Outdoor Christmas lights can make your house stand out above the rest during the holidays. A well-lit home can bring you or your family joy, and light up the streets for neighbors to see. That being said, there are several factors that go into installing Christmas lights. Here are 5 tips for installing them outside of your home.
Miniature Bulbs Go a Long Way
Miniature lightbulbs create a pleasing aesthetic for outdoor lighting. The good news is that they cost less and don’t use as much power as traditional outdoor string lighting.
The other benefit of mini bulbs is that they have a shunt inside that keeps the string of lights lit even when the bulb filament is out. All you have to do is replace the burnt-out bulb quickly.
While the shunt is a good option, if left on for too long, the lifetime of the bulbs will be reduced. Sometimes you do get what you pay for, but many people enjoy miniature bulbs as an option.
Choose Animated or Shimmer Spheres
Animated lighting is a popular type of lighting for Christmas. It works well for reindeer and angel displays and outlines various scenes. Mini lights are often used in this context as well.
Shimmer spheres work well for shapes such as snowballs, or stars. This type of lighting contains lights of all sizes. For added effect, find shimmer spheres that twinkle.
Many of these lights can line your window to add some festivity to your home. You can use red and green holiday lights, or go with the classic white holiday lights. To best hang lights on your window, determine which lights will function best. Then, follow all the proper precautions to put up your lights so you can show off a beautiful window display.
Make Sure Your Windows are Functioning
Before you put lights on a beautiful window display, you’ll want to make sure that your windows at functioning well. Casement windows make particularly lovely displays for holiday lighting, but they need to be set up and installed properly. For everything you need to know about casement windows, read this informative guide and entrust the help of a professional local windows company to ensure that your windows are functioning correctly. You’ll want a local window company to fix the issue before the snow starts to fall.
Measure Before You Buy
Ensure that you don’t purchase an excessive amount of Christmas lights by calculating the number of feet required beforehand. And, it’s crucial that you account for all the spots that will be lit up including winding areas such as the front porch columns by measuring with a string. Lastly, don’t forget to measure the distance to your closest outdoor grounded outlet so that you can plan effectively.
Determine the Right Outlet
When it comes to the power outlet itself, the power should come from a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) outlet. The reason this type of outlet is important to use is that it will shut the circuit down in case of an overcurrent.
If you don’t have one of these outlets, you can hire a professional electrician who will install one outdoors. That way, you won’t have to worry when the next holiday season comes, and you want to decorate. Alternatively, you can purchase a portable unit from a home store.
Putting up outdoor Christmas lights can get you into the holiday spirit and be a wonderful tradition for you and your family. Be sure to take all the necessary safety tips and choose a display that reflects your family’s personal style.
