December is just a few days away which means holiday lights will be decorating streets, stores and homes. The bright shiny lights remind us that the holiday season is upon us. It’s hard to not feel giddy when you see twinkling reindeer, inflatable snowmen and decorated door wreaths on people’s homes.
Holiday lights have come a long way in the last few centuries. Did you know that the first Christmas lights were made from candles and carefully placed right on the tree? It wasn’t until 1882 that glass Christmas lights were created to decorate trees. Unfortunately, the cost for these lights was so high that most people couldn’t afford them until around 1930. Since then, the cost of holiday lights has come down substantially, making them a holiday decorating staple. Not only have the price of lights declined, but the technology for lights has also changed.
It seems like only yesterday that incandescent holiday lights, with their giant fragile glass bulbs and piping hot surfaces, lined the eaves of houses and the limbs of our Christmas trees. Because of the fire dangers you had to be careful about how long you left them on. In addition to fire hazards, the cost to run these beauties was quite expensive, causing a hefty increase in power bills for the month of December. Lucky for us, technology is always striving to improve everything. Now, we have the option to buy LED lights. LED lights offer a lot of advantages to decorating aficionados. For one, they last longer than incandescent lights. On average incandescent lights will last 1,000- 2,000 hours, where LED lights can stay bright and shiny for up to 50,000 hours, which adds up to a lot of holidays. The cost to run LED lights is a fraction of that of incandescent lights. Some estimates say that a 100-bulb string of LED lights will cost approximately $0.01 a day compared to incandescent at $0.10 a day. LED and incandescent Christmas lights aren’t our only option.
Solar holiday lights are also a great option for homeowners who don’t want to see their electric bill skyrocket. Solar lights use LED bulbs and are powered by the sun during the day. Solar energy is usually stored in batteries that the lights will use at night. Choosing solar Christmas lights to decorate your home has lots of advantages. In addition to saving money on power costs, you won’t have to hassle with turning them on and off. As the sun sets, the lights will turn on by themselves and turn off as the battery fades or when the sun comes up (depending on how long the batteries last).
This year as you are getting ready to decorate your home for the holidays, consider all of the options you have for your holiday lights. Have a festive landscape and give solar lights a try.
| Bulb Type |
Incandescent |
LED |
LED Solar Lights |
| Energy Cost |
$0.10/ day on average |
$0.01/ a day on average |
Free |
| Lifespan |
2,000 hours |
50,000 hours |
50,000 hours (batteries may need to be replaced) |
