Christmas Lights

Christmas lights include outdoor Christmas lights, Christmas tree lights, lights for Christmas decorations and more. Colored lights, solid lights, twinkling lights, icicle lights and a number of other kinds of Christmas lights are used each year to decorate homes throughout the country.

Outdoor Christmas Lights

Christmas outdoor lights come in a wide variety of types and colors: single-colored, multicolored, twinkling, chasing and many more.
 
Outdoor Christmas lighting is a fun holiday tradition for many families. Starting the day after Thanksgiving, many families drape their roofs, windows, trees and bushes with Christmas lights.
 
To save time, many people leave up their Christmas light hangers or nails year-round to avoid the hassle of having to measure and hammer each year. Some families simply hang lights along the edge of the roof, while others go all out and create blinding displays that cover entire roofs, sides of houses, lawns, trees and plants!
 
Other families opt to create elaborate outdoor Christmas displays and place Santa figures, plastic reindeer and more in their yards, in addition to lights. Still, some people create outdoor Christmas trees complete with lights and decorations.

Rope Lights, Icicle Lights and Net Lights

These days, there are more and more Christmas lights on the market, including:
  • Christmas rope lights are easy-to-install outdoor lights. Instead of individual bulbs, rope lights are tubes of lights that are able to bend and flex. People use rope lights to frame doors and windows and also to highlight posts or trees.

    Christmas rope lights are usually made up of a solid color, though twinkling and chasing options are included in some rope lights. To get the multicolor effect of other types of Christmas lights, simply get multiple ropes of light and wind them together or display them side by side.

  • Icicle lights are generally used to create an impression of snowfall. Icicle lights are strings of lights that have smaller strings hanging down from the main strand. They are usually white and are often hung along the edges of a home's roof.

  • LED lights are a variation of Christmas lights that produce less heat and take up less energy than regular Christmas lights. LED lights typically last longer than regular Christmas lights as well. LED lights are generally more expensive than regular Christmas lights, but they make up for their extra cost in energy savings.

  • Net lights are used often to cover bushes or other small plants. Net lights are woven mesh nets of lights. You can fit these nets over objects of irregular shapes that would otherwise be difficult to light.

Christmas Lights and Safety

Follow these tips to ensure that your Christmas lights are safe and free of any hazards:
  • Check all strands (both indoor and outdoor) for any broken or burned out bulbs before hanging them. Replace any of these before using the strand.
  • Check any extension cords that will be used. The cord should be the appropriate length and should not be frayed.
  • Do not overload your system. Don't plug more than three strands of Christmas lights into any extension cord.
  • Unplug all lights used for Christmas decoration each night before going to bed.
  • Use hooks instead of staples or nails to hang lights. This is both safer and will save you time each year, as they can stay hanging year-round.
  • Use mini-lights or LED lights on anything flammable, such as bushes or small trees. These generate less heat.
  • Use only designated outdoor lights outside. Indoor lights are not safe for outdoor use.