Holiday Lighting Safety
Holiday lighting is a fun, festive way to celebrate the holiday season. Looking at light while driving around your neighborhood give everyone a ward sense that its that time of year again, or they forgot to take them down from the year prior.
If you hang lights on your home, inside or out here are some tips to help keep you and your property safe.
- Make sure the you only use lights outdoors that are rated for outdoor use. Only use UL approved lights.
- Make sure outdoor receptacles are protected by GFCI ( Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter).
- Make sure you have smoke detectors in your home and they are working, as well as fire extinguishers.
- Examine your light for cut wires or any nicks.
- Don’t overload the circuit which the lights are on. Read the label on the box of lights for total wattage.
- Only strand three set of lights together
- Make sure the cords you use for outside are rated for outside use.
- Use plastic hook for outside so they do not rust over time and cause a problem.
- Make sure all cords are hidden or out of walkways so there is not tripping hazards.
- have a wonderful holiday!!
Tips On Hanging Lights
- Make a plan before you start, measure the location where strings lights will go.
- To avoid those knots of lights, at the end of the years wrap your lights around an old coffee can or cylinder before putting away.
- Place the first bulb from the male end of a strand on the corner of your eave that;s closest to an outlet.
- When lighting trees use a calculation for every 1.5 ft of tree or bush 100 lights will be needed.
- Make sure you have all the same type or brand of lights. LED and incandescent bulb may all be white but LED have a blue tint.
- To avoid going out and turning the lights off put an outdoor time or a dusk to dawn on the main line.
- Tape cord together with electrical tape to avoid moisture getting into the circuit and blowing a fuse.
- To win over the neighbors sync all your lights to a motion player to make them move