Christmas and New Year means putting up those lights. But those beautiful Christmas lights can become a disaster if they contribute to overloading circuits. For homeowners, it’s important to understand the electrical load of your holiday decorations and how to manage them. So, I put up an article on how to avoid overloaded circuits with Christmas lights.
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Understanding electrical load
An electrical load is a device that “takes” electrical energy and converts it into a different form, be it heat, light, or motion. It’s also the amount of power required from a circuit and the current passing through a line or machine
How many Christmas strands should I plug into one outlet?
If you’re using incandescent lights, not more than 3-5 cords are plugged into a single outlet. Likewise, LED lights put you in a max of 20 strands per outlet. For how to avoid overloaded circuits with Christmas lights, one has to be familiar with the capacity of electrical outlets. Most household circuits are between 15-20 amps with up to 1800-2400 watts. For example, incandescent bulbs will consume more power as compared to LED bulbs.
How many cords of lights can you link up before it blows the circuit?
It’s usually written on the package of the Christmas lights the maximum number of strings that can be connected in a row. Going beyond this can cause circuits with Christmas lights to be overloaded. For example, in LED lights, it varies per manufacturer. While others can go up to 30 strands, others can only go around 20 max.
How many outlets can you use when you try to plug the Christmas lights into?
Really, how much do you need? Though you can distribute the load among various outlets. Try not to connect one extension cord with another since this may cause a lot of heat and circuit breakdown.
Choosing the right type of Christmas lights
If electricity, wattage, and electrical load are not a problem for you, then you can light up the house with Christmas lights. If we’re going to talk about LED and incandescent lights for Christmas, here are some things you should know.
LED lights do not consume much energy nor produce much heat. This makes it safe to use in circuits with Christmas lights. They’re also energy-efficient, long-lasting, and flexible. However, they can also be sensitive to temperature, expensive, and too limiting at times.
Incandescent lights have more color rendering, clear, warm glow, which most people find pleasant for their Christmas decorations. They’re also cheap and easy to install. A couple of downsides would be its energy inefficiency, heat emittance, and lifespan.
How to avoid overloading a circuit with Christmas lights
It’s always fun decorating your house with Christmas lights to welcome the holiday season. However, as exciting as it is, it is prudent to avoid overloading the electrical circuits. Here is a checklist of how to ensure you do not encounter any electrical problems.
Plan your layout
Plan where each strand of lights will be placed. Make sure that all the required areas are illuminated with no overloading of a single point. Determine which lights you will be using and ensure that you note down the positions of the outlets.
Use LED lights
LED lights do not consume much power compared to traditional incandescent bulbs. What’s more, they minimize the chances of circuit overloading. LED lights do not heat up like the traditional bulbs hence do not pose fire risks.
Wattage allowance
Know the wattage allowance of the sockets and the extension cords. Every outlet and cord has its limit of the wattage that it can support. Overloading them can lead to the devices getting extremely hot and may even lead to electrical fires.
Power strips with circuit breakers
Buy power strips with individual switches and circuit breakers to ensure the safety of your devices. They cut off the power when the load exceeds their threshold, to avoid overloading. Added safety lies in the fact that they cut the power supply if there are signs of an overload, allowing you to enjoy your decorative lights without any dread.
Avoid overloading extension cords
You can’t talk about the holiday decoration issue without mentioning extension cords. However, they have certain power limits. In every case, it is best to check the manufacturer’s instructions for the maximum power can hold. It’s not smart to have many devices hooked up to one extension cord as it gets hot and may cause a fire.
Keep an eye on your breaker box
Check your breaker box regularly for excessive usage. If you find that your breakers are tripping frequently, this may be a sign of overloaded circuits. It’s advisable to spread the load, or to add new circuits in order to manage power use.
Timers
Timers are a relatively simple and effective way to manage your holiday lights. You use the lights only until their set time, and that helps free the circuits that may have been always working. Besides saving power, this practice also helps avoid overheating from the system, especially at night or away from home.
Inspect lights and cords
Check your holiday lights before putting them up. Wires exposed, burnt-out bulbs, or any other problem of that type can cause sparks or electrical fires. Replace broken lights quickly before they become hazardous. Additionally, lights that have been tested by a lab and recommended for use are also a good choice.
Keep flammable items away
When decorating, don’t put some flammable items in such places. Make sure that the decorations are not beside any other device that generates heat. It’s very easy for fires to occur if they were close to the heat sources.
Turn off the lights when not in use
Don’t leave the lights on when you’re not using them, when you’re not home, or are going to bed. This minimizes an electrical fire starting when you may not be around or even when you’re asleep.
Lights are pretty, but can be dangerous if left unchecked with your electrical load. So, try to avoid overloaded circuits with Christmas lights.
