How to Make Christmas Lights Blink
There are two different techniques that are used to create blinking lights. One is rudimentary and the other is more sophisticated. If your entire string of blinking lights stopped blinking, you probably bought the inexpensive lights thinking if they burn out you'd spend another $2 and get another set of lights next year. Most of us do that. The reason they are so inexpensive and burn out altogether is because they are all on the same circuit. The more complex (and expensive) lights run on three or four separate internal circuits, so if one light goes out, the circuit is still complete and the others remain lit. Rest easy, the fix for either is relatively simple. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Locate the controller bulb that burned out on the inexpensive-type blinker bulbs you purchased, if an entire string stops working. The controller bulb is usually marked with a different color tip than other the other bulbs, but not always. Usually, the tip is red or green or silver. Even the least expensive of light sets usually come with one or two control bulbs (if they are blinkers and regular bulbs if they are not). Many Christmas light sets now come with a fuse box, as well, to protect against power surges that could burn out the bulbs.
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Remove the controller bulb and replace it with one of the replacement bulbs that came with the set or that you may have had to purchase separately. Make sure to align the small copper wires on the base of the bulb with the receptacle contacts. The controller bulb is most susceptible to burning out because of its design that creates the blinking. There is a very tiny alloy strip that runs from a center post in the light to the filament. As the strip heats to a certain temperature it bends and opens the circuit and the the lights blink off. As it cools, it bends to its original shape, closes the circuit and the lights blink back on. The process occurs rather quickly so your lights flicker on and off every second or two. The repeated heating and cooling process eventually makes the strip very fragile and susceptible to breaking.
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Check the fuse box on the string of lights if replacement of the controller doesn't fix the problem. Hopefully, the fuse burned out and needs to be replaced. Locate the fuse box, its about one-quarter the size of a Zippo lighter with a sliding plastic door usually located toward the plug end of the light strand. Slide open the door and carefully pop out the fuse using a very small screwdriver A close inspection of the filament in the fuse will usually reveal whether it has broken because of overheating. If you can't tell or aren't sure, replace it anyway to be on the safe side. If the lights still aren't blinking, go to step 4
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Check every bulb on the string of lights. Remove the first one and replace it with a replacement bulb. If the string of lights remains off, replace the first bulb with the original and move on to light two, where you will repeat the process. Continue the process until you've found the faulty bulb.
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Replace the single bulb that has burned out on strands with 3 or more wire leads. If the string appears to light but no longer blinks, the problem likely lies with the controller light bulb. Replace the controller light bulb, and it should blink again.
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Tips & Warnings
Plug in your strands of light before decorating your Christmas tree to make certain they are working properly. It's much easier to find and fix the problem with the string of lights laid out on the ground than it is after it has been interwoven with other light strands and the tree.
If none of the above fixes the problem, the wire between the bulbs itself may be faulty, in which case you will need to replace the entire string.
If you purchased one of the deluxe light sets, they are run from a control box that can be adjusted for timing and phasing of the lights and operate on a different principal than do the less expensive controller bulb lights. They are almost exclusively at least triple wired and you should only experience problems with individual lights burning out if it is wired incorrectly at the controller, which consists mostly of an electrical board with resistors and capacitors that can be set to control the timing.
References
- Photo Credit christmas-tree image by sylvia from Fotolia.com
