Christmas lights

Okay so I've decided to go out shopping today for Christmas decorations since it's my first real year of having Christmas here in NI in the 4 years I've lived here.

I have looked in every store and even asked the sales assistants about the lights for trees. It seems that you can't connect strand to strand over here in the UK. You can only connect one at a time and not to each other. Does anyone know anything I don't? I am worried as I use around 10 strands of 100 lights per tree. I love them! What will I do  :\\\'(

Also, where's a really cheap place to buy Christmas lights?  I love, love, love to decorate, but I also live on a meager student budget.  We randomly have a small Christmas tree left in the storage closet from the last tenants, so I wanna get a few things to put on it!

Pound shops are great, Woolworths and even Tesco.

Anyone know what to do about extending? 

It seems that you can't connect strand to strand over here in the UK. You can only connect one at a time and not to each other. Does anyone know anything I don't? I am worried as I use around 10 strands of 100 lights per tree. I love them! What will I do  :\\\'(

That was very annoying when trying to put the lights on the tree last year.  I grew up with a mom who had to have at least 1000 lights on the tree.  And because you can't connect the strands here.... our tree looked bare.:-(

That's my problem too. I put almost that on mine. I don't see how I am going to do this

Dh and just put lights on our tree last night! (I know I am early. But I LOVE xmas!!) What we have discovered over the years is if you want a lot of lights on the trees is to always start from the top so the lead ends up at the bottom and then to go back and keep adding layers of lights around the tree.  We end up having a 4-way or 5-way connector at the base of the tree to plug in all the lead ends to. 

Where/how do you plug in outdoor lights? How do the outdoor lights work here, what with the rain and all that?

Multiple light strings on trees here generally end up with a multi-way tap (or power strip) to connect them at the base.

The problem if you have a particularly tall tree is that for the plug to reach the ground every string will have to come down near the base.   The large 13-amp British plugs and sockets don't really lend themselves to running extensions into the tree, but I've used this arrangement before with the old 2- and 5-amp round pin plugs which are more akin in size and bulk to American connectors.   Unfortunately, these plugs and sockets are not easily obtainable any more.

Where/how do you plug in outdoor lights? How do the outdoor lights work here, what with the rain and all that?

Many of the small strings these days are low-voltage with a power unit (and controller for effects) located indoors.   

The fairy lights which connect direct to the wall outlet work exactly the same way as similar strings in the U.S., just with different bulbs to allow for the different supply voltage.  For example, a 20-light string in the U.S. would use 6-volt bulbs while a 20-light string in the U.K. has 12-volt bulbs (20 x 6V = 120V,  20 x 12V = 240V).

The important thing -- in either country -- is to make sure that you use a chain which is rated for outdoor use in order that the bulb holders etc. provide the proper protection against the weather.  The box the chain comes in should state whether the chain is suitable for outdoor or only indoor use.

Ok but the thing I am confused about is where you plug them in, do you keep your window open a crack for the wire to run into the house? Or is there somewhere you can plug them in outside?

I should add, being from California, running the wire in through a window was no problem, as it never rained and the weather was always wonderful.

Ah.... I see what you're getting at now.  A lot of people use the "not quite shut" window technique, although it's far from ideal, especially given that if somebody forgets and tries to close the window it can be disastrous for the wire.  (You'll also see a lot of horrible and dangerous "bodges," like extension leads and plugs wrapped in plastic bags with rubber bands, but that's a somewhat different tack.....  )

By far the best solution is to plug directly into a outdoor, weatherproof outlet.  Unfortunately, many U.K. homes do not have one.

Thanks, Paul, I have always wondered about this, since moving here. I'd love to put up outdoor lights, but not if that means the 'not quite shut method'. I don't think we have an outdoor outlet.

I don't think we have an outdoor outlet.

Adding one is a possibility, although obviously how expensive it will be depends upon where you want it in relation to existing fittings, whether there's a circuit nearby which is suitably and could be tapped, etc.   Sometimes one can be fitted backing onto an existing socket very easily.

If anyone is thinking of going down this road (or already has an outdoor outlet), do keep in mind that some weatherproof outlets are only weatherproof when not in use.   They cannot have their covers closed to seal out the rain when a plug is inserted.  Obivously that's fine for using garden tools and such like, but for Christmas lights you want the type which can be made weatherproof while in use.

Some outdoor lights come with a detatchable plug.  So if you have a small hole drilled you can thread the cord through.  We already had one in where our front window is, in the wood bit, but I have no idea why. 

We already had one in where our front window is, in the wood bit, but I have no idea why.

If the hole was about 1/4-inch in diameter, it may have been where the TV antenna feeder entered.  At one time it was quite common for the coax to be run down the outside wall from the roof and in through the frame to a small surface-mount socket screwed to the window sill.