There's something in the air

As Llandudno finally - if somewhat belatedly - turns on its Xmas lights, houses around the area are starting to twinkle as outside lights make their first appearances. LEDs are very much in this year, as their extra reliability and pin-sharp brightness tends to make them an attractive choice for our often wet and windy corner in the UK. Inside, too, LEDs are arriving, but their stark colour range tends to make them less attractive that the older style of warm yellow tungsten lights.

The annual ritual of entering the loft to drag down the crated lights is often a precursor to the frustration of wondering why - when  you put a perfectly working set of lights away the year before - they mysteriously no longer work when you get them down. Is there - you could be forgiven from wondering - some Xmas lighting gremlin that delights in causing untold misery and irritation to those who simply like a nice set of lights? Probably not, but if often makes you feel better to blame some supernatural force, the weather, New Labour or next door's cat for the stubborn refusal of some sets to simply work.

Light sets are fascinating things, which have entranced Carneades since he can remember. Even stranger is the mystery of why some lights continue to work - year after year - without fail, yet others seem to yearn for self-destruction within hours of starting their job. Noma  - a US brand - are supposed to be better than many, but experience has shown that they can be both the most reliable and the least, depending on the type of light.

For those who experience the other niggle about lights - getting them all tangled - there is help at hand.  When  you put lights away, forget about gadgets 'guaranteed' to stop them tangling.  Instead, simply feed the lights into a largish box as a single line of lights - don't dump them in at one go - and let them lie as they land.  When you come to the end of the line of lights - be it a plug or the lead itself - tape that end to the side of the box.  Next year, undo that tape and the light will emerge - totally untangled - ready for testing. 

Testing, untangling and repairing light sets takes a lot of time, but the finished results can brighten both the house and the mood of anyone who sees them.  Just be careful to use extension blocks with normal 13A plugs fused to 3A and don't take the chance of sticking together light leads with tape.  There's a reason most house fires happen around Xmas. Merry lighting!