The Definitive Christmas Lights Checklist & How-To Guide
Christmas will soon be here, bringing with it cold weather, crowed shopping centers, and the yearly community one-upmanship over Christmas decorations. While we can't do anything about the crowds or weather, 1000Bulbs can definitely help you out with your Christmas lights. We have the know-how and products to help you create your dream light display without putting a strain on your bank account. To make things easy for you, we've put together the following checklist and guide to help you create fantastic light setup all on your own.
Part 1 - Plan It, Locate It, and Measure It!
"Is your house on fire, Clark?" "No, Aunt Bethany, those are Christmas lights."
The very first steps to building a festive display is figuring out exactly what you want, where it needs to go, and how many lights you'll need to cover it. Out of everything else you do for your Christmas light setup, this is the most important step as it will determine everything about your light setup moving forward.
Planning is Everything
Now, it should go without saying that you need to have a basic idea of what you want. Maybe you want to keep it simple with just some regular C9 lights outlining your roof. Or maybe you are feeling more adventurous, channeling your inner Clark Griswold to dazzle (or horrify) the neighbors with a wide assortment of lights, decorations, and inflatables. Either way, this plan will be the backbone of your display.
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Christmas Tip: Contractors and professional installers start placing their Christmas light orders pretty early in the year. Placing your orders as soon as possible guarantees you will be able to find everything you need. |
Location, Location, Location!
Now you need to take the plan and decided where the lights should go. Different locations require different lights. For example, C9s are commonly used to outline roof line due to their size and visibility. As you decide on locations, be sure to adjust your plan as needed to accommodate what you need.
Measure, Then Repeat (for Good Measure)
Once you know where you need your light to go, you need to determine how many feet of lights you'll need to cover each area. Time to break out your trusty tape measure! You will need to measure every place you want to put lights. This means roof lines, fences, windows, columns, and even trees.
Measure each spot multiple time to ensure your accuracy. While measuring by hand is the tried-and-true method, digital tape measures, laser tape measures, and roof measurement apps can be helpful and make things a little easier. Also make sure to measure the distances to outlets so you know how long your extension cords need to be.
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Christmas Tip: We strongly recommend diagramming all of your measurements. Not only can you refer back to them later, but you can also add notes and notate the lights needed for each section. |
Part 2 - Choose Your Lights!
Now that you have your plan laid out and know how many feet of lights you need, it's time to start choosing the right lights. As mentioned earlier, different locations on or around your home will require different types of lights. We'll cover the most commonly used lights and where you would typically use them.
Stringers and Spools
The most common lights used for outdoor Christmas lights are stringers and spools. They are essentially long runs of wire with sockets and plugs. The bulbs are sold separately, allowing you to fully customize each string as needed. Most installation will use stringers, which come in 25, 50, and 100-foot lengths. 25-foot stringers have male and female plugs, allowing them be plugged end-to-end. 50 and 100-foot stringers, on the other hand, only have male plugs and are designed to be cut to length. Spools are longer versions of stringers without male or female plugs. They are designed to be cut to length and are best suited for instances when you need to cover a longer distance.
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Christmas Tip: Be sure to always order extras! Having extras on hand can come in handy if you find that you miss-measured an area, have a bad string that needs replacing, or if you made a mistake while cutting a string. |
Stringer and Spool Considerations
As you choose your stringers or spools, you need to consider the following:
Wire Type - Stringers and spools come with either SPT-1 or SPT-2 wire, with the only difference between the two being wire thickness. SPT-1 is sufficient in most cases were you will only be using the lights for the holiday season. The only time you will need SPT-2 is if your lights will be up your-round or if you live in an exceptionally harsh environment.
Wire Color - Wire colors can vary, but generally will be either white, green, or brown. Green is the most popular color as it can blend seamlessly into greenery. Brown is good for trees, wood, and other similar surfaces. White wire is a popular chose for wedding and event lighting, but can also blend into white trim and surfaces.
Plugs & Sockets - The wire type directly affects any plugs or sockets you need to add or replace. Any sockets and plugs must have the same SPT rating in order to properly fit and attach to the wire.
Socket Type - Spools and stringers have either candelabra E12 or intermediate E17 sockets. E12 sockets are designed to be used with C7 bulbs, and E17 sockets use C9 bulbs. We'll talk more about these bulbs in a bit.
Bulb Size - Bulb size will be determined by the socket choice, as mentioned above. Your options are C7 or C9 bulbs. C7 bulbs are the same size as traditional nightlight bulbs, and their small size make them ideal for lining windows, pathways, and other areas that don't need a larger bulb. C9 bulbs are larger and are highly visible due to their size. They are the most common bulb used for roof lines and fences.
LED or Incandescent Lights?
You have now reached the most crucial point of your holiday light display setup: do you use LED lights or incandescent lights? Incandescent Christmas lights are the traditional bulbs you grew up with. Made of glass, they deliver that classic warm glow that is associated with the holidays. LED bulbs are a far more efficient option made with durable polycarbonate. You can opt for bulbs designed to closely match the output of incandescents, or go with brighter bulbs.
