# Does EMF shielding paint work?

> Yes for RF, 30–40 dB on datasheets, but windows dominate the real path, grounding is mandatory, and it does nothing for magnetic fields.

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- Last verified: 2026-08-12
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- Also known as: shielding paint effective, EMF paint work, carbon paint EMF

## Key values

- **Topic:** shielding

## Question

Does shielding paint actually reduce EMF?

## Answer

Conductive paint genuinely attenuates radiofrequency fields — datasheets quote 30–40 dB for two coats, which is a 99.9% reduction in power density on a flat sample — but installed results are usually much lower because windows, doors and untreated surfaces bypass the coating, and RF typically enters through glass rather than through the wall. It must also be bonded to a grounded conductive strip: ungrounded conductive paint can raise the room's AC electric field. It does nothing at all for power-frequency magnetic fields. Measure before and after at fixed positions, in dB, or you have no way of knowing what you bought.

## Related records

- [Carbon or nickel shielding paint](https://emfbase.com/shielding/paint): A conductive coating applied to walls and ceilings, quoted at 30–40 dB in the cellular bands; it must be bonded to a grounded conductive strip to also control low-frequency electric fields.
- [RF-attenuating window film](https://emfbase.com/shielding/window-film): A metallised film bonded to glazing, typically quoted at 20–35 dB, and usually the highest-value single intervention because glass is the dominant entry path for outdoor RF.
- [Shielding verification](https://emfbase.com/protocols/shielding-verification): How to prove a shielding measure worked: identical instrument, position and source conditions before and after, reported in dB as well as in absolute units.

## Sources

- `sbm-2024` Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN) (2024). *Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)*. https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf — ngo, link checked 2026-08-12

Data licence: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Dataset version 2026.08.1. Retrieved from EMFBase, https://emfbase.com.

This record is reference data, not medical or legal advice. Regulatory limits, scientific guidelines and precautionary values are labelled separately and answer different questions.