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Top 13 Christmas Lights Safety Tips

For some, the holiday season starts the day after Halloween while others prefer to wait until they’ve carved into the Thanksgiving bird to decorate their home in red and green. Whether you’re an early bird or a week-of decorator, most homeowners can agree that hanging Christmas lights will be the most time-consuming task for the holidays and one of the most dangerous.

According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Christmas lights cause 40% of Christmas tree fires, and overall decorations caused more than 15,000 injuries resulting in an emergency room visit with falls being the highest at 34%, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

Knowing how to properly install and maintain your Christmas lights could be the difference between happy holidays or more than just chestnuts roasting over an open fire. Here are 13 safety tips to follow when decking the house with Christmas lights.

Tip 1: Replace Old Or Damaged Christmas Lights
Before plugging in last year’s Christmas lights, inspect their condition to make sure they’re up to par. Check for cracked or frayed cords, wires poking through the insulation and sockets without bulbs.

It might seem tedious, but damage to the cord or light bulb could cause an electric shock when plugged in, or worse, an electric fire.

Tip 2: Switch To LED Lights
If you’re in the market to purchase new Christmas lights, consider LED lights with epoxy lenses. LED lights are cool to the touch, compared to traditional Christmas lights, and use less electricity – a nice break for your electric bill.

Since most holiday fires are caused by overheated lights on a Christmas tree, switching to LED lights could prevent your tree from catching fire.

Tip 3: Follow The Rule Of Three
Most manufacturers agree that plugging in more than three sets of Christmas lights into a single extension cord may cause problems with overheating. However, it depends on both the strand’s wattage and the maximum watt capacity of the plug.

If you’re unsure of how to check the wattage of your home, you can use a power strip with a built-in circuit breaker instead of your wall outlet. Make sure you cross-reference the wattage of your Christmas lights to the amount of your power strip before you plug it in.

Tip 4: Look For Christmas Lights With A UL Safety Certification
Some Christmas lights will include a UL Safety Certification, meaning that the lights have been designed and manufactured to meet industry specifications for safety from Underwriters Laboratories (UL), an independent product safety certification origination.

Lights that have these certifications will be safer to use in your home, compared to lights that don’t have this certification. سلوتس اون لاين If your current lights don’t have the UL Safety Certification, you might want to invest in ones that do, especially if your lights are older than a few years.

Tip: 5 Keep Your Christmas Tree Hydrated
Other than overheated Christmas lights, fires are also caused by dry Christmas trees. A dry tree will be more flammable compared to one that’s been properly watered. If you prefer a real Christmas tree, make sure you check the water every day to prevent the tree from drying out.

However, if you’re not too attached to a real Christmas tree, it’s actually safer to purchase an artificial Christmas tree made from fire-resistant materials.

Tip 6: Use Outdoor And Indoor Lights, Respectively
Christmas lights are labeled by their use, so you’ll notice a disclaimer that reads “for indoor use only” or “for indoor and outdoor use.” Make sure you read this carefully as indoor-only Christmas lights cannot be used for the outdoors.

Indoor-only lights aren’t insulated like outdoor lights and won’t work with moisture from the outdoors. In fact, if indoor lights are exposed to water, snow or any other outdoor element, they could possibly become hazardous.

Tip 7: Use Ladders Appropriately
Since falls are the highest emergency room-related injury during the holidays, it’s important to know how to safely use a ladder when hanging Christmas lights off the roof of your home or in any other space that would require a ladder.

Have a spotter with you at all times to hold the ladder for stability. When hanging Christmas lights, never extend your body further than parallel with the ladder to prevent tipping. Consider a wooden or fiberglass ladder when you’re working with Christmas lights to prevent an electric shock.

Tip 8: Use Christmas Light Clips Instead Of Nails Or Screws
When hanging outdoor Christmas lights on your roof, don’t use nails or screws to secure the lights as they can puncture the wires, causing the lights to malfunction, or worse, shock the person installing them.

Instead, opt for light clips found at any hardware store to secure the lights onto the house. The light clips are safer for the Christmas lights and will cause less damage to your roof, compared to nails or screws.

Tip 9: Secure All Loose Light Strands
If you need to use an extension cord or have a long strand of lights between your Christmas tree and outlet, make sure you secure all loose light strands with electrical tape to avoid tripping and falling.

