Time to Install Those Holiday Lights! Tips to Do It Safely

It's that time of year - time to install lights inside and outside your home. Nothing puts you and your neighbors in the holiday spirit like a vibrant and colorful display. But, this time of year also means a huge increase in home fires -- many being caused by a host of electrical fires stemming for holiday decorations. Timothy Clark, Creative Director at ConstructionDeal.com, reiterates that, "when getting into the holiday spirit, safety should always be the main priority."

Here are some tips to make sure you, your family, and your house remain safe when decorating for the holidays:

Electrical Tips

• Make sure all your outlets have no cracks. You shouldn't have to force a plug into any socket. If the socket is loose, this can cause problems from shocks or fire.
• Your outlets can handle about 15 to 20 amps - don't plug in every light string or decoration into one outlet. Mix it up and move cords to other outlets. 25 Christmas light bulbs are 1.135 amps. 50 lights are 2.270. An 18 amp outlet can handle about 380 normal (C7) lights. Add more than that and you could have a fire hazard. 300 mini lights is usually 1 amp.
• Check all your cords for frays, splits, or damage. Don't use them if they're damaged. Don't tape them up and hope for the best. And don't run extension cords under carpeting or rugs. Try not to use extension cords that are still rolled up - either use a shorter cord or extend it out completely.
• For outdoor lights, use an extension cord rated for the outdoors.
• Never remove a 3rd pin in a cord to make it fit into a 2 pin socket. That's a recipe for disaster.
• Keep lights away from electrical & gas heaters, fireplaces, candles, or other heat sources.

Hanging Your Lights

• Don't hang holiday lights on sharp hooks . Don't pound nails or hooks in through the light cords. Avoid stapling around or on the cords.
• Do not run cords through doors and windows and close them on the light cords. Crimping the cords is a fire hazard.
• Make sure the lights are unplugged BEFORE you try to replace any burned out bulbs.
• Many accidents occur when people are climbing on ladders up their roofs - make sure someone holds your ladder when you're on it. Don't climb to the top two steps. Get a taller ladder. Don't put your ladder in mud or loose dirt, and don't lean your ladder against doors or windows.
• Replace burnt out bulbs promptly. Make sure the replacements are the same wattage.
• Make sure the lights used outdoors are also rated as outdoor lights. Crazy weather arrives across the country in the month of December and you don't want indoor lights out in the elements.
• All outdoor lights need to be plugged into a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI). There are portable ones that you can buy at a hardware store, or you can have them permanently installed by an electrician.
• Make sure your holiday lights are off while you sleep or away from the house. You can use a timer so that they turn off the same time each day and night.

Good luck with your lighting displays. If you don't feel comfortable installing your lights - ConstructionDeal.com can help you find a local professional to install them. Post your lighting project for free on the ConstructionDeal.com site to be matched with quality handyman or electrician in your area.

About ConstructionDeal.com
ConstructionDeal.com helps homeowners and business owners get their projects done. Since 2004, they have developed a nationwide network of quality contractors and service professionals ready to help these project owners. People can post residential and commercial requests for free and are connected to local experts, usually within 24 to 48 hours. Construction Deal.com, a trusted member of the Better Business Bureau, is the fastest growing contractor referral service in the industry.

Source: PRWeb

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The National Christmas Tree Goes Green

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, how lovely are your … computer chips? That’s right, this year the National Christmas Tree will have lamps fitted with tiny computer chips that release multi-colored light -- called LEDs (light emitting diodes) -- the latest in energy efficient lighting. The effect will create a tree that’s brilliantly different than the traditional incandescent lights … and more than a hundred times more energy efficient.

As planning began for the 2007 tree, officials from the White House and the National Park Service asked GE to look into the possibility of adding LEDs in this year’s design. “LEDs are becoming the first choice for so many people who want long lasting, beautiful and energy efficient lighting in their homes. It’s only natural that we should have it for our holiday tree, too,” says Kathy Presciano, lighting designer for the National Tree, who works for GE Consumer & Industrial. “This year, we’ve produced a GE 26-light string that we believe will fit the bill. It should save the government over 120 watts of energy for every string of lights.”

An Experiment in Savings

Traditionally, the National Christmas Tree holds 500 strings of incandescent lights, not counting the topper. This year, in keeping with GE’s commitment to eco-friendly initiatives, the company decided a more earth-friendly design was needed, replacing those bulbs with multicolored LEDs. In addition to the tremendous energy savings, LEDs have nearly 20 times the life of a traditional, incandescent lamp, meaning these lights can be used year after year.

“We’ll have to make adjustments as we go to get the right number of strings on the tree, and the right level of brightness. But once we do, we will establish a new tradition of energy conservation for the National Tree, and a template we can use for years to come,” Presciano says.

