How Long Should Christmas Lights Last?

Holiday lights, like a lot of things in your home, require maintenance and regular replacement. Do you know the life span of your lights? Incandescent bulbs should be replaced every 4-6 years. LED lights last a bit longer, for 7-10 years.

How long do Christmas light strings last?

LED strings will generally last for 35,000 to 50,000 hours, or six years of continuous use, before they diminish to 70 percent of their original output. Blast them all night if you need. They’ll stand the test of time — at least, for a while.

How do I know when to replace my Christmas lights?

Simply bring the light tester close to each bulb. The tester’s indicator will light up when it’s near a functioning bulb. If you have a non-contact voltage detector, bring the detector close to the wire section between each bulb to test for voltage. The dead section of wire will be the section after your bad bulb.

Can Christmas lights go bad?

Individual lights usually stop functioning for one of two reasons: they’re loose or they’re burnt out. When bulbs loosen from the string, they may disconnect from their housing. All you’ll have to do in that case is tighten them a little bit. They should turn back on as soon as they’re housed properly.

How can I make Christmas lights last longer?

How To Make Your Christmas Lights Last Longer

1. When you take down your lights wrap them in coils around your arm and place them neatly into a storage bin. (
2. Take your bin inside and take off the lid.
3. Put the bin in a warm location in your home for 3-4 days.

Do LED Christmas lights last longer than regular lights?

And because LED lights use less energy than incandescent bulbs, it reduces greenhouse gas emissions, giving the environment a little help along with your power bill. LED lights also last longer, meaning you don’t have to replace a strand of them as often.

How long do incandescent Christmas lights last?

about 4-6 years
In my experience, strands of incandescent Christmas lights typically last about 4-6 years, so if you know the lights are older, you may simply want to opt for a new set. If you can get your trusty old incandescent Christmas lights to light up, I recommend continuing to use them.

Why does half a string of Christmas lights stop working?

If half a strand is working and the other half is not, you probably have a loose or broken bulb. Start with the first unlit bulb and work your way down, wiggling them to check for looseness. If it flickers, that’s your cue to replace it.

What do burned out Christmas lights look like?

The inside of the bulb will be a little blackened. Normally, if a bulb is just burned out, the rest of the lights will stay lit unless a tiny little wire that looks like a little hair at the base of the bulb has also lost connection.If that’s the case, stop using the string of lights and replace it with a new string.

What do you do with broken Christmas lights?

Drop ’em off at a donation bin near you or find your local store. Hardware Stores: Retailers like The Home Depot, Lowe’s and Ace Hardware will gladly accept your faulty Christmas lights if you’re looking for a responsible way to recycle them.

Why are my Christmas lights burning out?

Whether you’re using traditional incandescent lights or LED lights, your plug in Christmas lights may have gone out for any of the following reasons: The circuit isn’t carrying power. A fuse has blown.A bulb has burnt out and its shunt is not passing on electricity.

How long do battery LED Christmas lights last?

Depending on the LED, the bulb may last from 50,000 hours to 200,000 hours as compared to the 3,000 hours of an incandescent light. LEDs are also more durable and do not burn out, thus lasting longer than incadescents.

Why do Christmas lights all go out when one bulb blows?

In this setup, when a filament within any one bulb blows out, it creates an open circuit in the wiring. As we mentioned earlier, when a circuit is incomplete, or open, electricity fails to pass through any of the wire, causing all the lights to go out.

How can I test Christmas lights without a tester?

Pull out one bulb at a time, and stick a piece of folded up foil into the bulb socket. If the lights come on, you know that’s the bad bulb. If they don’t, put the bulb back in and move on to the next one.

Why do LED Christmas lights look blue?

The first white LED Christmas lights that were developed fell into the cool white category. During the first few years of development, it was simply too costly to create true white or warm white LED Christmas lights, as a result, there was always a blue tint to the lights.

Are permanent Christmas lights worth it?

Permanent Christmas Lights Cost – Are permanent Christmas lights worth it? Permanent Christmas Lights are an investment in your home for long-term cost savings and convenience. If you pay a company to put in temporary Christmas lights you can calculate how many years the system would take to save money.

Do LED Christmas lights stay on if one burns out?

So the bottom line is that if one bulb goes out, but it’s still intact, then yes, the light set will stay lit. But if the LED lens is significantly cracked or damaged, then anywhere from half to the full set will go out.

Are LED Christmas lights better than incandescent?

They are used in the most commonplace light fixtures such as lamps, ceiling lights, or track lighting. Similarly, LED Christmas lights are more efficient, durable, and longer-lasting than fluorescent incandescent lights.

How do you tell if Christmas lights are LED or incandescent?

Put your thumb directly on top of a bulb. If it is almost hot to the touch, it will be an incandescent bulb. If it is almost cool or barely warm to the touch, it will be an LED light.

What causes half a string of lights to go out?

1. A light bulb has come out of its socket or is half out of its socket and it has brought down the circuit. For light strings that commonly have over 50 bulbs, they are constructed in 2 or more continuous circuits. If a bulb is missing in a circuit only the bulbs in series of it will go out.

How do you fix Christmas lights that won’t turn on?

Check the fuse or fuses from the plug at the end of the light strand (usually the glass-cylinder type with a wire filament). Use a small screwdriver to pop out the tab and open the plug. If the fuse is charred or burned out, replace it with a new fuse, and plug the light strand in your outlet.