If you have loose light strands outdoors, secure them with ground staples found at any hardware store. Simply place the staple around the light and push as far as you can into the grass or other soft surfaces to secure the cord.

Tip 10: Don’t Run Christmas Lights Through Windows Or Doors
If you don’t have access to an outdoor outlet, you may find it challenging to light up your home this holiday season. Remember that you can’t run Christmas lights or extension cords through windows or doors.

When closed on the light strand, windows and doors can cause wires to break or become frayed from constant pressure, making them a safety hazard for shocks or electric fires.

Tip 11: Use A GFCI Outlet For Outdoor Lights
There’s a specific outlet used for outdoor Christmas lights called a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) outlet. It prevents electric shock from electrical systems that could be exposed to wet conditions, like rain or snow, acting as a circuit breaker.

This is especially helpful if your outlet is outdoors. Make sure you protect yourself and your home from electric shorts by purchasing a GFCI outlet. You might need to hire a licensed electrician to install this outlet or you can install it yourself. لعب القمار على الانترنت

Tip 12: Don’t Forget To Turn Off The Lights
Christmas tree lights should not be left on for prolonged periods of time or overnight. Even LED lights can overheat, and with a combination of a dry Christmas tree, could cause a fire. Make it a habit to turn off your Christmas lights every time you leave the house or go to bed at night.

To make it easier, purchase a light timer for your Christmas tree lights and set it to a time to turn off every night and back on the next day. You can also buy a wireless control to shut off your lights through an app on your phone. Not only could this save your home from a fire, but it could also save you money in electricity bills. شرح موقع bet365

Tip 13: Be Sure To Store Lights Properly Until Next Season
When the holiday season is over, make sure you don’t slack on putting away your decorations. Check the local laws of your city for how long you can keep up your holiday decorations. Some cities will ticket homes who have their holiday decorations up past a certain date.

Store all outdoor and indoor Christmas lights in a well-sealed container to prevent water damage and rodent access.

Best Smart Light Bulbs For Alexa

The Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance A19 smart bulb was the first smart product to join Alexa’s friends list, and it’s our pick as the best smart light bulb. All current Hue models work with Alexa, allowing you to power multiple lights on and off, dim them, change a bulb’s color, and even create light groups to enable color schemes throughout the house on command. Just know that in addition to your Alexa device, you’ll also need the Hue Bridge (unless you get the Echo Plus, which includes a Zigbee radio like the Hue Bridge), a hub that can handle up to 50 Hue-ified lights. bwin شركة

Similar to the Philips Hue, the LIFX A19 bulb works with Alexa, so you can verbally power, dim, and change the colors of the lights. كازينو آنلاين LIFX doesn’t have quite as many partners or the same versatility as the Hue lineup. bet365.com However, LIFX bulbs work with Wi-Fi (versus Zigbee for the Hue series), so you don’t need a separate hub or gateway.

Those Halls Won’t Deck Themselves: Pros Help With Holiday Lights

It is that time of year again, the time for outdoor holiday lighting, and homeowners now have options besides climbing a ladder in the cold to hang decorations.  Professional lighting installers say business is brisk as the economy skates along, with homeowners willing to pay to avoid the headache of untangling strings of lights and running extension cords.

Nick Schriver, founder of Decorating Elves in Tampa, Fla., said people increasingly outsourced chores like mowing lawns and picking up dry cleaning, so hiring someone to put up Christmas lights
was an extension of that trend. “The culture is becoming more service oriented.”

Mr. Schriver said he began hanging Christmas lights as a side job while in college some 16 years ago and eventually founded his own outdoor lighting company. Decorating Elves, he said, now has 10 full-time employees and adds 50 during the holiday season. (The firm also provides year-round outdoor lighting services).

“It’s becoming bigger,” he said, adding that the company is busy enough that it has to turn down jobs during holiday crunchtime.

While Christmas décor accounts for the bulk of his seasonal business, Mr. Schriver said, he also has some demand for Hanukkah-themed displays, like large menorahs illuminated with blue and white lights.

Outdoor holiday lighting is so popular that the Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals, a trade group, gives an annual award just for that category (which Mr. Schriver’s company won in 2016 and 2017).

Safety may also be a factor behind the interest in professional installations. The Consumer Product Safety Commission last year estimated that in 2016 there were 14,700 holiday decorating-related injuries treated in emergency rooms, or an average of 240 per day during November and December. The most frequent decorating incidents were falls, the commission said, including three deaths involving falls from ladders.

