Christmas Safety Advice

Safety Tips for Christmas Lights

When you put up Christmas lights this season be sure to follow these Christmas light safety tips

• Choose Christmas lights that have been tested and deemed safe by a reputable testing laboratory. This will be noted on the packaging when you buy them.
• Try to use the cooler-burning "mini" Christmas lights as opposed to the traditional larger bulbs. The older styles burn much hotter.
• Only use Christmas lights that have fuses in the plugs.
• Inspect each set of Christmas lights - old or new - for damage. Return or throw out any set with cracked or broken sockets, frayed or bare wires, or loose connections.
• Replace burned out bulbs promptly with bulbs of the same wattage.
• Never hang Christmas lights on a metal tree. The tree can become charged with electricity and shock someone. The tree can also short out the Christmas lights and cause a fire.
• When hanging Christmas lights outdoors use outdoor Christmas lights. The packaging will note whether the lights can be used indoors, outdoors, or both.
• All outdoor electrical decorations should be plugged into a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI). You can buy portable units for outdoor use, or you can have them permanently installed by an electrician.
• Use extension cords properly. Outdoor cords can be used inside or outside. Do not overload extension cords - they can get hot enough to burn.
• Stay away from powerlines or feeder lines (these go from the pole to the house).
• Secure outside Christmas lights with insulated holders (never use tacks or nails) or run strings of lights through hooks.
• When you leave or go to bed at night, turn off your Christmas lights.
• Never pull on a string of Christmas lights, it stresses the cords and can lead to fraying. Store Christmas lights loosely wrapped for the same reason.