The great christmas light thread
- Thread starter SLYDIT
- Start date
MushCreek
Well-known member
If my wife sees this, I'm a dead man. We have a brand new house, so whatever I do, I have to start from scratch. I did include switched outlets under the eaves, so at least I don't have to have miles of extension cords. Our house can't be seen from the road, so I explained to my wife that there's no reason to put them up. Well, THAT didn't fly, so I guess I need to come up with something. Not til after Thanksgiving, though.
woodzy
Well-known member
This the first year at the new house. My wife's second favorite is Christmas just over Halloween. I'm pretty **** about putting holes in the new house. This year the gutters are free, but next year, there will be professional gutter screens so there will be no hooking over the gutter.
I did put in 5 duplex outlets all wired to a separate timer in the house (in red boxes below). I'm looking for ideas to attaching something to the soffit trim or under fascia trim (I really don't want to add holes).
Looking for ideas...
I did find theses on amazon so if I must add something it must be stainless steel.
http://www.amazon.com/Hangman-Q-Hanger-Release-Hanger-Christmas/dp/B002NEFFH4
I did put in 5 duplex outlets all wired to a separate timer in the house (in red boxes below). I'm looking for ideas to attaching something to the soffit trim or under fascia trim (I really don't want to add holes).
Looking for ideas...
I did find theses on amazon so if I must add something it must be stainless steel.
http://www.amazon.com/Hangman-Q-Hanger-Release-Hanger-Christmas/dp/B002NEFFH4
dclassical
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2008
- Messages
- 1,130
I would like to use a Raspberry Pi and program it to control various lights. Would like is the key word as I think I will run out of time before I can get to it. Otherwise we just put some net lights in the trees, some lights to line the driveway and sidewalk, an inflatable or two that we have had for years.
LS6 Tommy
Well-known member
Muliti colored C9s and white icycle lights on the gutters. Lit candy canes up the sidewalk and along the front of the house. 10 multi colored mini spiral trees each side of the sidewalk. 4 tomato baskets made into Christmas trees, each with 100 white and 100 multicolored lights. Most are LED. I also just added two of the "As seen on TV" Star Shower red/green starfield lasers this year. All are plugged into the good ol' GE Sights and Sounds of Christmas box I got a long time ago at Costco for $9.99 after the season ended. For the price, you can't beat what we've got. My friend had the same GE box. He got addicted and now does the whole computer controlled thingy. Has a separate 100A service for it. He starts setting up right after Halloween. Screw that!
My hooks are permanent, too. They're brass cup hooks. I like them because the little flange at the bottom snugs up against the flashing under the gutters and keeps things weather tight. They're nowhere as HD as the ones woodzy has, but they're also only $.18 each.
Griswold Christmas? Maybe not. Neighbors love the music & lights. They ask every year if I'm going to do it.
This pic is from last year before I got the lasers.
You can't see the little spiral trees off to the right. The gutter lights extend around the right to the breezeway and garage.
Tommy
My hooks are permanent, too. They're brass cup hooks. I like them because the little flange at the bottom snugs up against the flashing under the gutters and keeps things weather tight. They're nowhere as HD as the ones woodzy has, but they're also only $.18 each.
Griswold Christmas? Maybe not. Neighbors love the music & lights. They ask every year if I'm going to do it.
This pic is from last year before I got the lasers.
You can't see the little spiral trees off to the right. The gutter lights extend around the right to the breezeway and garage.
Tommy
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Alan Douglas
Well-known member
I generally use cable ties plus these
Install Bay CTM34 Adhesive Backed Cable Tie Mount
I have hardy board eaves so any penetrating hanger isn't going to happen
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Falcon67
Well-known member
Pretty much the same layout every year.
What I miss is having the medium sized Afgan Pine to decorate that was at the old house:
I do something every year, always have - always will. When I was growing up, we had just a tiny porch but my dad always put up a string of C9 multi to outline the porch. But - when he put up the big Ham antenna, he built a frame that had a yellow star and a white cross of C7 bulbs overlaid. A clock motor and micro switches changed the display about every minute. Once hoisted up about 50' on the antenna frame, you could see it half way across Fort Worth.
>extra points for arduino/raspberry pi/automated systems.