Many professional companies not only hang and remove the holiday lights, but also store the decorations after the holidays.

How much does it cost to have a professional take over the decorations?

That will vary by region, the size of your house and the dazzle of the display. Basic décor, like lights that outline your roof and front door, may cost $500 or less if you own a single-story home. But if you have a larger house with lots of gables or want more eye-catching décor, the price can stretch to thousands of dollars.

At Christmas Decor, a professional holiday decorator with locations across the country and in Canada, the average cost of a display in the United States is $1,650, said Brandon Stephens, the
company’s president. Pricing tends to be higher on the coasts, he said, and lower in the nation’s interior.

“I’d say there’s a larger group of people more willing to spend on decorations,” he said. The company said its sales last year rose by 14 percent, with a similar increase expected this year.

While classic white lights remain popular, consumers have choices far beyond the traditional. Homeowners may now select tubes of glowing lights that mimic falling snowflakes, giant ornament
decorations or app-controlled light strips that blink in patterns synchronized with music.

“People are looking for that showstopper,” Mr. Stephens said. Specialty items include six-foot-tall, three-dimensional snowflakes.

Christmas Decor’s representatives take a photo of your house with a tablet, then superimpose lighting displays on the image. If the suggested display is too costly, the software can adjust the
proposed lighting until the represented results fit your budget.

While professional installations are costlier than doing it yourself, the advent of LED lighting, which is much more energy-efficient than traditional incandescent bulbs, means powering the holiday décor doesn’t have to be as wallet-draining as it once was. Some people still prefer the look of incandescent lights, but professionals say the quality of LED lighting has improved significantly in recent years.  The bulbs no longer “flicker” and are available in a range of colors.

Here are some questions and answers about professionally installed holiday lighting:

How can I manage the cost of my outdoor holiday display?

Try teaming up with other homeowners on your street for a group quote for lighting installation. “If you and your neighbors get together, you may get a lower per-house rate,” said Sarabeth Asaff, chief writer with Fixr.com, a home services site. Putting the lights on a timer will help manage your electrical costs. And as with other home improvement projects, she said, seek three bids to get a true picture of what the job should cost.

What if I prefer hanging lights myself?

You have company. The National Retail Federation expects holiday spending, including money spent on decorations, to increase by about 4 percent this year. Christmas Lights Etc., an online décor seller, offers do-it-yourself suggestions on its website, including tips for attaching lights to your gutters.

You can also look for advice on choosing lights on Wirecutter, a New York Times affiliate. The site recommends conical LED lights from Christmas Designers.com as the best for outdoor use.

Just be careful on those ladders! سر لعبة الروليت

How much will LED lighting save me on my electric bill?

Quite a bit, said Steve Rosenstock, senior manager of customer technical solutions with Edison Electric Institute, an association that represents investor-owned electric companies. العاب القمار

A string of 100 large, traditional incandescent light bulbs costs about 9 cents an hour to run, compared with half a cent an hour for a string of mini lights, the institute calculates. But a similar string of LED lights would cost just about 0.05 cents an hour to run.

7 Different Types of Outdoor String Lights

Decorate your backyard with stunning string lights that will turn the cold night into a warm and lively one. They’re magical enough to have that glowing and dreamy ambiance. Choose from the different types of string lights that will instantly set mood and illuminate your outdoor area.

If you live in Southern California, you love spending your free time outdoors. You will probably have your friends over at your house in your backyard to enjoy some cool summery nights with you, by either playing cards or having a heart-to-heart chat. Or if that’s not your idea of the perfect California night, then playing with your kids late into the evening or having a party with your family surely must be.

In order to make the most of these fun activities, it is important that the atmosphere and ambiance of your outdoor space are up to the par. But don’t worry, uplifting your garden or backyard doesn’t demand a lot of hard work. An immediate way to achieve a desirable outdoor space is by installing some stunning string lights. Yes, you read that right!

Having a source of light in your beautiful outdoor area will improve the overall mood of your entire setting and prevent mosquitoes from bugging you. The luminous space will effortlessly beautify the surrounding, making it appear prettier than ever. كازينو البحرين If you get creative with your string lights, your outdoors may have the potential to shine brighter than anyone’s in your neighborhood.

String lights come in many types, but we suggest you choose from the ones that we have listed down below. Why, you ask? Well, that’s because these are some of the most sought-after outdoor string lights that can transform your outdoor setting in the most remarkable way.

