Illuminate Your Holidays: Expert Tips for Hanging Lights Safely

Marketing Tri-State • December 2, 2025

Deck the Halls Safely: Tips for Hanging Holiday Lights

Whether your decorations are minimal, or you’re at all-out war with the neighbors, let us help you protect your home from damage this holiday season.

In National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Clark Griswold shows us exactly what not to do in almost every scene. Yet somehow, plenty of people still think his staple-gun method for hanging Christmas lights is perfectly fine. Sure, it looks quick and cheap… but it’s far from safe.

Not true! Any object that penetrates your shingles instantly creates a vulnerable point that can lead to cracking, moisture intrusion, and long-term water damage — the kind that becomes costly fast. Your roof’s entire purpose is to act as a protective barrier for your home and family, so whether it’s screws, nails, or staples, never put holes in your shingles.

Even worse, metal staples can rub against the plastic coating on your holiday lights, wearing it down and exposing the wiring — a serious fire and electrocution risk.

If you absolutely insist on using staples, only use insulated staples designed for light cords, and attach them to the wood trim — never to the shingles. But keep reading… because there are far safer and more effective ways to make your home merry and bright this season!

Holiday Light Hacks: Clips, Not Nails!

Say hello to your new holiday helper: plastic light clips. Affordable, easy to find at hardware stores or online, and best of all—they won’t harm your roof! Check out Christmas Lights Etc for a helpful guide to the many styles available, whether you’re hanging C7 or C9 bulbs, mini lights, icicle strands, or a dazzling mix of them all.

Whenever possible, attach your lights to gutters, eaves, or siding. While some plastic light clips can attach directly to shingles, doing so can wear down the shingle surface and remove granules, especially in windy conditions.

Tips for installing lights safely with plastic clips:

Check your lights – Make sure they work, inspect for damage like exposed wiring, replace broken bulbs, and never use indoor lights outside.
Plan your outlets – Map where your lights will plug in, and check how many strands can safely connect to one outlet. Avoid mixing LEDs and incandescent lights on the same circuit.
Inspect gutters and fixtures – Repair any loose pieces before hanging lights to prevent them from taking decorations down with them.
Attach clips on the ground first – Secure the clips to your lights before climbing a ladder for safer installation.
Seal connections – Moisture in light connections often causes blown fuses. Use duct tape or electrical tape on each connection and loose end. For very wet conditions, you can place the connection inside a small plastic container with holes for added protection.

Not a fan of clips? Don’t grab the staple gun—there are safer options:

Zip ties – Perfect for railings or other sturdy surfaces. Quick to attach and remove.
3M Command Clips – Adhesive strips that come off cleanly. Note: some reviewers say they may struggle in wind, rain, or on uneven surfaces.
Custom DIY systems – For enthusiasts, permanently attach lights to a bar or pipe, and use hooks under eaves to hold them. This creates a setup that’s fast to hang every year.

With these tips, you can make your home merry and bright without damaging your roof or decorations!

The Creviers built a custom system using PVC pipe, zip ties, and broomstick clips — and there’s even a video showing their installation in action. Meanwhile, Christine Graves crafted a clever solution by drilling holes into a J-Channel bar, giving her perfectly spaced lights year after year.

Deck the Halls – Safely!

Every year, 14,000 people are injured while decorating for the holidays — that’s 230 injuries per day! With Thanksgiving and Christmas already hectic and costly, here’s how to keep you and your family safe while spreading holiday cheer.

Leave the Roof Climbing to Santa

Our top safety tip: Don’t walk on your roof!

Even a careful step can damage your shingles, wearing away the protective granules and shortening your roof’s lifespan. More importantly, anyone who isn’t a professional roofer is at serious risk of falling and sustaining major injuries.

But we know some people will head up there anyway. If you do, follow these tips to stay as safe as possible:

Wear proper shoes: Choose soft sneakers with a good grip.
Limit your time: Spend only as long as necessary on the roof.
Shingle roofs: Step in the center of each shingle, avoiding the lower edges where shingles overlap.
Tile roofs: Walk on the peaks of the tiles, never in the valleys.

Your safest bet? Keep your feet on the ground and let the pros handle it.

Find an Elf to Help with the Ladder

Always have a ladder buddy!

A helper can hold the ladder steady, hand you decorations and supplies, and provide encouragement (or maybe just a few laughs) from the ground.

Ladder falls are one of the most common holiday injuries, so follow these tips to decorate safely:

Set up on stable, level ground – never on uneven surfaces.
Use an extension ladder, not a step ladder – avoid teetering on tiptoes at the top of a ladder that’s too short.
Mind your center of gravity – don’t reach too far to the side; climb down and reposition the ladder instead.

A little caution goes a long way toward a safe and stress-free decorating season.

For a Style that Sleighs

We can’t finish without sharing some stunning Christmas light inspiration! You’ve heard our advice—never staple lights to your roof—so now sit back and enjoy these beautifully decorated homes as you plan your own festive displays.

Traditional Christmas Lights

For a traditional look, keep the lights white and aim for symmetry. There are three varieties of white LED lights. Warm white mimics the glow of classic incandescent bulbs, polar white gives off an icy-blue tinge and pure white is just what it sounds like. We recommend using a mix of warm white and polar-white, using warm white along your roof line and polar-white in any greenery.

Classic and Colorful Christmas Lights

If you want to introduce some color but still have a traditional style, then less is more!

Go Big or Go Home: Extravagant Christmas Lights

If you want your home to really stand out, then mix up the colors you choose, increase the number of bulbs, and use different sized bulbs across your home.