Innovation Behind the Scenes

Planning for this year’s tree began almost as soon as last year’s tree was taken down -- a typical timeline regardless of the lighting technology. Presciano began conceptualizing this tree and putting together preliminary drawings as early as January.

That much lead-time is necessary because, once approved, the tree’s ornaments need to be fabricated. This year’s tree will feature approximately 125 red bows that are 26 inches high and nearly 20 inches wide. Fabrication of the ornaments is donated by SABIC Innovative Plastics, located in Pittsfield, Mass. SABIC used Lexan polycarbonate sheet for the ornaments because it is resistant to sun and impact, and works well in outdoor lighted sign applications. The red shiny garland, all 1,000 feet of it -- will feature red LED lights, too.

While this year’s topper will be the same 42-inch, three-dimensional star design used last year, it will be refabricated for the 2007 season using GE’s Tetra Power White LEDs. Sold primarily to industrial sign makers, this LED is 15 times brighter than the standard LED. When completed, this topper is intended to be an “heirloom” topper, which can be used year after year.

Looking to the Future

“LEDs are becoming more and more popular because they last much longer and are extremely energy efficient,” Presciano says. For instance, one 26-lamp string of traditional lights lasts 1,000 hours and burns at 125 watts. The same size string in LED lasts 20,000 hours and burns at 2.3 watts. One set of LED lights costs only ten cents of electricity to run all season, she adds.

Presciano is excited about the road ahead. “This is a time of bold new frontiers in eco-friendly lighting. We’re proud to bring those innovations to light on the National Tree.” For more information on how you can use eco-friendly lighting technology in your home, visit www.gelighting.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

Christmas Home LED Lights

TipVision host Charlie Stone and Home expert Jeff Wilson light up LED holiday lights.

Holiday Lighting Tips

As holiday decorations go up, so do your energy bills. According to the Alliance to Save Energy, your energy costs can go up as much as $120 each month during the holiday season. But, there are ways to light up for less this season.

A Green Solution for Holiday Lighting

HolidayLEDs.com, an ecommerce company which specializes in light emitting diode, or LED, holiday and Christmas lighting is promoting its product as a green and cost-effective solution to holiday lighting.

Incandescent lighting has been the standard in holiday and Christmas lighting since it replaced candles over 100 years ago. However, in the last 3 years LED holiday and Christmas lighting has become increasingly available to consumers through the internet and retail stores.

Although LED technology has been around since the seventies, until recently its use was largely limited to applications in commercial instrument display panels. Recent improvements in LED technology have made LED lighting viable in other applications such as LED Christmas lights.

LED lighting is preferable to standard incandescent lighting for several reasons:

1. Environmentally Friendly - Because LED lamps use so little energy and are longer lasting they environmentally responsible choice in Christmas or holiday lighting.
2. Energy Efficiency - LED lamps use approximately 90% less energy than standard incandescent lights.
3. Safety - LED lamps operate at approximately 1 degree Fahrenheit above room temperature and are safer than incandescent lights which are responsible for over 300 home fires each holiday season.
4. Longevity - LED lamps will last for 50,000 hours or more compared to about 2,000 for standard incandescent lamps.
5. Durability - LED lamps are more durable because they do not contain a fragile filament and are covered in hard plastic not glass like incandescent lamps.

Although LED holiday and Christmas lighting is more expensive than standard incandescent string lighting, LED lights will pay for themselves in a few seasons. A household which illuminates an average size Christmas tree with LED lights will save approximately $12 per year in electricity compared to incandescent mini lights. The savings jump to over $70 per year for those who like to use the larger C9 model lights. The cost savings can be even more significant for those Christmas lighting fanatics out there.

A 2003 report conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that the U.S. consumes about 2,220,000 KWh of electricity each year to illuminate miniature holiday lights. (*2,220,000 KWh is enough electricity to run approximately 200 homes for an entire year.) Based on these figures, the EPA report concluded that a 20% market shift to LED holiday or Christmas lights would reduce annual electricity consumption in the U.S. by 400,000KWh. These figures are especially compelling when one considers that this report only took into consideration miniature holiday lights used for a period of approximately 30 days.

HolidayLEDs’ brand of LED holiday lights are currently used on the national holiday tree in Washington, D.C., the tree at Rockefeller Center in New York City, and several other high-profile displays including over half of the state capital Christmas trees.

HolidayLEDs.com offers LED holiday and Christmas lights suitable for general home use and a professional grade suitable for larger installations. Both types can be purchased online through HolidayLEDs’ website at HolidayLEDS.com.

Source: PRWeb