1. LED Festoon Globe Lights

These LED lights are a great addition to any garden or backyard, specifically because of their romantic and dreamy charm. They beautifully create a welcoming atmosphere when hung from a ceiling or roped around a dining or seating area. If in case, you don’t have anything to attach these lights around your seating or dining area, you can get lighting poles to suspend them from and give a luminous effect instantly.
You can find LED festoon lights in multiple brands, but our top pick for you is Brightown. Brightown’s LED string lights typically come in a globe shape that reminds us of the cosmos – the earth, moon, and other celestial objects. They are surprisingly minimalist in style and design, but at the same time, add the right amount of elegance to any outdoor area. These clear bulbs tend to give out a warm, white glow, illuminating a vast amount of space in a twinkling.

The biggest advantage that you can get by investing in these particular lights is the facility to connect at least 20 strands of them together for an intense lighting effect. Considering their excellent quality and affordable price, it won’t be wrong to regard them as a wise investment.

2. Solar LED Lantern String Lights

With lantern string lights, you get the opportunity to create a surreal lighting experience that is ethereal in every sense of the word. These lights appear like traditional paper lanterns but are made from tarpaulin – a durable cloth-like material that can last in all seasons – even in winters, too.
The best part about these string lights is that they are solar-powered, helping you to save up on your energy bills. العاب تربح مال The surprising bit is that they stay on for a long period of time, for up to 15 hours on the steady mode while they can last up to 20 hours on the twinkling mode.

To have a fun, festive mood in your garden, install lantern string lights. These lights will give a classy and stylish feel to your outdoor area.

3. Colorful String Lights


Bright, colorful string lights are generally used during festive seasons like Christmas or Easter. If any of these special occasions are around the corner, go ahead and invest in these glow-ups and welcome the joyous event in your own glamorous way. When it comes to colorful string lights, you always have the option to mix and match the color bulbs. For example, for Christmas, you can go for red, green, and blue lights and for Easter, you can choose any fun combination of colors like orange, pink, and yellow or green, purple, red, and blue – the options are plenty.

But hey, you don’t always need a holiday season to make the most of these multi-colored string lights. If you are happy, and you know it, hang colorful lights!

People who have invested in these kinds of LED lights have shared that these lights are easy to install and are quite effective at illuminating an entire backyard or garden space.

4. Vintage String Lights


Are you aiming to give a timeless, retro spin to your patio or backyard? Look no further than vintage string lights. Also known as Edison bulb lights, these string lights have managed to retain their charming antique appearance for centuries. What makes these bulbs still so perfect even after all these years, you may wonder? It is the unique way in which they produce a warm glow. The wire instilled inside the bulb produces warm golden light which is quite pleasing to the eyes.

While these lights aren’t as bright as modern lights, they still effectively create a nice, romantic ambiance. What’s better is that they are quite durable and long-lasting in nature. But if you want a longer-lighting effect, go for lighting fixtures like the LED filament bulbs. These lights have the appearance of the classic Edison bulbs but consist of LED light emitters inside them.

5. Outdoor Fairy String Lights


Do you want to turn your patio, or garden, or backyard into a magical land? If you wish to do so, then install fairy string lights. While these kinds of string lights are commonly used in bedrooms, people have begun to consider them as a wonderful outdoor lighting option. So here is your chance to make the most of them in your outdoor open space.

The beauty of fairy lights lies in the fact that they appear like an attractive bunch of fireflies if hung around trees or green bushes. In this way, the lights stand out in a way that’s unique. It’s likely that many of your guests will have never experienced such lighting before.

You can also have these lights hover over your terrace or patio. When, at night, you will light them up, they will look like a sky of beautiful stars above you. You can go with this lighting idea when planning to have a romantic dinner with your partner or are having guests over for a party.

The primary purpose of most lights is to illuminate the surrounding area. But fairy lights work beyond that. They can be installed to make your backyard appear elongated. All you have to do is install the lights in a geometric pattern (which will look like a transparent roof) at the same height as your backyard’s roof, and watch as the magic happens!

6. Twinkle Star LED String Lights


Give your outdoor space a dazzling look by opting for something other than your average globe or bulb-shaped lights. Our top pick is twinkle star LED lights! These attractive string lights give the illusion of real stars, making you want to spend the entire night under these beautiful “stars.” These lights are fancy and bright, so we recommend hanging them for special times like an outdoor wedding anniversary or a Christmas party.

