The neighbors have decked their halls with the brightest lights ever seen - Santa and his reindeer on the lawn, candy cane striped trees and a blinking icicle motif on the eaves. It makes the house next door - yours - look drab and dreary.
Never fear. It’s not too late to turn your lightless lawn into an illuminated wonderland. All you need is a little inspiration and a fair amount of cash. There are two options for procrastinating homeowners: Do it yourself or hire others to do it.
More and more homeowners are choosing the latter option, either because they’re unable to do the work or they don’t have time, says Heath Redding, owner of Handsome Holiday Heroes, a Christmas light installation company in Eureka Springs.
“The idea of professional Christmas light installation started picking up about 2008,” he says. Redding attributes that partly to a push by lawn care companies who went into the installation business to keep employees year-round and partly to the segment of the population who can’t make it up onto a ladder or onto the roof.
“There’s a huge part of the population that can’t get on the roof or simply don’t have time to go to the store and pick out decorations,” he says.
Amanda Ragar, co-owner of Scott’s Lawn Service and Christmas Decor, concurs. “A lot of the customers we work with a lot of times, both parents work,” she says. “The rooflines here in Northwest Arkansas can also be pretty steep, so they call us.”
That has led to numerous companies around the state that provide a once-a-year service. Here’s how it works:
Homeowners meet with a light installer to work out a plan. The installer measures the home and gives the potential client a quote and options in different price ranges.
Ragar says Scott’s Lawn Service and Christmas Decor offers options based on a client’s budget. Redding’s company offers three basic packages that are customized to fit a client’s home and budget.
David Gretzmier, owner of The Lighting Master in Springdale, says installation costs range from $550 for a basic roof outline to $23,000 for an over-the-top installation. Ragar says fees for an installation by Scott’s Lawn Service and Christmas Decor typically begin at about $500.
Once a package and price are agreed on, the installer cuts the lights to fit the the home and installs them. Lights are placed on a timer or a twilight sensor that turns the lights on at dusk.
Some companies such as Get Lit in Springdale and The Lighting Master sell the lights, while others such as Scott’s Lawn Service and Handsome Holiday Heroes lease lights to customers.
There are pros and cons to each setup, Jason Hull with Get Lit says. “If you lease the lights, you’re paying to lease them every year,” he says. But leasing lights also offers homeowners the chance to change their lighting scheme each year, Redding says.
The installers provide maintenance for the lights. If a bulb goes out or a strand blows down during a windstorm, the installer will make a house call to fix the problem free of charge.
Even if just one bulb goes out, most installers’ contracts require them to replace it.
At the end of the season, the company takes the lights down. Most will store the lights.
Is it too late to hire someone to install Christmas lights? No, say our experts. Most companies begin work in October, but will install lights through mid-December.
Hull likes to have lights installed by Thanksgiving, but his company, Get Lit, has done installations as late as Dec. 15.
“We’ll install up until the last person wants us to install lights,” says Ragar.
Sound too good to be true? In some cases, it is.
Homeowners should ask questions:
Ask to see liability insurance and workers’ compensation papers. “Unfortunately, accidents do happen on work sites,” says Hull. If a company isn’t properly insured or doesn’t have workers’ compensation insurance, falls and other accidents can cost the homeowner. Insurance classifications specify if an installer is allowed to work off the ground, according to Gretzmier, who says his company carries electrical, roofing and holiday lighting insurance policies. At the very least, the insurance should cover roof and electrical work, Hull says.
Ask about experience. “You want to make sure whoever is installing your lights is very experienced,” Hull says. If the company will be storing your lights, be sure they’ve been in business for several years. “We’ve had customers come to us after the company they stored their lights with went out of business and their lights are nowhere to be found,” he says.
Redding recommends asking for portfolios or references.
Ask how the installer plans to put up the lights, says Ragar. “Don’t use installers who glue or staple lights to your home,” she says. Also, ask if an installer plans to make any changes to the roof, including lifting up shingles to attach lights, says Gretzmier. Those types of changes can cause leaks, he says.
Read the fine print. Some companies put language in their contracts that either bind the homeowner to mediation if any damage happens during Christmas light installation or exonerates the installer from liability for damage to the home, says Gretzmier.
Also, be sure to look for language regarding electrical fires, he adds.
HomeStyle, Pages 31 on 12/07/2013