A Cautionary Christmas Tale: Don’t Let This Happen to You!

Here’s a little holiday story we want to share with our readers. Once upon a time there was die-hard do-it-yourselfer. He mows his own lawn, fixes his leaky faucets, and even changes his own oil. That kind of guy…we all know them.

It was approaching the holidays, and he was inspired while watching The Great Christmas Light Fight on TV. He thought to himself, “Heck, yeah! I could do that.” So the next day he headed to his local big box store and loaded up his cart full to the brim with Christmas lights and decorations.

He arrived home and unloaded his purchases from the car while his kids watched in wonder. As he was walking across the lawn, the well-meaning do-it-yourselfer tripped on a landscaping rock and dropped the heavy load he was carrying. When he bent to pick everything up, he pulled a muscle in his back.

But he was a trooper, so he pushed through the pain because he didn’t want to let the kids down. They were so excited about the beautiful light display he was about to install.

He grabbed his rickety ladder, leaned it up against the house, and began installing the lights. But they were crooked. “Ugh,” he thought, “that’s not the look I’m going for.” So he started over. Still crooked. He started to perspire as he became more and more frustrated.

His wife came out to check on his progress. As he turned to look at her, he lost his balance and fell off the ladder, twisting his ankle. While he was laying on the ground, the mosquitos found him.

Back and ankle aching, dripping in sweat, and cursing to himself under his breath, still he pushed on. He didn’t want to disappoint the kids who were hoping to be the envy of the neighbors.

Several hours later, our sweaty, aching, itchy do-it-yourselfer finished decorating and was ready to behold his handiwork. He plugged the lights into an extension cord. Sparks begin to fly, singeing his eyebrows. Clearly, he miscalculated the electrical load.

Meanwhile, his neighbor across the street was enjoying a cold beer while watching the game. His brilliant No Fuss Lights were the talk of the neighborhood. This neighbor knew his limitations and understood that sometimes it’s just better to hire the experts.

This year, take a load off and let the professionals at No Fuss Lights bring some holiday cheer to your home. Not only will we install your lights, but we’ll also take them down and properly store them for you. You’ll be the envy of the neighborhood!

Be like the smart neighbor, and call us ASAP at 281-809-7021 for a free estimate. We serve the Greater Houston area, so our calendar fills up fast!

Bringing Light to the Holidays During Coronavirus

It’s no understatement to say that 2020 has been a year like no other. COVID-19 has turned all of our lives upside down, and we’re doing the best we can to cope with life during a pandemic.

Many of us are struggling with how to bring a sense of normalcy to the holidays this year, especially considering it’s all about gathering together with friends and families. How can we celebrate safely while COVID-19 is still spreading in our community?

Here are some tips for keeping the holidays festive and safe, even during the Coronavirus pandemic:

  • Indoor family gatherings seem to be where COVID-19 is spreading right now. Instead of gathering indoors, invite your family and friends over for an outdoor celebration.
  • Keep your gatherings short, the guest list small, and put plenty of distance between your guests. Give the gift of individual-sized hand sanitizers and festive masks.
  • The jury is still out on whether or not air travel is safe. If you can’t spend Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa with your loved ones, consider setting up a group Zoom call.
  • Get your flu shot. Ain’t no one got time to catch the flu and Coronavirus this year!
  • If you’re dressing up for Halloween, don’t let a costume mask replace your fabric mask or combine the two together.
  • Check out more recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control.

Even though we’re facing dark times, we can’t let the chaos and turmoil in our world bring us down. Instead, we need to bring more light in our lives. Christmas lights, to be specific.

Although we complain about Houston’s brutal summers, we’re so fortunate that fall and winter are pleasantly mild here, and we can enjoy being outdoors throughout the year.

Since we’ll be spending more time outdoors in this lovely weather, make sure your home’s exterior is up to par with outdoor lights by No Fuss Lights.

Lights aren’t just for Christmas anymore! We can decorate your home for all the holidays: Halloween, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and for pretty much any other occasion you can imagine.

Make your home the envy of your neighbors. Give us a call at 281-809-7021 for a free estimate.

We serve the Greater Houston area, so we book up fast. Schedule your appointment today!

Hit a Home Run with Sports Team-Themed Christmas Lights

How Big of a Fan Are You?

If you’re a Houston Astros, Texans, or Rockets fan, we’re betting your Christmas tree has at least one ornament featuring your favorite sports team.

If you deck out your entire Christmas tree in team-themed ornaments, then that means that you’re a true fan. Check out these Christmas trees on Pinterest.

But if you’re the ULTIMATE FAN, you’ve got season tickets, all the team apparel, can recite all the stats from the beginning of time, and you also decorate your entire house with sports-themed Christmas lights! Check out this house lit up for the Astros, this one decorated for the Texans, and this one decorated for the Rockets. Pretty impressive stuff.

Show Off Your True Colors

Prove your love for your favorite team by lighting up the neighborhood with orange and blue lights for the Astros, red and blue lights for the Texans, or red and white lights for the Rockets.

