LED Christmas lights make every holiday season a special one. If you’re like most Americans, you’re probably more than familiar with the yearly battle of not only trying to keep your electrical connections dry when used outdoors, but oh my! - untangling your outdoor Christmas decorations when you take them out of storage. Even though they’ve been sitting in the same place for the majority of the year, they’ve somehow found a way to form a tangled, messy knot. Dealing with jumbled LED Christmas lights is frustrating, and knots can also lead to broken bulbs and strained electrical connections. In today’s post, we’ll teach you how you can keep your LED Christmas lights safe during their time in storage. Shop The Christmas Light Emporium’s amazing catalog for fun and festive decorations if you’re already preparing for this year’s Christmas season!

Use Cardboard

If you’re storing your lights shortly after Christmas, you probably have more than a few extra cardboard boxes lying around the house. One of the most cost-effective ways to store your LED Christmas lights is by wrapping them around a small cardboard cutout. Start by cutting a cardboard rectangle that measures roughly 12” x 6”, and you can adjust the size of your cutout to fit the length of your Christmas lights. 

Cut a small notch in one side that you can tuck the end of the string into (it doesn’t matter which side of the rectangle you cut). The next step is easy! Begin wrapping your LED Christmas lights around the cardboard starting at one end and working your way toward the other. Once you’ve finished, your lights in a small towel or soft material to ensure that none of the lights are damaged during storage. 

Use Old Hangers

We’re willing to bet that you have more than a few extra hangers lying around the house, and hangers provide another easy and lost-cost way of storing your LED Christmas lights throughout the year. Try to find a hanger that has hooks on the ends of it, but a regular plastic hanger will work just as well. 

Start by wrapping your lights around one side of the hanger and then working your way toward the other. If your hanger has hooks on the sides, you can wrap your lights horizontally to ensure that none of them come loose in storage. If your hanger doesn’t have hooks, just make sure that the lights are wrapped tightly and that you secure the ends of the lights by tucking them inside one of the already-wrapped strings.

Invest in a Power Cord Roller

If you’re like us, you probably have too many Christmas lights for the previous two methods to be feasible. A power cord roller can help you store large quantities of Christmas lights safely, and you can find them at virtually any hardware store. This method requires a bit more of an investment than the previous two methods, but it’s one of the quickest ways to safely store a large collection of LED Christmas lights. Try to find a large power cord roller that accommodates heavy electrical cables, as this will provide you with enough storage space for your current collection as well as any additions you make in the coming years. Start by placing one end of your lights into the roller, and then proceed by slowly winding the cord holder. Make sure that you do this slowly, as you don’t want to damage any of the bulbs. Repeat this cycle for the remainder of your lights, plugging each new string of lights into the previous one as you roll them up.

We hope that you’ve enjoyed these tips that will keep your LED Christmas lights stored safely during the year. Stay tuned for future posts in which we’ll continue to provide you with creative and cost-effective ways to store your outdoor Christmas decorations. Head over to The Christmas Light Emporium today to make this Christmas season even more magical!