Make Your Home Festive for the Holidays!
To begin with, we should get one thing clear. Though this article is about outdoor Christmas lights, it is increasingly obvious that outdoor Christmas lights are no longer confined absolutely to Christmas -- they make great outdoor decorating options all the year round. So whether you are decorating your door, porch, window or outside walls, why not make the lights last longer?
Basics of installing outdoor Christmas lights
- Make a detailed plan of exactly where you want to put up your lights. If you want them on windows, doors, eaves, and trees, take detailed height and width measurements of each location
- It is important to calculate exactly how much lighting you will need for every location. Most lights are available in strings, which can range in length from 25-200 lights
- Before you buy the lights, you need to decide whether you will need large or small lights, and whether they will be colored or white. Fancy trimmings like blinking lights are also an option. The size of your lights will impact the length of the light string. Before you install the lights, make sure that they are in working order
- When lighting trees, start with the base of the trunk and work your way to the end of each branch
Lighting a window with outdoor Christmas lights
To begin with, you’ll have to measure your window and figure out how many lights you want. Once you have done that, you can decide what style you want – blinking, static, colored, plain etc. Unless your windows are close to a switchboard, which is unlikely, make allowances for an extension cord. Installing the lights depends on whether you have a handy fixing point, like a curtain rod, or whether you need to hammer in a few nails from which to hang the lighting cables. While hammering in the nails, however, be sure not to damage the cords. Once that’s done, you simply join the lighting strings together and plug them in.
Things to remember
- Do not use lights that are not specifically intended for outdoor use and carefully follow the manufacturer’s instructions
- Do not plug in the lights until they are all secured to whatever location you intend them to illuminate
- If the insulation on your Christmas outdoor lights is damaged, replace it immediately. Negligence in this matter can have extremely severe consequences
- If you have to replace your outdoor Christmas lights, make sure you unplug them first
- Do not install outdoor Christmas lights on trees that are close to power lines
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