Not only will you be the envy of your neighbors, but you’ll also show the world who is really the biggest fan of all time. Do it right, and you might even become a photo opp for the neighbors (won’t they be jealous!) or make it onto the local news.

No Fuss Lights can set you up and save you hours of work during the busiest time of the year. We set up, take down and store your lights for you. Couldn’t be easier!

Make your plans now, and give us a call at 281-809-7021 for a free estimate. But do it ASAP as we book up fast.

Who’s the Biggest Fan?

Do you decorate for the holidays with your favorite team colors? If so, we’d love to see some pictures. Show off your handiwork by sharing them on social media using the hashtag #nofusslights.

Christmas Lights Aren’t Just for Christmas Anymore!

October 31 is right around the corner! Are y’all ready with your inflatable Frankensteins, spooky pumpkins and exterior Halloween lights? Wait…what?!?

You heard us right—exterior Halloween lights. They’re a real thing now, and they’re SPOOKTACULAR!

Because Christmas lights aren’t just for Christmas anymore! They’re for Halloween, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and pretty much any other major holiday you can think of.

We all know this time of year is crazy, so save yourself the time and hassle and let No Fuss Lights take care of ALL your exterior holiday lights.

Make Your Home a Fright!

Get into the spirit of the holidays, and make your home a showcase of the neighborhood and the envy of your neighbors. Whether you’re more of a Casper the Friendly Ghost or a serious Amityville Horror fan, No Fuss Lights has got you covered.

Instead of the same old lame pumpkins and hay bales, up your decorating game and get some unique lighting ideas here or on Pinterest. Add in your own creepy yard décor, and we’ll take care of installing, removing and storing your lights.

Choose Your Color Scheme

Orange is the obvious choice, but you could also go with orange and purple or green or blue for an equally spooky atmosphere. If you’re looking for super ghastly look (think haunted graveyard at night), try red and orange, which will look like flames! Add in some mummies, zombies, skeletons, ghosts hanging from the trees, giant spiders, and super creepy mood music, and your trick or treaters will be in for a frightful treat!

Safe Trick or Treating

If you’re concerned about how to trick or treat safely this year, check out these suggestions:

  • Spread candy out on a table or sidewalk
  • Get your robot to hand out candy (no joke!)
  • Create a candy chute
  • And the easiest one: make a mask part of your costume!

The most important thing to remember: less is NEVER more when it comes to the holidays!

Should You Hang Christmas Lights on a Brand New Roof?

Because we’ve been installing Christmas lights on Houston-area homes for a long time, we’ve gotten to know a lot about roofs. So all of us at No Fuss Lights can appreciate the look (and feel!) of a newly-shingled roof – and we also understand why some homeowners might be nervous about putting Christmas lights on it.

We’ve certainly heard a few horror stories about homeowners or amateur light-hangers who used staple guns, screws, or nails to attach Christmas lights to roof shingles. In fairness, these methods will probably keep your lights from falling off your house during the holiday season – but they’ll leave holes in your shingles through which rain can leak into your roof decking throughout the remainder of the year.

At No Fuss Lights, we only use commercial-grade shingle tabs and multi-clips to secure Christmas light strands to your roof. These products do not compromise the integrity of your shingles or roof in any way. Where appropriate, we also fasten the Christmas lights to your gutters or eaves and leave the shingles alone entirely. (We also discourage placing lights along upper roof ridge lines if shingle tabs are required.)

In short, No Fuss Lights has plenty of experience in hanging attractive, durable holiday lights on homes without damaging their roofs at all. But if you are still apprehensive, don’t worry – we can still decorate your home beautifully without putting Christmas lights on your roof. Our expert designers can work with you to create a dazzling and festive display for your home and property.

Give No Fuss Lights a call today at 281-809-7021 or fill out this form for a free estimate. We look forward to meeting you – and seeing your roof!

No Fuss Lights Means No Extra Power Outlets

One of the most frustrating things about making a major purchase is discovering that you need to buy something else in order to make it work properly. Like needing a specific adaptor for a new piece of stereo equipment, or a new set-top box or cable so you can actually watch programs on your television.

Unfortunately, there’s something similar that happens in the Christmas lights installation industry, and it involves extra AC outlets.

It’s not unheard of for a company to come to a home, charge a bunch of money to hang Christmas lights, and then tell the homeowners that they need additional outdoor plugs so that all of the holiday lights can be plugged in without overloading their electrical system. These new outlets sometimes cost $100 or more apiece, and there’s no guarantee that the homeowners will ever use them again except for holiday lighting. (There have also been a few horror stories about improperly-installed electrical outlets which have caused homeowners to deal with building code compliance issues later on.)

Does this sound like a shady practice to you? We at No Fuss Lights think so. Which is why we will NEVER ask you to purchase extra power outlets as part of our service.

Not only do we think this practice is abhorrent, but there simply isn’t any need for us to add any new plugs in order for our Christmas light displays to be fully illuminated. That’s because No Fuss Lights uses LED lights, which consume a fraction of the power that regular incandescent lights do. As a result, we can literally take dozens of strands of lights, connect them end-to-end, and plug the entire sequence into a single power outlet (as opposed to a maximum of four or five incandescent strands of lights).

