own “blackout stickers!” You’ll need some black electrical tape, some wax paper, and a hole punch. Place a piece of electrical tape onto the wax paper, then use the hole punch to punch out a few circles from the taped area. And voila, your blackout stickers are ready to roll!
Just peel off the wax paper layer to expose the sticky side of your blackout dot, and apply the sticker over the LED light you want to cover up.
Electrical tape is perfect for this purpose because it’s really easy to remove. Peel it off easily whenever you want!
More Ideas You'll Love
3. Light Dimming Stickers
If you have a lot of bright LEDs you want to cover up, consider investing in a set of light dimming stickers! This set from Amazon comes with over 400 light dimming stickers in different sizes and levels of opacity, which gives you a lot of options when covering up LED lights.
The various opacity levels allow you to either slightly dim, mostly dim, or completely block any LED light on any device.
Bonus Safety Tips!
- Don’t cover LEDs with fabric. It can be tempting to toss a shirt or scarf over those bright lights to block them from view, but it’s not a great idea. Fabric tends to trap heat, which could cause your electronic item to overheat and even become a fire hazard.
- Don’t store your modem or router in a cabinet. Internet modems and routers can have a lot of annoying lights, making it tempting to shut them up in a cupboard to block them from view. But don’t do this! Not only could storing these devices in a cupboard lead to problems with your internet connection, it could also cause them to overheat.
Do you ever have trouble falling asleep because of bright LED lights?
I have used a black permanent marker on those “dot” stickers we often use for pricing garage sale items. It works well for covering annoying idiot lights on the car dashboard.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Sorry but if those TINY little dots annoy you in the bedroom there must be something really wrong with you for gods sake.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Now for some humour – my dresser is reachable from my bed so I reach in the drawer and grab some clean black undies which I toss over the annoying light – then in the morning the clean pair of undies is sitting right there for me to jump into !!!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.too clever!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Great ideas, thanks!!!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Different strokes for different folks! I need total dark when I’m sleeping, so I wear a sleep mask. My husband sleeps with a CPAP mask on, so he’s able to pull the covers over his head. He looks like a mummy, but it works for him.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.We’re both old enough to have to get up at least once at night. To keep from turning on the lights, I bought LED nightlights that have different light color choices. I set them all to “red”, which doesn’t interfere with your night vision. If it saves one of us from a fall, or broken toe, I call that a success!
My dad never used his VCR for anything but playing back rented tapes. The power in their area wasn’t reliable, so every time there was a power outage my brother had to go over to Dad’s house and reset the clock on the VCR because the blinking numbers drove Dad nuts.
My brother solved the problem by applying a strip of black tape to the front of the VCR. Everyone was happy.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Not just me! About to bin my third alarm clock, same as others so bright it lights up bedroom, landing and bathroom! EVEN on dim!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Glad to know I am not alone! I DESPISE all the LEDs that manufacturers put into every possible device and appliance — so wasteful and such a nuisance to those of us who need dark to sleep. I’ll definitely be trying some of these that I haven’t thought of before. Black electrical tape and Kleenex have been in my arsenal for years. And a sleep mask for when we travel. I’ll definitely be adding it the homemade stickers to my travel kit!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I just put several post-it notes over the lights.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I have had pieces of black electric tape over every constantly burning LED i can find for years! I even have it on the smoke detector that’s beaming down in my face as I sleep. This might be my biggest pet peeve!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.A smoke detector above the bed sounds terrible!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Since I hit perimenopause I’ve noticed more trouble sleeping & those pesky lights wake me up more. I use black duct tape on black items to cover those little lights. For the most part they don’t show up. Anything with a white base is harder to cover because they white glows with the color of the light. The wifi router is white & glows so bright in the room across the hall that I have to shut the door to that room to go to bed because the light bounces off the white door in that room onto the white door into our room & lights it up. The humidifier is also white so we cover the silver dollar sized button with a wash cloth at night. The clock was so bad that I ordered one I could dim. I got this clock & on the dimmest setting it was perfect until I got adjusted to it & then it was still to bright. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CZ94YAK/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Now I have the clock on the lowest setting with a Dim It Sheet over it & it’s perfect. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006R0VWSG/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I can’t see it during the day because the blackout curtain stays closed since the gaps on it had to be pinned to provide maximum blockage, but I don’t care. I don’t hang out in the bedroom until I’m ready for bed anyway, so not seeing the clock isn’t a problem. I can still see it in the dark if I need to, but it’s now the perfect shade of light gray to not wake me up.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I put one of those electrical tape “dots” over my computer camera eye. Some hackers can hack into that and watch you.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.That’s a great idea!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Some of these things could be plugged into a power strip so you can switch them off when you aren’t using them. Saves on your energy bill and is better for the environment.
