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Christmas Light Installation Tips

CHRISTMAS LIGHTING INSTALLATION TIPS

Twinkling and bright, outdoor Christmas lights bring holiday cheer to your home and yard but hanging them can be a less than cheerful experience. Particularly when you’re faced with a teetering ladder and tangles of light strings that don’t work. Here are some Christmas lighting installation tips:

Some popular spots for Christmas lighting installation include:

  • Along your rooflines or eaves
  • Atop bushes, hedges and trees
  • Around pillars and posts
  • Around windows, door frames and other architectural features
  • Near driveways and pathways
  • Inside window boxes and planters
  • Around focal points in your yard or garden (or as focal points themselves)

You’ll need a few special supplies for your Christmas lighting installation, including:

  • Outdoor Extension Cords: Bring power to the site of your display and avoid having lights trailing through your yard and garden.
  • Timer: Turn on your lights only when it’s dark and set them to go off automatically two, four, six or eight hours later or at dawn. You’ll save money in the process.
  • Power Stakes: These portable devices bring power closer to where you need it so you don’t have to run cords all over your yard. For extra convenience, look for stakes with timers and remote controls.
  • Ladder: Consider purchasing a lightweight step ladder or an extension ladder sized to match the decorating projects you’ll be undertaking.
  • Hardware: Look for specialty hooks and clamps that make it easy to attach lights to gutters, window trim and door frames. Double-check that adhesive-backed hardware is appropriate for outdoor use. You’ll also want to have a few sizes of nails, some traditional cup hooks and thin wire on hand.
  • Basic Hand Tools: Gather screwdrivers, a hammer and pliers (to bend wire and pinch hooks tight).
  • Work Gloves: Get a pair of thin, flexible gloves to keep your hands warm so you can easily use tools and work with hardware.
First. Map out where your lights will go and make sure you have enough working lights for that area. Use a long tape measure to figure the number of strands you will need. Be sure to take into account the eaves, windows, doors, shrubs, trees, and the like. Measure the lengths. Using a long measuring tape to measure the length of your house along the ground. Also measure its height and the height of any bushes or trees you intend to light. Then measure the lengths of the light strings you will need to outline doors or windows. Figure the number of 50-foot light strings it will take for all of these measurements.
Locate an electrical receptacle. Plan to run heavy-duty extension cords from a working 120-volt electrical outlet protected by a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI). Ideally, use a switch-controlled outlet or plug the lights into an automatic timer. Both the receptacle’s circuit and the timer must be rated to handle the combined amperes of all the light strings.
Set up a ladder. If your home’s eaves are low, you may be able to use a stepladder; otherwise, plan to use an extension ladder. Place it firmly on flat ground and, extending it well above the eaves, lean it against the eaves at an angle that will be comfortable and safe to climb—neither too steep nor too flat. If you must lean the ladder against the gutter, place a short piece of 2 by 4 inside the gutter to reinforce it.
Hang the lights along the eaves. Your objective is to hang lights as easily and safely as possible without marring your home’s trim or walls. For attaching lights along gutters or the roof, use plastic clips made for the job—these grip shingles or gutters and have a lower hook that holds a light strand or extension cord.

Attach the lights to the trim. For attaching lights to window trim and similar vertical surfaces, use tube light clips or nail-on plastic clips like those shown, readily available at home improvement centers. Space them about 12 inches apart or as recommended. Do not use staples or nails to hang light strings—they can pierce or wear away the protective insulation, creating an electrical. Be careful with light strings. They are not very durable. It doesn’t take much to render them unworkable. Take care not to break or loosen bulbs or break wires as you wind them.

Does this sounds too difficult? Then just have We Hang Christmas Lights come out and take care of everything for you, INCLUDING the take down and put away! 

Get a free quote today:

 

When you schedule your estimate, we’ll come to your site and give you a free, no obligation estimate and design consultation.

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