Xmas Outdoor Lighting Installations
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Here are some of the different types of Xmas lights.
Mini Christmas lights
These use 1.5 or 2.5 volt bulbs and are inexpensive to buy and power. Xmas Mini lights are available in 50, 100, 150 and 200 light strings. Be ware that constant maintenance is needed for this type of light..
Christmas Rope lights
Rope lights are ideal for trimming windows, doors and railings or outlining an entire building.
Xmas rope lights are small lights enclosed within a rope of transparent plastic tubing that is generally sold by the yard or metre – a 10 yard or metre roll is the most popular size.
You can choose between so-called steady ropes or chasing ropes. With a steady rope the lights glow at a constant rate, whereas chasing ropes have lights that ‘chase’ each other along the rope and lights that blink to pre-set patterns.
Xmas Icicle lights
Icicle lights are meant to replicate the look of icicles hanging from the eaves or troughs. These lights come in a strand of 100 or 150 lights, usually in clear, white or pale blue bulbs. Most Christmas icicle lights have blinking capabilities to create the illusion that the icicles are melting.
You can hang these lights from a variety of places - the eaves, trough gutters, railings or fences.
Xmas Spotlights
Spotlights are normally used to highlight decorations or features such as trees, shrubs and parts of your house and can provide interesting contrast to other decorations and the night landscape. Spotlights can be white or colored - the most popular colours are green, red and blue. Strategically placed spotlights.
Energy Efficient LED Christmas Lights
LED lights are more efficient in most application. With Xmas lighting, you can save 60 to 80% of the electricity consumption of traditional incandescent lights. This reduction in energy consumption generates useful cost savings.
In addition LEDs have a long bulb life and can last up to 50,000 hours (which means they should last longer than you will!). Another benefit is that if one of the bulbs on an LED string burns out, the others will remain lit.
Other Decorations
Illuminated Santas and reindeer are also popular for lawns, or around the front porch.
Installation Options
You can choose to pay an installer to handle the task chore of setting up and hanging the lights on your house and around the garden. You can have other decorations installed, such as icicles that hang from gutters or eaves.
Installation Costs
Costs items to include in your budget are:
- buying or renting the lights,
- installing and removing them,
- maintenance — replacing bulbs or strands of lights that burn out
Factors that define the costs include:
- what the types of lights are used
- how much wiring is needed
- whether additional decorations are included
- if decorations are installed in hard-to-reach places in which case roofers or mechanical lifts may be needed
- using a large number of lights, so electricians have to boost your power supply
Cost for Basic Displays
A basic display would include lights for the front roof and some landscaping decked in traditional incandescent lights and would start at around $500.
Cost for Large Dislays
Large, elaborate setups can cost up to $20,000!
Costs are based on the types of lights used, how much wiring is needed and whether additional decorations are included. The bill can be pushed higher if roofers or mechanical lifts are used to put decorations in those hard-to-reach places or electricians have to boost the power supply.
Christmas Outdoor Lighting Ideas
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The tradition of lighting homes, public buildings and businesses at Christmas seems to become more popular every year.
There is a huge selection of Christmas outdoor lighting available. Most people seem to choose a selection of Christmas theme figures that are often animated, with a background made of light strands and colorful LED rope light.
Suggestions to consider with Christmas lighting:
- Decorate the background and outline of the building with LED Rope Lights
- Select Christmas Yard Art. Popular figures include Santa, Rudolph and the Reindeer, light art in the form of local landmarks.
- Animated figures are great fun.
- Lawn Decorations of Snowmen and Reindeer are popular.
- Use Christmas LED Lights where possible for power efficiency.
- LEDs are available in Lights Strings, Rope Lights and LED Garlands come in an assortment of colors, sizes and string lengths.
Christmas Light Design Tips:
- First sketch the outside of your house, indicating its dimensions - height, width and length.
- Note the locations of any available power outlets in the sketch.
- Decide where you want the lights to go e.g. along the eaves, around windows.
- If you want lights on trees and bushes, measure the height of bushes and the height of the sections of any trees you want to light, including each tree branch.
- For trees and bushes, a good rule of thumb is to allow about 50 lights per foot of height (double this number if you’re using miniature lights).
- In the design, add an extra 25-40 feet to allow for the pitch of the roof if you are following the roofline.
- Decide what style of lights you want to use: solid, chasing or blinking? Miniature (C-7) or full-size (C-9)? Do you want white or colored lights or a mix? Rope lights usually come in lengths from 25 lights to 200 lights.
- Now you have to work out how many strings of lights you’ll need based on your design and measurements.
- At this point you may decide to scale back your design, because you have too many lights!
- Also remember you don’t want you house/premises to be too bright - you’ll lose the appeal of the best Christmas light arrangements.
Christmas Light Installation Tips:
- Test the lights before you install them (it’s a pain in the b–t if you have to take them down again).
- Get help. If you’re up high have someone hold the ladder and pass you the lights.