It used to be that you would buy a 10 meter cable with mini-bulbs attached and then proceed to wrap it around the Christmas tree to make it look beautiful. However as most adults remember, these lights had a tendency to stop working for no apparent reason – even while in storage! Nowadays Christmas lights use LED bulbs which are very efficient, energy saving, durable and extremely long lasting – no more rushing down to the electrical store on Christmas Eve because one of the mini-bulbs has stopped working!

Outdoor Christmas lights too, have developed significantly in the last 10 years. Browse through an online Christmas store and you’ll find all kinds of light sculptures, decorations and string lights available – you can even buy moving, audible statues to create the ultimate Christmas display.

So many people are creating outdoor Christmas light displays that in some neighborhoods people are trying to outdo each other with bigger, better and brighter displays than ever before. If you want to join in and create your own outdoor Christmas display that will attract families from all over town, here are a few things you need to consider before starting.

Will The Neighbors Mind?

Nine times out of ten your neighbors will love the Christmas display that you put up, but if you are planning anything more adventurous than a few string lights you might want to have a word with them first so they are not shocked to come home one night and see their road lit up like, well, a Christmas tree. You also need to be considerate about light pollution; your neighbors may not appreciate the 10,000 lumens of light blazing in to their bedroom at 11pm!

Neighborhood Security

It’s a sad fact of life that our neighborhoods are no longer as safe as they once were, and with some outdoor Christmas displays costing thousands of dollars, it makes a very easy target for thieves who can strike in the middle of the night, or even during the day when everyone is at work. At the very minimum you should consider chaining down the displays, otherwise try and locate your new light sculpture high up on your roof top.

Budgeting

Outdoor Christmas lights are not cheap, in fact you can blow $1,000 in a store and come out with 3 or 4 light displays. Outdoor string lights are also not cheap, starting at around $50. With so many other expenses around Christmas time, the additional burden of trying to keep up with what the neighbors are doing might not be worth it. Another factor is the amount of electricity the lights can burn through – costing up to $100 just for 30 days!

Health & Safety During Installation

If your display requires you to climb up a ladder (as most displays do) then consider asking a neighbor to hold the ladder while you go up. If you are not confident with heights then it would be best to hire a local handyman than run the risk of having a panic attack while on the roof.

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