Outdoor Holiday Lights

Imagine driving on your street seeing all the outdoor holiday lights glittering into the night. It's a mood changer, right?

Outdoor lighting makes a big impact on how people feel. It changes your mood and somehow creates an overwhelming sense of peace. It creates an atmosphere of joy and brings people together even on tougher times.

When is the best time to hang them? The best time to hang them is before the weather turns cold and wet. Let me emphasize safety here. Climbing on a ladder on a bad weather just to install your outdoor holiday lights is not a good idea.

Even if you don't actually hang your light strings well ahead of the season, you can still get much of the preparation done, such as running extension cords, installing hooks and hangers, and so forth.

If you still have outdoor holiday lights from last year, now is the time to check them to see if they still work. This way, you'll have plenty of time to make repairs and develop a shopping list for replacements and other supplies.

Hopefully, you have some type of Christmas lights winder. It will definitely make your job easier, unwinding those lights!

Most home improvement centers (Home Depot, Lowes, Amazon.com) and other retailers begin stocking Christmas lights and supplies well before Halloween, so take care of your shopping early to beat the holiday shopping frenzy.

Outdoor Solar Light - This an energy saving gadget and is probably one of the best things to buy today. It runs on LED lights which are powered by an integrated solar panel. Just make sure to place them where they can receive sunlight. The solar panel absorbs the energy from the sunlight and converts it to electricity and stores it into the rechargeable batteries. A great money saver!

Tips:

Use only lights that have been tested for safety by a recognized testing laboratory, such as UL or ETL which indicates conformance with safety standards. Use only lights that have plugs containing fuses.

Check each set of lights, new or old, for broken or cracked sockets, frayed or bare wires, or loose connections, and throw out damaged sets. Always replace burned-out bulbs promptly with the same wattage bulbs.

If using an extension cord, make sure the extension cord is rated for the intended use.

Never use electric lights on a metallic tree. The tree can become charged with electricity from faulty lights, and a person touching a branch could be electrocuted.

Before using lights outdoors, check labels to be sure they have been certified for outdoor use.

Stay away from power or feeder lines leading from utility poles into older homes.

Fasten outdoor lights securely to trees, house walls, or other firm supports to protect the lights from wind damage. Use only insulated staples to hold strings in place, not nails or tacks. Also, run strings of lights through hooks (available at hardware stores).

Turn off all holiday lights when you go to bed or leave the house. The lights could short out and start a fire.

Outdoor electric lights and decorations should be plugged into circuits protected by ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs). Portable outdoor GFCIs can be purchased where electrical supplies are sold. GFCIs can be installed permanently to household circuits by a qualified electrician.

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