DFW Christmas Lights (214) 257-8155

Please scroll below to turn off music so that you can hear the video.

A silly spoof song that I like is The 12 Days of Guido Christmas by the How-ya-doin’ guys.

On the first day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

A ride in his IROC-Z.

On the second day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the third day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the fourth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the fifth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the sixth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the seventh day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Seven Piazza jerseys,
Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the eighth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Eight how-ya-doin’s,
Seven Piazza jerseys,
Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the ninth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Nine balls-a-grabbing,
Eight how-ya-doin’s,
Seven Piazza jerseys,
Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the tenth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Ten new hand gestures,
Nine balls-a-grabbing,
Eight how-ya-doin’s,
Seven Piazza jerseys,
Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the eleventh day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Eleven Sinatra CDs,
Ten new hand gestures,
Nine balls-a-grabbing,
Eight how-ya-doin’s,
Seven Piazza jerseys,
Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my paisan gave to me,

Twelve globs of hair gel,
Eleven Sinatra CDs,
Ten new hand gestures,
Nine balls-a-grabbing,
Eight how-ya-doin’s,
Seven Piazza jerseys,
Six Sergio Tacchinis,
Five pinky rings!
Four fresh cannolis,
All tree Godfadda’s,
Two guinea tees,
And a ride in his IROC-Z.

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By Maria Bargellini, holiday lighting designer for DFW Christmas Lights

Icicle drop lights are fairly new and have been used mostly for large commercial holiday lighting displays – until now. Icicle drop lights are designed to give off the appearance of falling snow by using the LED lights (diodes) in the tube to “drip” down the length of the tube repeated. They look great in trees or over your entryway, breezeway or any type of archway. The tubes come in a variety of lengths and combinations. For example, you can get a 5 tube strand in 10 or 20 inches, a mixed strand of  (3)-20 inch tubes and (2) 40″ tubes, or (5) 40 inch tubes. The best tree displays will use a mixture of these strands. Make sure to use the shorter icicle drop lights if you are using them in an area where there is pedestrian or vehicle traffic. For a striking upgrade you can add colored light to the trunk of the tree like in the video below.

(The icicle lights are toward the end on the next video)

These LED Christmas lights may be more expensive than incandescent mini lights but you don’t need any where near as many mini lights as you would icicle drop lights, you definately wouldn’t use as much energy, and they surely don’t take as much labor to install or take up as much space in your storage room. So in terms of what the two different displays will cost – they should be about equal. Of course it will depend on the type and amount of mini lights you were using, it can in some cases be less or more expensive.

Icicle drop lights are also a great way to add movement to your holiday lighting display without making it look to busy or like the Griswalds, not that there’s anything wrong with the kind of thing, if you’re into it. If  you would like more information or have questions about this product please feel free to write or call us at 214-257-8813.

Icicle Drop Light Pros

You can add up to 10 sets together

Use less Storage space

Use less energy

Less effort to install

Low profile disappears during the day

Not your grandmas Christmas Lights

Icicle Light Cons

More expensive than other lighting options

Only comes in the pure white color

Related Articles    Stars and star burst Christmas decorating tool

DFW Christmas Lights, The Outdoor Lighting Expert, and Lawn Sprinklers Dallas are sites owned and operated by Dallas Curb Appeal Inc.

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By Maria Bargelini of DFW Christmas Lights

When we hear the  term Christmas display or Holiday Lighting, some of us (who are old enough to remember) think of the Griswold’s. The infamous family in the National Lampoon’s vacation film series, “Christmas Vacation”. If the thought of 20+ foot ladders and touching electricity leaves you more than frazzled — consider having your Christmas Lights professional installed by DFW Christmas Lights. If you want to brave it on your own here are a few notes to help you out.

#1 Above all else—Be Safe!

At DFW Christmas Lights, we want you to have the holiday display you want–whether it be just a little or full out Griswold’s lights. The most important thing we want to remind you of is to be safe.

• Don’t skimp on things like cords, use the properly approved extension cords, timers, lights, etc., and always plug them into an electrical outlet protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter or GFCI. For more on GFCIs please click here.
• Remember that your lights will most likely get wet and will be exposed to the elements, so always use lights that are UL approved for indoor/outdoor use.
• If your lights trip a breaker or your GFCI, don’t just flip it back; reduce the load of that circuit by plugging some of your light strings into another outlet, and wait until you are sure that the devices are dry before you switch them back on.
• Ladder safety: You should never install Christmas Lights alone, especially if you are using a ladder that is more than 6′ tall. Make sure you have someone footing your ladder and watching out for your safety. It’s rare that you can open up your ladder on a level surface when you are in your landscape beds. Sometimes the ground in uneven, there are usually shrubs or plants in the way and there is a good chance that you may overextend yourself to reach things that your ladder can’t get you to.

