If you’re like many people, you look forward to the magical glow that holiday lights bring to your neighborhood each year. However, while holiday lights add charm and cheer to the picture, they also come with potential safety risks, particularly if not handled correctly. Faulty installation and other careless practices can lead to electrical hazards such as fires. The following 10 holiday lighting tips are designed to help you and your family enjoy being part of your neighborhood’s seasonal display while remaining safe.

Inspect Your Lights Before Use

Whether you’re about to string up holiday lights that you’ve used during previous seasons or opening a brand new package, give them a thorough inspection. New lights may have gotten broken in transit or have manufacturing defects. Check your old lights for frayed wires, broken bulbs, and damaged sockets.

What You Should Do

After testing each light strand to ensure that each bulb is in proper working order, replace any damaged bulbs immediately. Keep in mind that by catching issues early, you can minimize potential safety hazards.

Choose the Right Lights for Your Setting

Not all holiday lights are created equal. Lights are rated for indoor or outdoor use, and using the wrong type can pose serious risks. Outdoor lights are built with extra installation and other features designed to ensure that they can withstand winter weather.

When used outdoors, indoor holiday lights can short-circuit or overheat when exposed to rain, snow, and humidity. This increases the possibility of fires or electric shocks. Additionally, indoor plugs aren’t as durable as their outdoor counterparts.

How to Stay Safe

Use UL-certified or ETL-listed lights that meet safety standards, and make sure to double-check the label to confirm whether the lights are intended for indoor or outdoor use.

Avoid Overloading Electrical Circuits

Although it’s tempting to create a spectacular display using dozens of light strands and other electrical decor, you need to avoid overloading your home’s circuits. Putting too much strain on outlets may lead to overheating and fires. Holiday lights, particularly older ones, may draw more power than homeowners realize.

Tips to Prevent Overloads

Power strips with surge protectors provide a safe way to distribute electrical loads. Be mindful of manufacturer instructions on the number of light strands that you can safely connect. Those running multiple lights should use different outlets on different circuits if possible. When in doubt about your household wiring’s capacity for large displays, it’s best to err on the side of caution and consult with a professional electrical contractor.

Use Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) Outlets Outdoors

Designed to immediately cut off power in the event of a short or surge, GFCI outlets are an essential component of safe outdoor lighting. These outlets are particularly valuable in wet conditions because they guard against electric shocks.

What You Should Do

If your home doesn’t have GFCI outlets, check into using a portable GFCI adapter.

Secure Lights Properly

Haphazardly hanging lights is a leading cause of holiday-related accidents or damage. Additionally, staples or nails used to hang lights can pierce electrical wiring, creating fire hazards and shock risks, so consider using fasteners designed specifically for holiday lights.

Safer Hanging Techniques

Avoid hanging lights in exposed areas where they could be damaged by snow, heavy rainfall, or wind. Keep cords off the ground to prevent tripping hazards.

Be Cautious with Extension Cords

Although extension cords can be a lifesaver when you need to reach distant outlets, using them correctly may result in household fires or electric shock. Be careful not to overload the cords themselves, and never use indoor cords outside.

Extension Cord Safety Tips

Avoid connecting multiple cords together and running them under rugs or doors. Extension cords should be inspected before each use to minimize the chances of unexpected surprises.

Keep Lights Away from Flammable Materials

Your holiday lighting should never come into contact with flammable items such as curtains, paper decorations, or trees. Keep in mind that all it takes to ignite a fire is a single overheated bulb or frayed wire, and this can occur in a matter of a few short seconds.

How to Stay Fire-Free

Besides keeping your holiday lighting displays at a safe distance from flammable objects, be sure to keep your holiday tree well-watered to minimize fire risk. LED lights stay cooler than their traditional incandescent counterparts, so use those if possible.

Turn Off Lights When Unattended

Not only is leaving holiday lights on overnight or when you’re away wasteful, but it also presents a safety hazard. Electrical malfunctions can occur at any time, and fire risks are much higher when there’s no immediately available human oversight.

What to Do

Set timers to automatically turn your lights off at specific times, and make it a habit to turn off all lights before leaving the house.

Be Mindful of the Weather

Winter weather in Massachusetts is typically unpredictable, so keep an eye on conditions that could combine with outdoor holiday lighting to create potential safety issues. Wet conditions can lead to short circuits or shocks, and heavy snowfall can cause outdoor displays to fall down, damaging lights or cords. Ice accumulation adds extra weight to holiday lighting displays, and strong winds may loosen light strands or blow them into flammable materials.

How to Prepare for Weather Challenges

Be alert to upcoming weather events and turn holiday lighting off when winds begin to pick up or heavy precipitation starts to fall. Protecting outdoor connections with waterproof covers is recommended, and be sure to regularly inspect lights and cords for signs of damage caused by wind or ice. At the end of the season, remove your lights promptly at the end of the season, pack them properly, and store them in a location where they won’t be vulnerable to damage.

Don’t Climb Recklessly

If you’ll be hanging lights on rooftops or tall trees, you’ll undoubtedly have to use a ladder, and this comes with its own set of safety concerns. Falls from ladders are a leading cause of injuries during the holiday season, so take extra care when working on a ladder and work with a helper who can stabilize the ladder and keep you safe.

Ladder Safety Tips

Inspect your ladder prior to use to make certain that there are no loose rungs or other safety issues. Ladders should always be placed on level ground. Have another person hold it steady for you, avoid overreaching, and wear shoes with slip-resistant soles. Choose a nice, dry day to do your outdoor decorating, and don’t try to hurry through it.

Contact Tingley Home Services for More Electrical Safety Tips

Tingley Home Services has been providing quality home services to residents of Milford and surrounding Massachusetts communities since 2003. Besides being experts in all aspects of home electrical systems, we also offer a full range of HVAC services.

Contact us today to learn more about why Milford residents rely on us for their electrical installation and HVAC needs.

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