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.
IKEA Solar Outdoor Lights
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Ikea now offers a range of solar lights - “Solvinden” for outdoor applications and “Sunnan” for indoor use. The range includes outdoor posts, strings of paper lanterns, accent lighting, pathway globes, a solar powered desk lamp and table lanterns.
See http://www.ikea.com/aa/en/search/?query=solar+lights
All the lights work on the same principle — they use LEDs and store solar power in replaceable and rechargeable batteries, so they’re simple to install and no external wiring is required, just place them on the ground and let them soak up the energy.
The LEDs consume 70% less energy and last up to 4 times as long as regular bulbs. They’re small and light enough that you can take them with you on camping trips, or even use them indoors.
Prices are reasonable as all Ikea products are and start at $9.95 for a single bollard light.
