Christmas Lights

[Dan T.]

Just wrapped up too many hours getting the house ready for Christmas. I lost a lot of time b/c of light strands not working. I have a theory on what most folks o this forum would do so here's my question to you:

When you come across a light strand that isn't working, do you toss it it the trash or do you firs troubleshoot and try to fix it? Perhaps with one of those Light Keeper tools.

 

[mushdogs]

Just wrapped up too many hours getting the house ready for Christmas. I lost a lot of time b/c of light strands not working. I have a theory on what most folks o this forum would do so here's my question to you:

When you come across a light strand that isn't working, do you toss it it the trash or do you firs troubleshoot and try to fix it? Perhaps with one of those Light Keeper tools.

I troubleshoot. But I am a cheap bastard. It’s not like they’re that expensive to replace.

 

[JEEPCJTJ]

What I do varies. If I have repeated problems, in the trash they go.

Last night I spent a good hour hating modern light strings in general because I wasn't going to get away with tossing this one out.

I had to check every bulb in a 16 light string to get the star on the top of our tree working again. The Light Keeper Pro did nothing. It probably took 10 minutes just to get the strand out of the star, a good half hour to check every pc of wire and each bulb for continuity with my multimeter, and another 20+ minutes getting it all back together after finding 4 bulbs with no continuity what so ever and replacing them.

The whole time I was thinking about the good old days, sometime just before I was born, when they came out with the C7 and C9 bulbs that allowed all the other bulbs to stay lit when one burned out.

Of course I was out shopping today and found some real C7 Replacement Bulbs beside something called C7 and C9 Replacement LEDs, whatever the heck those really are.

 

[Dan T.]

What I do varies. If I have repeated problems, in the trash they go.

Last night I spent a good hour hating modern light strings in general because I wasn't going to get away with tossing this one out.

I had to check every bulb in a 16 light string to get the star on the top of our tree working again. The Light Keeper Pro did nothing. It probably took 10 minutes just to get the strand out of the star, a good half hour to check every pc of wire and each bulb for continuity with my multimeter, and another 20+ minutes getting it all back together after finding 4 bulbs with no continuity what so ever and replacing them.

The whole time I was thinking about the good old days, sometime just before I was born, when they came out with the C7 and C9 bulbs that allowed all the other bulbs to stay lit when one burned out.

Of course I was out shopping today and found some real C7 Replacement Bulbs beside something called C7 and C9 Replacement LEDs, whatever the heck those really are.

View attachment 127412

we have a few C9 strands we use on the deck. old school glass/ceramic and I keep breaking them but they're cool. I didn't know there were LED replacements. I'll need to check that out.

I used the Light Keeper Pro today and after many years, it was the first time it worked out for me. Got at least 7-8 strands back working.... for now

 

[tworley]

I try to troubleshoot. We have a Christmas tree with lights built in and they all stopped working last year. I tried everything I could to get them working again but I believe there is a short in the beginning strand somewhere. Our plan is to get a new tree this year as that one is on its last leg anyway

 

[F Troop]

Trash it. By the time I troubleshoot it and fix it, I can have a new set up. I always have a spare set on hand.

 

[Dan T.]

I try to troubleshoot. We have a Christmas tree with lights built in and they all stopped working last year. I tried everything I could to get them working again but I believe there is a short in the beginning strand somewhere. Our plan is to get a new tree this year as that one is on its last leg anyway

Hard to let em go when you can just keep stringing no new lights.

 

[Dan T.]

Trash it. By the time I troubleshoot it and fix it, I can have a new set up. I always have a spare set on hand.

Every year I have a few more strands that are helpless.

 

[AustinJeepTJ]

I troubleshoot, or prepare, really. Thanksgiving week, I pull all the lights out of the bin and test them. If a string is out, I will put the tunes on in the garage and go through each bulb. It's therapy. It takes as long as it takes. By the time Friday rolls up, everything is ready to go.

 

[Dan T.]

