Hanging Christmas Lights Yourself vs. Hiring a Pro
Plenty of people hang their own Christmas lights, and some love doing it. Here’s an honest look at what DIY really takes in a Boise November, what a professional install covers, and how to stay safe if you do it yourself.
The ladder is the real cost
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says there are about 160 Christmas decorating injuries every day of the holiday season, and nearly half involve falls. A CDC study of holiday fall injuries found that about 43% came from ladders, and 12% of the people hurt were admitted to the hospital. Hanging lights on rooflines, peaks and second stories is ladder work from start to finish.
Boise weather doesn’t wait
The National Weather Service’s Boise normals show the average high dropping from 56°F on November 1 to 42°F by November 30, and the first measurable snow comes around November 23 on average. Wait for a free weekend and you may be working on a cold, wet roofline with stiff fingers. Then the whole job happens again in reverse in January, when the December average high is just 38.8°F.
What doing it yourself takes
- Lights and gear: strands, clips, extension cords and a ladder that reaches your peaks.
- Measuring: store-bought strands rarely match your roofline, so you end up with extra lights bunched at the ends or a gap you can’t fill.
- Testing: one bad strand can mean pulling a whole run back down.
- Takedown and storage: unclipping it all in January, then finding a spot in the garage for the tangle until next year.
What a professional install covers
With us, you skip every step above. We measure your roofline and peaks and custom-cut every strand to fit, use commercial-grade LED lights, and hang them with roof-safe clips: no nails, no screws, nothing that pulls on your gutters. We test every strand on install day and walk the display with you before we leave. If a strand goes dark mid-season, call us and we’ll come back to fix it. After the holidays we take it all down on a date you pick and store your lights until next season. Here’s how an install works, start to finish.
If you hang them yourself, stay safe
- Set your ladder on firm, level ground, and have someone hold it.
- Don’t lean or reach past the ladder’s rails. Climb down and move it instead.
- Stay off icy or wet roofs, and skip windy days.
- Plug in and check every strand on the ground before it goes up.
- Use clips made for rooflines and gutters, never nails or staples.
When hiring out makes sense
If your home has a second story, steep peaks or tall trees you want wrapped, or you’d just rather spend November doing something else, a professional install pays for itself in time and peace of mind. Here’s what changes the price of an install.