The case for handing it off
The job looks easy from the ground, then it eats a whole weekend. Add the steep pitch, a roof with a real pitch to it, and the fact that December in the Upstate can be wet, and a lot of people decide it is worth hiring out.
What you should be getting
A full Christmas light installation is more than a crew showing up with your old strands. It starts
https://erickziwg043.talesignal.com/posts/lighting-for-curb-appeal-the-half-of-curb-appeal-everyone-forgets-does-lighting-improve-curb-appeal-the-short-answer-is-yes-and-here-is-why-curb-appeal-after-dark with a design for the house: what gets outlined, which trees get wrapped, how it looks from the road. Then installation, which is where the ladders stop being your problem. Then maintenance through the season, because a strand will eventually act up. And then takedown, then off season storage, so nothing comes back into your garage.
Storage matters more than people think
Everybody thinks about the install. Fewer people think about the takedown. Takedown and off season storage are part of how they work, which means nothing lives in your attic between seasons.
Residential and commercial holiday lighting
At a house, the design is the roof edge, the entry and whatever is worth lighting in the yard. Commercial holiday lighting is doing another job: a lit building pulls attention in a season when everybody is competing for it. The install schedule is usually the negotiation, since most businesses want the ladders gone before the doors open.
What to agree on before you book
Agree on what gets lit specifically: the roof edge, the porch, the trees, the walk. Sort out ownership of the materials before the install. Settle the end of season in the same conversation as the install.
What a good quote should tell you
A quote with one number and no detail is not enough to compare. Scope should be written down: which rooflines, which trees, which entryways. It should say whose lights these are, since that determines where they go after the season. Takedown and off season storage should be spelled out, not left to a handshake. And it should say who to call during the season if a section goes dark.What December looks like when somebody else does the work is worth describing. You come home to a lit house, without having climbed anything. In January the same thing happens in reverse.
The other option: a permanent system
For anyone who does this annually, the permanent option is worth a look. Permanent lighting goes up once that covers the holidays and the rest of the calendar too. EverCrest Lighting does both. Consultations are free. They serve Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina from Greenville. Reach them at (864) 252-1732 or
[email protected].