Funny how we are all so different. A little light wouldn’t bother me but I need quiet; I wear ear plugs. Also, I hate having one part of my body a different temperature (except my feet) so I have to be totally covered. LOL
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Using a power strip is a great suggestion!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.In the home we purchased, these LED lights are on the light switches on the wall. This bright green was driving me crazy at night. I used duct tape to cover the lights. Not too pretty but it works. I like some of your suggestions much better! Thanks!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.We had that in our new house – we changed the switches!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Oh, thank goodness, I’m not alone! My husband thinks I’m crazy that these little lights bother me. Our Directv box is the worst, bright blue, no sleep time included in the remote!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.the directv box is the worst! Use the black electrical tape…
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I have the light dimming stickers for my alarm clock and they are WONDERFUL! It dims it enough so it doesn’t keep me awake, but I can still see it if I want to know what time it is.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I, too, can’t stand any lights in my bedroom! I’m glad I’m not alone! I’ve used electrical tape and tried sharpies but the tape often falls off or the grandkids peel it off and the sharpies only partially block out the light. I am going to try the nail polish trick and thanks for the idea!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I’ve never joined a discussion before, but thought this should be said, and take it as you will. All of these devices should never be in your bedroom. It’s not just the lights that keep you awake, but the electricity that is running through your bedroom to run all of these devices. I’m not trying to come across as a know it all, but it is true.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.It’s not the electricity, it’s the invisible boo-boos they are worse, not trying to sound like a scientist here, but it’s totally real, just …
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I wouldn’t block my clock. I’m one of those who likes to be able to see the clock if I’m semi-awake. I just have the tv and a speaker device. Usually the blinking light is covered up by a Kleenex. I usually when I’m working lay my makeup out on my desk the night before. Otherwise if I didn’t have a Kleenex for my makeup the blinking light might make it hard.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I may have to show this to my Sister. She’s always had more sleeping problems. You can actually also use blackout curtains. My Aunt when we stay there does it in their basement. It’s almost pitch black except for clock lights. They do have a nightlight for the bathroom which is fairly dim. I’m always afraid I hurt myself when I get up to use the bathroom.Thank goodness they have one.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Hi Christy – the sticker doesn’t actually block the clock, it just dims it :-) You can still see it, it’s just not so bright.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.My clock has a dimmer setting.
This post couldn’t be more timely as four hours ago I got out of bed to put a post it note over the computer power button and position a hand mirror in front of the dancing router lights that were keeping me awake. The struggle is real. These are great alternatives.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I will definitely use some of these ideas, especially the light dimming stickers, but my fav is the eye mask I recently bought at the dollar store. Oh my gosh! It seriously blocks out light. I honestly think I sleep deeper than in the past. Bonus: My eye cream stays put and the warmth created by the eye mask gives it a little boost. My eyes don’t seem as puffy in the morning! Now if I could only figure out how to shut off the alarm on my mobile, my mornings would be perfect!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.What kind of mobile? If Apple, go into Settings and look for Alarm or Clock or ask Siri to cancel alarms
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I’ve used an eye mask before. It wasn’t the lights on devices keeping me away. It was actually an outside streetlight for our block. It’s placed not far from my window. Luckily the city replaced them with ones that didn’t shine through my window as much. I think with my sister who is a light sleeper someone told her something with the electricity might also be to blame . I’m not sure if she still has problems. She lives out in the country with a little farm.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I can’t think how many times I’ve wanted to block LED’s, but wasn’t sure if I could or not! So thanks again for the advice, I have one question though, which is the only reason I haven’t done it…is the LED not where the infra red sensor for the remote control is?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.My same question.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Not on anything I have. If you take a flashlight & look at your TV or whatever item you’ll see a black circle that you may not have noticed before. It’s usually near where the power light comes on when a TV is turned on. It blends into the black frame. That’s the infrared the remote needs.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Once you locate it you can carefully cover the LED that’s near it.
Not always – it depends on the TV. I would give it a try – you can always peel the tape off :-)
Please log in or create a free account to comment.OMG. THANK YOU THANK YOU. Jillee, We have been having trouble with our bathroom door. With being a handicap and low income. You trick with the rubber bands word so well thank you again. MORE trying to break the door down just to get into it.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thank you so much for all your help and time. Anyone that goes onto your site is one very lucky person.
Lori
Thank you Lori!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thank you thank you thank you for those ideas Jillie! I need total darkness to sleep (whereas moderate noise isn’t a problem for me), and some hotel rooms are just the worst! I swear, I recently slept in a room that was lit like a Christmas tree!!! I’m going to add electrical tape to my travelling kit.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Me too! Hotel rooms\condos can be the worst!
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