Eh, no Trans-Siberian Orchestra stuff here
What I miss is having the medium sized Afgan Pine to decorate that was at the old house:
I do something every year, always have - always will. When I was growing up, we had just a tiny porch but my dad always put up a string of C9 multi to outline the porch. But - when he put up the big Ham antenna, he built a frame that had a yellow star and a white cross of C7 bulbs overlaid. A clock motor and micro switches changed the display about every minute. Once hoisted up about 50' on the antenna frame, you could see it half way across Fort Worth.
>extra points for arduino/raspberry pi/automated systems.
Eh, no Trans-Siberian Orchestra stuff here
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theoldwizard1
Well-known member
Aren't those mounts "permanent" ? Do you hide them so they are not visible all year ?
ambenz
Well-known member
No way I am putting up decorations this year...ba humbug!
Well we really don't have kid or and young adults in the house or even any family near, so I really don't put much up. I do whatever the wife needs or desires.
The putting up isn't the bad part, it taking it down in 20F temps and in the snow...in the dark, is the problem!
Well we really don't have kid or and young adults in the house or even any family near, so I really don't put much up. I do whatever the wife needs or desires.
The putting up isn't the bad part, it taking it down in 20F temps and in the snow...in the dark, is the problem!
Strouty
Well-known member
Falcon67
Well-known member
Behind the facia board under the eve is a strip of 1x2 pine painted to match. It runs where ever I want to hang the eve lights. They are stapled up with 5/16" staples. When it's time to come down, I just gently pull the string and it pops right off the board zip-zip-zip. I can strip the house and bushes of lights in less than an hour.
pgilmore7
Well-known member
Anyone know of any good light hanging clips to keep the light strands straight. I don't have gutters on the old house and I hate when the strands droop in between the hanging points. Ive tried some of the ones from Home Depot but they don't seem to be that secure and come loose. Maybe it operator error but they only attach by sliding between the shingles and facia.
the problem i'm having is that the older traditional led lights were 12 volt DC but now they seem to be 24 and 36 volt DCwhich makes it hard to integrate with an automation system without using all the power packs and switching the mains power outlets... should have bought up all the 12v stuff that was on sale last year. grrrrrr
that flagpole would make a great christmas tree. you could string down about 12-16 lines down from the top green LED strips/rope lights, then go around in a circle with green/ multicolours to make a teepee/
tree. dont forget the big star on top. 
like this..
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bczygan
Well-known member
This year I threw away all our Christmas, Easter, Halloween and other holiday decorations, lights and etc. And we had piles of the stuff. Julie just bought another set of lights. They're going out this week.
I'm done with that stuff forever. Too much work. Not feeling it. Life is too short.
Bill
I'm done with that stuff forever. Too much work. Not feeling it. Life is too short.
Bill
99LeCouch
Well-known member
We outlined the front of our house with icicle lights. It took a bit of work to figure out where to put them. They won't be turned on until December, though.
Shootingblanks
Well-known member
Turn on and off via remote control.
gregtwojeeps
Well-known member
I used to do the ladder climbing and outside decorating...not anymore. The Ms. sets up the 6' tree and decorates it, all I do is the FP mantle and call it good.
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They aren't really all that permanent. You can take them down quickly with a putty knife. That said I leave them. They are 20' off the ground and pretty much same color as my soffits. You have to know they are there to see them.
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ishiboo
Well-known member
that flagpole would make a great christmas tree. you could string down about 12-16 lines down from the top green LED strips/rope lights, then go around in a circle with green/ multicolours to make a teepee/
like this..
Wow. I have a 35' light pole out front that would be PERFECT for. Wonder how many sets I would need. If I did a 14' diameter at the base, that would give me about 43 sets at 1 per foot. eek!
woodzy
Well-known member
that flagpole would make a great christmas tree. you could string down about 12-16 lines down from the top green LED strips/rope lights, then go around in a circle with green/ multicolours to make a teepee/
like this..
I was thinking that but I would need to make something that would attach to the rope and I can hoist up. No way of getting a star on the top. Maybe next years project. I did end up using the self cable tie pad from 3M. Hopefully I won't come home and find all the lights in the dirt.
