Everybody plans the install. Almost nobody plans January
Holiday lighting conversations happen in October and November and stop at the install date. Which makes sense, because that is the visible part. Then it is January, and something has to happen. The people who asked the question up front are the ones not on a ladder in the cold.And that is unfortunate, since the takedown is where a service is really tested. Anybody can hang lights in November. The real question is what happens after. That question is worth asking before you book, not the one you have in January.
The self service version
The takedown is worse. The weather is colder. The motivation is nonexistent. And the reward for finishing is a tangle of strands you now have to store. Whatever goes into that box is in worse shape next season.
Takedown as part of the job
Takedown should be part of the service, not a separate call. At the end of the season somebody returns and removes the display. The lights get labeled and stored in their facility, ready to reinstall the following season. You never store a single strand.
What storage actually buys you
Off site storage solves three problems at once. Your attic stays empty, which is worth something in most houses. The lights stay in the condition they were in, since attic heat and crushing are what kills them. Labeling is why year two looks like year one.
If you would rather not repeat this
There is a version of this where January stops being a thing at all. A permanent LED system goes up once and stays, so there is nothing to take down and nothing to store, ever. It costs more up front and it makes sense for households that never skip a season. But if the
https://evercrestlighting.com/permanent-lighting/ takedown conversation is the part you dread, it is worth asking about once.
What happens if something goes dark on the twentieth
A display is up for weeks, and something occasionally acts up. What matters is the response. Some companies include service through the season. Others bill each trip. Ask before you book, rather than the week you need it.
The second year
The first season involves a design conversation, decisions and a plan. Once a display is designed and stored, repeating it is administrative. Next season is a call, a date and the same display back on the house. Changes build on the existing plan, rather than starting over.
Questions for the quote
Ask if January is in the price. Ask who keeps them until next year. Ask roughly when in January the crew comes. EverCrest Lighting handles takedown and off season storage on holiday lighting, and installs permanent lighting for people who would rather stop repeating it, for residential and commercial properties across Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina, from Greenville. The consultation is free. Reach them at (864) 252-1732 or
[email protected].