Christmas Lights

[Longsx3]

Does anyone use LED Christmas Lights? I am thinking about getting all new LED lights for our house but they are pricey and I am not sure I will like the look. We won't have enough of our previous lights because our new house is larger than previous ones, plus they are red and green and might be hard to match.

Here is the front of our house:

 

[Jockaroo]

We have the LED lights. They are very piercing and intense in the light. It is odd, they are bright, but not illuminating if that makes sense. We have a few sets that we have used for at least 2 seasons. We also use them on the indoor tree.

The LED technology is new and more expensive, so the lights have not caught on well here. Last year, we bought cases of the lights at 75% and 90% clearance after Christmas. We are really going to decorate big time this year. You are right, they do cost, more, but you could minimize your decorating this year and shop the after-Christmas clearance like we did.

My favorite thing about the lights is the ability to string dozens of strands together. We just don't have enough outlets and extension cords to decorate the way we wanted to--until now. I am so chomping at the bit to decorate with our "new" goodies.

Added: You have a lovely house and yard. I agree about the green and red lights. They are very hard to match. We did the green and red when we moved in because of a huge, beautiful holly tree in our yard. After the ice storm a few years back, it isn't that beautiful so we had to re-think our lights. Plus, we were losing strands of the green/red and couldn't match them. The standard mini-lights just don't seem to last for many seasons for us.

 

[sorcerormickey]

It is odd, they are bright, but not illuminating if that makes sense.

This is my problem with them - you are exactly right, they are bright, but they just don't have that 'glow' that regular lights have.

That being said, we did buy a bunch last year after XMas during the clearance sales. We are only going to be using them outdoors - I am not a big fan of them and prefer to have the glowy ones inside, especially since we use mostly clear lights and those tend to have that blue-ish cast in the LEDs.

 

[Longsx3]

Jockaroo: I appreciate the compliments, I endured many years of Military Housing in order to buy this house!

sorcerormickey: I agree that the color of white seems off, I did find some warm white ones online today and I am going to see if I can find them in a store.

The other problem I have is I like the larger bulbs (C9) and that is when they get really expensive, I need about 175 ft., so I may wait until after Christmas.

 

[Mickey's Minion]

Last year, we went all LED.

We have a ton of lights as we like to channel Whoville

While I prefer the soft glow and illumination of the regular lights, I much preferred the electricity bill last year. We saw a HUGE drop from the previous year's time frame. The LED lights will pay for themselves in just a couple of years.

Costco and Sams have great deals on LED lights. But buy them now because they run out closer to Christmas. We got all our C9's there and they were much cheaper than anything you could find in other stores or even online.

 

[CajunDixie]

You'll save $$$$$$$$$ using LED over regular outdoor lights. Our electric bill used to really jump for November and December. Last year not so much as we are phasing out the old strands.

 

[Rora]

Last year, we went all LED.

We have a ton of lights as we like to channel Whoville

We went LED last year too.

You'll save $$$$$$$$$ using LED over regular outdoor lights. Our electric bill used to really jump for November and December. Last year not so much as we are phasing out the old strands.

Honestly, for as many lights as we had, the switch saved us a significant amount!!

OP- the don't glow the same but we love them!

 

[WDWorBUST]

We got some last year and I don't care for the "blue" glow to the white lights. Maybe we just bought the wrong "clear" ones

 

[OK!]

I use them outside (I'm in apartment so I only have my deck and roof to decorate) and the regular C7 bulbs inside on the tree. Well, those and a couple of strings of small multicolored lights; I like my tree to GLOW.

 

[Jockaroo]

The other problem I have is I like the larger bulbs (C9) and that is when they get really expensive, I need about 175 ft., so I may wait until after Christmas.

Now this may not be true for all the bulbs. My very large strands (the C9 I think) are actually just colored plastic "caps" over the small LED light. We had some problems with these as apparently we have squirrels that figured out how to detach the caps and needed to go on multiple search and recovery missions.

We do the multi-color lights. I agree that the white LED lights have a harsh, cold appearance.

 

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

I fully switched to LED's last year. (went to target AFTER christmas and got some bargans)

currently run twenty strands (hooked up to a music "flasher") plus indoor leds etc.

I did a little research and can run six or seven strands on one "channel" of my setup, where previously I could only run four, and the power consumption is about one quarter or less than "regular" bulbs.

like a PP said, the leds are more intense light. I have noticed that leds were previously only "mini" lights. Now they are in all sizes, (c7, c9 etc) they also last a lot longer than regular bulbs, so you won't have to do the "replace burnt out" light drill before decorating (barring a broken led!)

leds are "green" in the sense that you are use a lot less power.

 

[m&m's mom]

Well we will see this year. We bought tons and tons on LED's on after Christmas sales. I am a little nervous since our Christmas displays draw people to our street to see our house. I kinda feel an obligation to still have an awesome house.

 

[BCV513]

We got some last year and I don't care for the "blue" glow to the white lights. Maybe we just bought the wrong "clear" ones

That's exactly how I felt! We used some last year and while they were certainly bright, they felt cold and sterile to me. Maybe it just takes some getting used to, but I really missed the warmth and glow of regular lights.

 

[Golf4food]

The talk of glow made me think - can you imagine the Christmas morning scenes of "A Christmas Story" in LED lights? I can't. It would ruin everything.

That said, we planned to wait last year and buy some LED's after Christmas on sale but they were all gone!

 

[Lanshark]

They are very piercing and intense in the light. It is odd, they are bright, but not illuminating if that makes sense

Very well put. They are beautiful but they don't really cast light so you don't get the effect I was looking for. You just get spots of very intense light. If you put them on a tree or bush you can't really see that tree or bush, just dots of light

 

[Longsx3]

So I hit all of the stores tonight in hopes of finding LED lights that I like, unfortunately it did not happen. I have not given up but DH says get what I want and looks good doesn't need to be LED.

 

[pennymom]

I was looking at LEDs in Target today, and there are two types of white: cool white, which is the original LED color, and warm white, which is a much more natural looking white. Last year we bought the cool white LEDs without realizing there was a better color of white, and they were definitely too sterile and cold looking. So this year I may give the cool blue to a friend and pick up the warm white.

 

[AnnR]

I love my LED lights. Especially on the tree inside. One big advantage is that they stay cool so I don't worry anymore about the hot bulbs drying out the tree or burning the carpet (happened one year, just have burn mark luckily didn't start a fire)

That is a disadvantage outside, they don't melt through the snow like the old ones but the lower electric bills and no trying to find the burned out bulb compansate for this. I have even found some solar LED lights so I can put lights where the cord would not reach.

 

[JR6ooo4]

nothing will replace the snow covered glow of a C19 bulb...

But after years of walking past the indoor tree with just the little bulbs, and feeling the heat around the tree from all those filament bulbs... we bought LED sets. not for fire safety, we have a plastic tree, but for the energy savings.

the key is the quality of the plastic diffuser covering the LED light.

Mikeeee

 

[golfgal]

We have several pine trees in our yard that we use the C9 bulbs on at Christmas. I LOVE the look but hate the bills. I am planning on switching over to the LED and I was HOPING this year they would have improved them enough that they look better. I hope I don't regret spending the money on the new lights.