How to Automate My Christmas Lights

Automatically turn on and off your Christmas lights and displays.

Instituting an automation program in your home can provide safety, power savings and peace of mind. Christmas is a stressful time for many people with all the added little things that need attending. Hooking up a timer to your Christmas lights will automatically turn them on and off at predetermined times. This lets you remove one thing from your list of tasks during the Christmas holidays.

Things You'll Need

• Automatic timer

Instructions

1. Determine when you want your Christmas lights to go on. Some people prefer to have the lights lit only during the evening hours while others like them light up from morning to bedtime. Whatever fits your desires, you can automate the lights to turn on or off at those times.

2. Locate the power outlet of the lights you desire to automate.

3. Set the time you desire the lights to turn on. Some timers allow you to customize the schedule to select different times for each day of the week. Set the time for the lights to turn on for each day of the week if that is the type of timer you have purchased.

4. Set the time you desire the lights to turn off for each day of the week.

5. Unplug the power cord to the lights from the socket and plug in the timer in its place.

6. Plug the power cord of the lights into the timer socket. The timer will stop the power during the times you have selected and allow power to flow through the cord to the lights during the rest of the day.

Tips & Warnings

• When using a timer for outside lighting, make sure your timer is for outdoor use.

• Clear any fire hazard away from the timer. Accidents can occur that will turn your holiday into a disaster.

• Make sure the outlet is a Ground Fault Indicator (GFI) socket. This type of outlet for outdoor displays will prevent loosing your power all the time.

References

• Adverticia: Alarm Clock Home Automation
• EZ DIY Electricity: Basic Ways to Automate Your Christmas Lighting Displays