I troubleshoot, or prepare, really. Thanksgiving week, I pull all the lights out of the bin and test them. If a string is out, I will put the tunes on in the garage and go through each bulb. It's therapy. It takes as long as it takes. By the time Friday rolls up, everything is ready to go.

I had to troubleshoot a few exterior light strands in the front yard this past Saturday. Pulled out the ole camping chair and went at it. Had a few of my neighbors walk by looking at me like I was a fool for investing the time. Same type of people who scoff at me for doing my own auto maintenance in the driveway. They would never understand!

 

[qslim]

I got a flyer a couple of weeks ago in the mail for a service that strings your lights and then takes them down and stores them until the next year. We got almost a foot of snow before Thanksgiving and more on the way this weekend.

They're coming out tomorrow to give an estimate.

 

[InOmaha]

I had a section of one of those icicle looking strands go out last year and I tried everything I could to troubleshoot it. Eventually, I gave up and bought a replacement. I hung it up on the house and within a day a section of the new strand had gone. It was cold and I didn't feel like pulling it down, repackaging it, returning it, only to put up another new strand with my ladder and have it too give out. So I cut the section out and spliced in a section from the old light strand. Then tossed everything that didn't work.

Merry f'n ho-ho.

 

[Dan T.]

I got a flyer a couple of weeks ago in the mail for a service that strings your lights and then takes them down and stores them until the next year. We got almost a foot of snow before Thanksgiving and more on the way this weekend.

They're coming out tomorrow to give an estimate.

Snow. Send some to Atlanta please!

 

[cliffish]

I got a flyer a couple of weeks ago in the mail for a service that strings your lights and then takes them down and stores them until the next year. We got almost a foot of snow before Thanksgiving and more on the way this weekend.

They're coming out tomorrow to give an estimate.

let us know the price, my neighbor did it for a few years, from what I remember it was around $2200 put up and $1100 take down.

 

[Tomcat]

Because of the wood stove, a natural Christmas tree would always dry out and drop a ton of needles even though we keep the base full of water, and were gone most of the time for the holiday's anyway. So this is our go to holiday decoration, easy to put up and take down. Merry Christmas to all.

 

[JMT]

Christmas lights. What a fiasco. Things drive me nuts. Climbing up on the roof endangering my life. I had my son wrap a rope around my leg this year as I daringly crawled to the edge of a 20 foot drop. Then there’s the annual strands That decided in a box in the attic to give up the ghost, partially. I tried for years to fix them. So frustrating. Might as well give up a week of your life at the end of November. Now I just buy more. I must have 20 timers, 15 extension cords and a mixture of incandescent and led and c9 lights that are either icicle, net, string or some other configuration. Some clear, some warm white. I want a break from all this nonsense.

 

[Baltimoreed]

Years ago I started upgrading to the better strands of tree lights that don’t all die when one bulb dies. A whole lot simpler. I used to hang icicle lights on the eaves as I really like the look but after raising the house it’s too much hassle now. HO-HO-HO. Doh!

 

[qslim]

let us know the price, my neighbor did it for a few years, from what I remember it was around $2200 put up and $1100 take down.

Yeah well they didn't show. $2200???!?!?!?! I'll cancel Christmas entirely before I pay that to string lights on my cookie-cutter suburban home, good Lord.

 

[cliffish]

Yeah well they didn't show. $2200???!?!?!?! I'll cancel Christmas entirely before I pay that to string lights on my cookie-cutter suburban home, good Lord.

yeah and they were all white, they ran along the driveway, walkways every window and followed the roof line top and bottom, across. The best part is his wife kept running them over while backing out of the driveway....that was another bill...lol. It is amazing to me how many people around me do this.

 

[qslim]

yeah and they were all white, they ran along the driveway, walkways every window and followed the roof line top and bottom, across. The best part is his wife kept running them over while backing out of the driveway....that was another bill...lol. It is amazing to me how many people around me do this.

Yeah I'm not into all that. Just string along the gutters, do the shrubs and a tree.