Is Professional Christmas Light Installation Safer Than DIY?
Every November, emergency rooms across the country see a spike that has nothing to do with the cold. It’s holiday decorating. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, roughly 5,800 people a year are treated for falls related to holiday decorations, and more than half of those falls happen off a ladder or a roof. Nearly half of the people who fall from a ladder end up hospitalized.
Is DIY Christmas light installation actually risky?
Yes. The CPSC estimates about 200 decorating-related injuries happen every single day during November and December, and roughly half of those involve a fall from a ladder or a rooftop. Add in another 4,000 injuries a year tied to extension cords, and holiday decorating turns out to be one of the more dangerous home projects a homeowner takes on themselves.
What makes roof and ladder work during the holidays especially dangerous in Utah?
Timing is a big part of it. Utah County homeowners are usually hanging lights in late October or November, right as mornings start icing over and daylight gets shorter. A roof that was safe to walk in September can have a thin layer of frost on it by 6 p.m. in November. Combine that with cold hands, a ladder on uneven ground, and strings of lights tangled around your feet, and the risk goes up fast.
How does professional installation reduce these risks?
A professional installer isn’t guessing at ladder placement or improvising footing on a pitched roof for the first time all year. The right setup includes slip-resistant roofing boots, low-profile roof pitch blocks for secure footing on steeper sections, and a mounting method that never requires standing on the gutter itself. Experience also means knowing which sections of a Utah County roofline actually need a ladder versus which can be reached safely from the eave.
What does The Christmas Peddler do differently?
Lights are clipped along the fascia and roof edge rather than screwed in, footing stays on the ladder or the shingles rather than the gutter lip, and every roof section gets treated with the same caution regardless of how many times it’s been done before. It’s slower than rushing a ladder up against the house, but it’s the difference between a home that looks great for the holidays and a trip to urgent care.
Ready for lights without the risk?
Book by the end of September and you’ll be on the schedule for an October install, well ahead of the ice and the rush. Reach out for a quote or take a look at Christmas Lights installation.
Sources: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Electrical Safety Foundation International