Technical Questions and Answers
Technical Questions and Answers
Why are half my Christmas lights out?
More than likely, it’s a missing or unseated bulb. A few-minutes visual inspection will usually reveal the culprit.
Can you shorten a string of lights?
Short Answer: It depends on the type of Christmas lights. Smaller serially wired sets of Christmas tree lights should not be shortened. Traditional 18 AWG Christmas cord can be cut to fit.
Hanging Christmas Lights: Plan for Success
This article discusses the fundamentals of designing a Christmas Display.
How many lights can I string together?
Check the specification of your lights to see exactly how many can be run together. The UL rating is 210 watts in series.
How do you make lights twinkle?
Using a red-tipped flasher bulb can flash a light set on and off. Mix the set with steady burning strings to create twinkle.
What is the difference between C7 and C9 bulbs?
The short answer is that C7 bulbs are smaller than C9. They both screw into traditional Christmas cords but the bases of the C9’s are larger.
Latest Tech Q/A
How many light strings do I need to wrap my tree?
How many light strings do I need to wrap my tree?Trees size, light string style, personal taste, and budget will determine how many sets are required to wrap a tree. Use a cord or a sample string of lights to install a small section of lights. Use the length of the...
Can I cut Christmas Lights?
Can I cut Christmas lights?18-AWG parallel wired Christmas cords can be cut to fit, while mini lights or LED string lights that use 2 or 3-wire 20-24 AWG wiring harnesses wired in series cannot be cut to fit the installation. Watch the video or read the transcript for...
How to change a fuse on Christmas lights
https://youtu.be/CFbNiDgcnp0 Transcript This video answers the question, how do I change out a fuse in my Christmas lights? So, this is going to be our test case. This set of lights is a C6 LED light string. And this male plug has a fuse right here. And we're gonna...
What is the difference between SPT-1 and SPT-2 when it comes to Christmas lights?
https://youtu.be/PiYjOlFPL78 Transcript In this video, I'm going to answer the question, what is the difference between SPT-1 and SPT-2? The simple answer is that SPT-2 wire has insulation that is 50% bigger than SPT-1, that's it. The wire inside the insulation...
How well do salt and lights mix?
Short answer: Ocean saltwater breezes combined with sun and high temperatures are hard on Christmas lights and light strings. Installation on or near a beach will shorten their lifespan. Longer answer We love nothing better than beaches, warm evenings, and a string of...
Get This Look: Deck Out Your Ride
Summer parades are just around the corner. Twelve-volt string lights make lighting a car for a night time event quick and easy. We love how 5 strings of multicolor, and single strings of warm white and red lit up this 1960's era Cadillac for a Christmas parade. Find...
Customer Question: Can I mix incandescent and LED bulbs on my C7 and C9 stringer wire?
Here is a question I received today from John in Coloma, MI: Hello.... Yesterday, I received my shipment of various-colored traditional "old school" C9 and C7 bulbs from an on-line order that I placed on your website approx 1 week ago. I am very satisfied with my...
How many gilbert (vampire) plugs do I need to order?
Gilbert plugs are part of many of our Get This Look materials lists. They are required when custom C7/C9 cords made with 18 SPT-1 or SPT-2 lamp cord style cords are "cut to fit". Short Answer: These plugs work ONLY with a C7 or C9 traditional parallel-wired cord like...
Get This Look: Wrapping Trees with Lights
We love this customer project. Using a 100-foot C9 cord and 100 traditional incandescent (glass) bulbs. The 12-inch spacing makes this combination a good fit for larger trees. Since the lights look equally well installed along a roofline, the dual-use makes planning...
Can I run steady burning and twinkle (C7/C9) bulbs in the same cord?
Yes, you can mix C7 and C9 twinkle and steady-on bulbs in the same cord if they are standard 20 or 18 AWG socket cord. Check to confirm they are the same style as the bulbs and cords shown in this bulbs and cords category. This question is closely related to our blog...
Get This Look: Lighting a 20-foot tree
How do you light a 20-foot tree? How many lights do I use for a 20-foot tree? You'd be surprised how often we hear this question and it's not always from Mall Managers and Park and Recreations folks. People across the US have REALLY BIG trees that they want to light...
Can I run Incandescent and LED light strings together? (…in series with one another? …end to end?)
Short Answer: No Longer Answer: This is a common question. We are going to answer it in this post for light strings that are PRE-WIRED. We'll answer this question for traditional C7/C9 cords that take either LED or glass bulbs in another blog post. The types of lights...