Star string lights come in a mix of both small and big stars, creating perfect harmony in your outdoor space. The brands that sell these rope lights ensure that these lights are equipped with waterproofing with a rating of IP44. Another selling point is that these twinkle star lights also come in eight different modes – twinkle/flash, steady on, slow fade, flash/chasing, sequential, slog lo, and in waves and combination. Owing to their vast range of modes, you can change the style and design of your illumination, depending on the mood and occasion.

7. Jar String Lights


Out of all the outdoor string lights, jar string lights are definitely the fanciest option. Owing to the beautiful effect these lights give off, it is not surprising that they are only seen on special occasions like weddings, wedding anniversaries, birthday parties, etc. It is not common to see them hanging in your outdoor space on a casual night. These string lights are easily available on the market, but, if for some reason, you are unable to find them, the good news is that you can make them on your own, too!

You will need jars – depending on how long you want your string to be – and some fairy lights. Box some fairy lights in each jar and tie them tightly to the string. Make sure that you invest in light-weight string jars and sturdy and durable strings so that the strings are able to handle the pressure imposed by the jars. القمار Commonly, people reuse wine bottles or any other glass bottle for a fun DIY bottle/jar lights. Another way to create these lights at home is to take some empty plastic water bottles, squeeze them randomly, and attach a colorful LED light to it. Use a different LED light for each bottle to create a colorful lighting effect. While these concepts are simple and easy to execute, the final result is always awe-inspiring. These lights have their own unique beauty which is captivating and magical.

Which one of these radiant string lights will you choose to deck up your outdoor space with? Hard to pick one, right? Consider a few things before you choose with lights you want to go with. The size of your outdoor space, the event you’re celebrating, and the type of ambiance you want to create. Once you’ve set your mind on these three factors, choose any one (or more) or the beautiful string lights mentioned above. You’ll be glad you did!

2021 Global LED Plant Lighting Market Will Exceed 2 Billion US Dollars

With the impact of global climate change and urbanization on traditional agriculture, the demand for plant lighting and energy consumption continues to expand. At the same time, with the maturity and popularity of LED lighting technology, LED lighting has also begun to integrate with agricultural applications. LED plant lighting has become the LED industry. A niche market. China’s LED plant industry has formed an industrial cluster, LED plant lighting has obvious advantages, will accelerate its market penetration, while the development of plant factories and the legalization of cannabis cultivation in the United States will further stimulate market demand.

The LED plant lighting industry cluster is distributed, and the Pearl River Delta is the largest industrial cluster area. At present, there are more than 150 enterprises involved in LED plant lighting in China, mainly distributed in the Pearl River Delta region, accounting for 60%, followed by the Yangtze River Delta region, accounting for 21%, and other regions accounting for 7%. Competition among local enterprises is not fierce, and they are still in the stage of R&D cooperation or demonstration and promotion. Any company in the future may stand out.

Lighting For Bonsai Trees

LED plant lights have obvious advantages and accelerate the occupation of the plant lighting market. At present, there are four major types of plant illumination sources on the market: LED lamps, fluorescent lamps, high-pressure sodium lamps, incandescent lamps, and halogen lamps. Traditional plant lamps are low in cost and therefore still used in plant lighting; LED lamps are emerging as plant lighting lamps. It is more energy-saving and environmentally friendly and has many advantages such as high luminous efficiency, low heat generation, small volume, long life, light quantity, and adjustable light quality. It has obvious advantages in the field of plant lighting. In terms of plant growth lamps, the market share of traditional types of plant lighting fixtures will gradually shrink in the next few years. It is expected that by 2021, the global LED plant growth lamp market will account for 60%.

The development of plant factories and the legalization of cannabis cultivation in the United States have injected more power into the development of LED plant lighting. Plant factories are the future trend and have received strong support from the agricultural departments of various countries. Zhongke Sanan, Mitsubishi Chemical, BOE, Panasonic and other domestic and foreign giants have invested heavily in plant factories. After the legalization of cannabis cultivation in the United States, the demand for small plant lighting systems will grow rapidly, both of which will drive the growth of LED plant lighting. It is estimated that by 2021, the global LED plant lighting system market will exceed 2 billion US dollars, including 490 million LED lamps.

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