December 2, 2016

6 Tips to Take the Stress Out of Outdoor Christmas Lights

Let’s set the scene, it is middle of December and your house is not as festive as your neighbors. So at 6 pm, it's dark, you start to hang your lights. Once you have the lights strung you go to plug them in and you realize that the female end is hanging at the outlet, your lights do not even work, or they do not even reach the outlet. How many times has this happened to you? Probably more than you would like to admit.  Here are some tips that could help prevent this from happening.

  1. Hang your lights earlier in the month when it is hopefully warmer.
  2. Start your hanging on the weekend when there is daylight and no rush.
  3. Plug the string into the outlet before you hang them to see if they work. If they do not light up don’t trash them right away, check each bulb for a loose connection or burnt bulb. This will save you money.  It would be best if you do this prior to hanging, such as the day or week before. This way you will know if you need more strings before you start.
  4. Make sure you have enough strings to complete what you have planned.
  5. To prevent the lights not reaching the outlet start the string plugged in until you have at least a couple feet hung.
  6. Another option to make the lights reach is by the use of extension cords.

Once you have your lights all hung the next hurdle is whether to have a timer or not. The benefits of a timer are that your lights are not on all day when they cannot be seen, they can be set to turn on when it gets dark even when you are not home, and they can be turned off after you go to sleep to save on energy. 

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