Ultimately, though, your choice is going to boil down to wattage. Incandescent Christmas bulbs and strings use a lot of wattage, limiting the number you can have on one circuit. Since LEDs use a fraction of the energy, you can safely use far more lights per circuit. If you absolutely must have that traditional look and your setup will be relatively small wattage-wise, go with incandescent bulbs. But if your setup is going to be large, requiring longer runs of lights, or you just want to keep your electricity costs down, then choose LED Christmas lights.
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Christmas Tip: Avoid overloading your circuits by keeping track of the wattage for all of your strings. Not sure how to do this? Read these helpful posts: |
Custom Light Strings Using Bulk Wire
In some instances, you might need a C7 or C9 string with varying distances between sockets. Or you may need a longer lead or tail length then what might be readily available. This is where bulk wire comes into play. It's exactly what it's name implies, a large spool of either SPT-1 or SPT-2 wire. It has no sockets or plugs, allowing you to easily add them where needed. Bulk wire can also be used to create extension cords as well. These custom cords blend seamlessly away into the background, giving your display a more professional look.
Adding sockets and plugs to bulk wire is fairly simple to to. To learn how, watch this video:
Mini Lights
LED and incandescent mini string lights are versatile lights that can be used for a wide range of applications. They are the second most common lights behind C7 and C9 stringers, and are commonly used for pre-lit trees, garlands, wreaths, and wire-frame decorations. Traditional incandescent mini lights have small, pointed bulbs that are easily recognizable. LED mini lights also come in the traditional bulb shape, as well as some others that help direct their light output.
Mini string lights are great for outlining windows. doorways, stairs, and more. Installer packs of pre-rolled mini LED lights are perfect for swiftly wrapping trees, columns, and posts. Other variations of mini lights include:
Icicle Lights - Designed to mice the appearance of icicles, these lights can be hung beneath C7 and C9 stringers to adorn roofs and fences
Net Lights - Mini lights are formed into a "net" so they can be easily laid over bushes and shrubs to provide consistant illumination.
Tree Wrap Lights - Narrower than new lights, these lights wrap around tall and thin objects such as trees trunks, poles, and posts.
When choosing your mini lights, pay very close attention to the maximum number of connections for each string. The max connections is the number of strings that can be plugged end-to-end. Exceeding that number can overload and damage the strings.
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Christmas Tip: When wrapping lights, we recommend keeping the spacing closely packed to ensure a higher density of lights per square inch. |
Battery Operated Christmas Lights
Battery operated Christmas lights are the ideal solution for adding lights to areas where you might not be able to run power cords to. They are perfect for wreaths, garlands, and other greenery. You can even use them to light up signs and other decorations. Just make sure that any lights you are using outside is rated for outdoor use. Battery operated lights are available as:
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Christmas Tip: You don't have to stick to the lights we've mentioned so far. There is a wide range of Christmas lights out there to choose from. Some of the most popular options include: |
Part 3 - Ready, Set, Install!
Now that you have all of your lights, its time to start putting them up! If you've put up lights in the past, then you know how tricky it can be...especially trying to keep your lights straight. However, you don't need to worry about that anymore. We have a variety of mounting clips and stakes available that make installation a breeze.
From roof ridge clips to gutter clips, or to adhesive clips for your windows, our Christmas light clips are going to be your new best friends. They ensure your string lights stay straight without sagging or falling. For marking out pathways, driveways, and more, go with mounting stakes. Simply attach your light strings and push the stake into the ground. Their slim design and black finish won't detract from your light display.
Essential Accessories
During installation, there are various essential accessories that are either necessary or are handy to keep on hand. There items include:
Replacement bulbs - An absolute must have so you can replace bulbs as needed.
Extension cords - Extension cords ensure your lights have power, making them another must have. To learn how to find the right extension cord for your Christmas lights, read this blog post.
Extra sockets and plugs - Always keep extras on hand in case you need to replace a socket or add a plug.
Cord Protectors - Snaps over cord connections to protect them from rain and snow.
Timers - Automates your lighting. Just set your on and off times, and your good to go.
Outdoor power outlet stakes - Easy way to added additional outlets when you need them.
Additional Tips & Tricks
Here are some additional tips and tricks that will help you as you set up your outdoor Christmas lights:
Using LED Bulbs in Incandescent String Lights - This post answers the question 'Can you plug incandescent light strings together with LED mini lights?', and it is a must read.
How Many Christmas Lights for Christmas Trees? - Adding lights to tree branches? This blog posts tell you how many lights your need based on the size of tree.
Tips for Protecting Outdoor Light Strings Part 1 & Part 2 - These two posts cover how to ensure your outdoor lights are protected from the weather, power surges, and more.
Troubleshooting Christmas Lights - This handy posts helps you troubleshoot the most common issues with Christmas lights.
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Christmas Tip: Looking for even more helpful tips, tricks, and how-tos? All of our Christmas-related posts have been collected in one convenient place - The Ultimate Christmas Light & Decor Guide. You also find our full playlist of Christmas videos on our YouTube channel. |
Expert Help Just a Call Away
And there you have it...our complete checklist and how-to guide for setting up a stunning and memorable outdoor Christmas light display. If at any point you have questions or need help finding the right Christmas lights and accessories, give us a call at 1-800-624-4488. Our US-based lighting experts are ready to help and walk you through the entire process. Happy decorating!
