A Guide to Fitting Outdoor Christmas Lighting

Types of outdoor Christmas lights and where to put them

Wanting to decorate the outside of your home and knowing where to start can be a challenge, but understanding which lights work best for different looks can help you get going. We recommend deciding where you will want lights to be placed first, then find the set that will fit in that location the best. Here are our suggestions for where different lights would work the best.

3D Acrylic standing lights – perfect to decorate driveways, lawns or patios. Easy to set up, with no fixings required, just a power source.

Cluster lights – dense string of bulbs for a brighter light display compared to string lights. Great for trees or around the outside of a home along guttering.

Icicle lights – the most popular outdoor lighting option, creating a dropping icicle effect from the guttering of a home or along a fence line.

Netted lights – a sheet of lights, great for covering a large area with bright lighting such as hedges or fencing.

Twinkly lights – a high quality brand of festive lighting. App controlled and fully customisable with a choice of colours and designs. Available as string lights, cluster lights or light curtains.

LED String lights – the traditional style of Christmas light, great for adding lights to trees, fence lines or around the outside of the home.

Shop all outdoor lighting at Longacres here.

How to choose the right size outdoor Christmas lights

Choosing the right style of outdoor lights can be one challenge, but knowing what size and length to select can be even more difficult. The most efficient way to make sure you have the right length of lighting is to start by measuring the area you would like to decorate and then buy accordingly. A great rule of thumb is to always go for a set that is longer than the area you have measure – this way you will never be left short!

Measuring homes

There are many ways you can hang Christmas lights to the outside of your home, including along guttering or around windows.

The easiest way to measure the size of your windows is to use a tape measure to work out the size. This can be done on the inside of the window too, as it is easier and safer to measure this way.

The simplest way to work out the length of your guttering is to calculate the width of your home. If you have a long enough tape measure, you could measure from one end to another. Alternatively, you could take a set of ladders and run a tape measure along each section of guttering and add them together to get the combined total length required.

Measuring fences

What you will need to set up your outdoor Christmas lights

Having the right tools and accessories can make the job of putting up Christmas lights outdoors much simpler, as well as being significantly quicker. Why not give these products a try?

• Gutter hooks
• Suction cups with metal hanger
• Adhesive cable clips
• Cable reels
• Extension cable
• Plug socket dry box
• Ladders
• Staple gun

Shop light hanging tools at Longacres here.

Tips to make fitting outdoor Christmas lights easier

Fitting Christmas lights to guttering

• Use one gutter hook for every 2ft of length
• Lay the lights out flat along the floor following the shape of your house to avoid tangles in the wires and fir them from the end holding the plug
• Feed the plug end of the cable through an open window to save using an extension cable where possible

Fitting Christmas lights to fencing

• Use a staple gun to secure the lights to the fence, but be careful not to puncture through the wire
• Use string lights or cluster lights to run along the top of the fence
• Use curtain or net lights to cover whole fence panels

Decorating an outdoor tree with Christmas lights

• Wrap the lights around a cable reel beforehand to avoid tangles while wrapping the tree
• Start at the base and circle the tree, wrapping the lights around from the base and working upwards in the circular motion
• Wrap the wire around branches to light the whole tree for an impressive look
• Carefully use a ladder to reach taller branches