So don’t get swindled by companies who insist that you buy extra electrical plugs. Let No Fuss Lights decorate your home with beautiful, energy-efficient LED lights and power them using your existing electrical outlets. Call No Fuss Lights today at 281.809.7021 or fill out this contact form for more information.

Image credit: No Fuss Lights
Image credit: No Fuss Lights

Have Yourself a Merry Little ‘Accident-Free’ Christmas – Part Deux

We’ve already talked about the types of falling accidents that homeowners can suffer while hanging Christmas lights on their homes. But did you know that there are many other ways that people unintentionally ruin their holiday season?

This week, the 3rd annual Allstate Holiday Home Hazards poll was released, and it revealed some startling behaviors:

  • The majority of people (53%) admit to plugging too many electrical cords into a single outlet.
  • Approximately 29% of people revealed that they failed to water their Christmas tree for more than three days (which increases the possibility of a fire).
  • Roughly a quarter of respondents said they have fallen asleep or left their homes while candles (28%) or a fireplace fire (24%) were still burning.
  • More than seven in ten people surveyed who own fireplaces have not had them inspected and/or cleaned in the past year.
  • Roughly three out of every seven people confess to watching television or a movie while cooking instead of focusing solely on the food preparation.
  • Almost a third of respondents say they have left their home or dozed off while food was cooking on the stove or in the oven.
  • About 9% report that smoke or a fire has resulted in their home from a cooking mishap.

Let these figures serve as a reminder to be a little extra cautious this holiday season in order to protect your home and your family.

At No Fuss Lights, we pride ourselves not only on creating a beautiful light display for your home, but also ensuring that all of the power cords, connectors, and other components are installed with the utmost care and safety. There’s still time to make an appointment with No Fuss Lights to decorate your home and property before Christmas. Just fill out this form or call us at 281-809-7021 today!

Have Yourself a Merry Little ‘Accident-Free’ Christmas with No Fuss Lights!

There’s never a good time to suffer an injury; but it’s especially inconvenient during the holidays. That’s because your discomfort, pain, and/or restricted mobility are likely to impact your holiday activities and reduce your level of enjoyment during this magical season.

Some common types of accidents this time of year involve decorating your home or hanging up outdoor Christmas lights. A pair of studies performed by a Canadian hospital reveals some depressing statistics. Over the last decade, almost a thousand people have checked into Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary for Christmas-lights related injuries. And about 40 of these individuals had injuries at the top of the severity scale – including some who required nursing home care, others who went on life support, and even two who eventually died.

It’s true that Houstonians don’t have to deal with snow, ice, and other harsh winter conditions like many Canadians do when hanging their Christmas lights. However, the area’s relatively-temperate climate may lull some homeowners into a false sense of security when hanging lights or decorating – which can also prove to be dangerous.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that more than ten thousand people in the U.S. visit emergency rooms due to mishaps from holiday decorating. ER docs report injuries ranging from fractured arm and leg bones to broken hips and necks. Some people even think it’s a good idea to enjoy some holiday “spirits” before getting up on a ladder to decorate – and often, the results are predictably bad.

One near-foolproof way to avoid holiday accidents is to entrust No Fuss Lights to not only hang your outdoor Christmas lights, but also to decorate other parts of your home and property with wreaths, bows, lighted figures, and other holiday accouterments. So make your holiday season healthy as well as happy by calling No Fuss Lights today at 281-809-7021 or filling out this form to make an appointment with their decorating specialists.

Because after all, there are few things more depressing than having people sign your cast at a holiday party.

The Price of a Fall in Winter

Even though you’ve seen advertisements for No Fuss Lights, maybe you’re thinking that this service is not for you. After all, why pay good money for professionals to do a job that you can complete yourself?

Let’s take a closer look at that logic – especially when it comes to what can go wrong.

Say you’re up on a ladder, wearing a coat or jacket (and maybe gloves) and trying to string up your Christmas lights. Since you only do this once a year, it’s taking a while to get everything done. And maybe…

  • a gust of wind knocks you off balance, or
  • the ladder isn’t on a completely flat surface, or
  • you lean just a little too far to fasten that last bulb on a light strand, or
  • the horizontal spreaders on your stepladder aren’t completely horizontal and start to fold in, or
  • your extension ladder is positioned just a little too steeply

… and you fall off the ladder and onto the ground below.

This isn’t some hypothetical, it-can’t-happen-to-me scenario. According to the World Health Organization, roughly 164,000 people a year make a trip to an emergency due to a ladder fall. Many of them suffer severe abrasions, broken bones, or concussions – and about 300 of them die from their injuries each year.

Even if you have health insurance, the costs of the ER visit will take a pretty big chunk out of your holiday budget. Plus, you may have to spend part of the Christmas season in bed, with a cast, or on crutches. Happy holidays!

Not only will No Fuss Lights create a festive holiday lighting display at your home, but by keeping you off of a ladder, you (and your family) will have peace of mind knowing that you won’t be spending time and money on a holiday ER visit.

Give No Fuss Lights a call today at 281-809-7021, or visit our website at NoFussLights.com – and leave the Christmas light installation to us!