#2 Buy the right lights in the right amount

With the exception of icicle lights, mini lights are almost never used on roofs as they simply don’t put off enough light.  For roof lines, windows, flower beds, pathways and any other architectural places I recommend using C7 or C9 bulbs with 12″ spacing. These are what you would normally see on houses. If you are buying sets from a retail store chances are the wire will be 25′ long and will have to be connected end to end. Here are a few notes on lights.

• Buy commercial grade if you can find it: Some of the box stores will have “commercial” sets available. Although these are typically inferior to what we would use in the industry it will be better than the lower quality sets.
• Read the directions: You can only connect the amount of sets together the manufacture specifies. They are not making a suggestions, you lights will not work properly if you do not follow the directions.
• Make sure your connections stay dry. Water and electricity do not mix. Be sure to cover any exposed electrical connections.
• Pay attention to wire size (gauge) and ampacity. The smaller the amount of copper the less footage you will be allowed to run.
• Consider LED lights. You can run up to 10x the amount of lights together and it’s more energy efficient.

For part II of this article please click here.

Please check out our archives and recent post for more information on Holiday Lighting.

DFW Christmas Lights and The Outdoor Lighting Expert are owned and operated by Dallas Curb Appeal Inc., a full service landscape contractor.

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By Maria Bargellini, of DFW Christmas Lights

I have been an electrician for over a dozen years and the thing most home owners have issues with are their outdoor GFCI outlets. GFCI stands for ground fault circuit interrupter, in the business we say GFI for short. Those fancy letters are just a way of saying cut off device. If you overload your circuit, get a surge or short from weather, the ground fault in the device will trip, much like a breaker, and shut off the power to your device. It does so as to not  allow the surge to return to your breaker. It’s meant to protect the breaker and or electrical panel.

How to know if your device has tripped

• There’s usually one or two buttons on your device that will “pop” when there is a problem. This is something you can usually hear happening.
• Some devices will have a light that is either lit or not lit with it’s regular operation. The presence of the light or lack there of signal that the device is tripped.
• No power at the outlet is a clear sign that the device may have tripped

Reasons for tripping

• Moisture: Water or moisture entering the device will cause it to trip.
• Overloading your circuit. GFCIs typically come in 15 or 20 amp capacity. If you are trying to operate a 20 amp device on a 15 amp circuit the GFI will trip immediately and will continue to do so even if it holds for a little while.
• Shorts: Not Bermuda but electrical shorts. GFCIs are usually connected to other outlets. If there is a problem with a satellite outlet that’s connected to your GFI it will trip at the GFCI.

Problem Solvers Quick Fixes

• The wright covers: I know it’s ugly but those big bubble covers you see on the outlets are the best thing to use. They are called “In Use Covers” and they are made to shield the outlet from the elements. They have cut out so that your cords can be inserted into the holes and the cover will remain close.
• Loops: Water goes down hill. If you leave a loop before your outlet the water will generally run off at the base of the loop and not straight into the outlet.
• Changing the Device: The GFCIs are not meant to last forever. Years of tripping and weather can cause the device to malfunction. Simply replacing it is all you may need.
• Upgrading the device: If your wire is sized correctly you may be able to replace your 15 amp device to 20 amps, giving you more power to work with.

The information in this article is written as a general guide only. You should consult an electrician for any repairs, questions, or problems you may have.

DWF Christmas Lights and The Outdoor Lighting Expert are owned and operated by Dallas Curb Appeal Inc., a full service Landscape Contractor.

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Click here for Part I of this article

Power Setup

You don’t need to read your electric bill to know that outdoor Christmas lights can draw a huge amount of power. 100 feet of incandescent C9 bulbs, for instance, draw 3 and half times more power than most televisons! Needless to say, if you plug too many light strings into one plug, you will quickly overload that circuit.

Most homes have a 16 amp plug in the front and back yard; however, that circuit is usually shared with a room in the home, so not all 16 amps are usable. If you are planning a large Christmas light display, it is wise to calculate the number of amps your Christmas lights and decorations draw to make sure it is far less than 16 amps.

Amperage is usually posted on the UL tag at one end of your light string. If it is not, use this formula to determine the amperage of your light strings:

Number of Feet x Number of Watts Per Bulb / 125 Volts = Number of Amps

Using the example above:

100 Feet of C9 Bulbs x 7 Watts per Bulb / 125 Volts = 5.6 Amps.

Assuming other electrical devices are not using this circuit, you could plug additional lights or decorations into your outdoor plug. However, you should check the UL tag for maximum connections (usually 3) before plugging additional lights in end-to-end.

Note: Most Mini Light strings are not rated in watts, but amps, so the math is done for you.

Disclaimer

Please note: This information is just a general guideline to assist you in your project. With any electrical product or situation there is a risk of electrical shock. DFW Christmas Lights and it’s parent company, Dallas Curb Appeal accepts no liability for the content of this article, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided, unless that information is subsequently confirmed in writing. Any views or opinions presented in this e-mail are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the company-

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