Christmas lights are essential when decorating for the holidays. The vibrant colors, warm patterns and nostalgic designs add just the right festive sparkle to your home. But as you start stringing up those twinkling bulbs, you may be wondering: What happens if I use indoor Christmas lights outside?
In short, it’s not the best idea.
The Electrical Safety Foundation International reports that approximately 860 fires are caused by holiday decorations each year. With that in mind, it’s important to differentiate between inside and outside Christmas lights.
Indoor Christmas lights are typically designed for environments that are temperature and moisture controlled. Using them outside can lead to both minor and major consequences.
This post will cover the main differences between interior and exterior Christmas lights, why it’s important to differentiate between the two, and what could go wrong if you don’t.
Key Differences Between Indoor and Outdoor Christmas Lights
As mentioned above, the biggest difference in indoor and outdoor Christmas lights are the materials they’re made of. This dictates where they’re supposed to be used. Each type of light is designed using specific materials and with specific conditions in mind, greatly influencing their durability and safety features.
Weather Resistance
Outdoor Christmas lights are typically made with stronger, thicker materials that can withstand potentially harsh conditions like wind, rain, and snow. They are typically made with durable materials that resist water, moisture, and UV radiation from the sun. The wiring is often coated in thicker, more weather-resistant insulation, and the light bulbs themselves are sealed to prevent water from getting inside.
Indoor Christmas lights, on the other hand, are not equipped to handle outdoor conditions. They are typically constructed with thinner wiring and less insulation, making them vulnerable to water and extreme temperatures. If indoor lights are exposed to rain or snow, moisture can seep into the wiring or bulbs, leading to electrical shorts or even fires.
Safety Certifications
Regardless if you’re hanging indoor or outdoor Christmas lights, they should be approved by a nationally recognized testing laboratory such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL) or Electrical Testing Lab (ETL). Typically, lights carrying a green holographic UL mark on the tag are for indoor use only. However, if the mark is red it is likely safe for either indoor or outdoor use.
Christmas lights designed for indoor use usually only carry certifications for dry locations, making them potentially dangerous for outside use. Using indoor lights outside invalidates the safety certification, as they were not tested or approved for such use–something to keep in mind if using indoor Christmas lights outside of your home.
Durability
Due to being constructed with thicker materials, outdoor Christmas lights are weatherproofed for conditions such as rain, snow, sleet and temperature fluctuations. They’re typically constructed with tougher plastic, weatherproof bulbs, and more rugged connections between wires and sockets. This makes them more durable and capable of withstanding the elements over time.
Indoor Christmas lights on the other hand are often designed to be lightweight and easy to install inside the home. They may not have the same level of durability because they aren’t expected to face the wear and tear of being outside. When exposed to outdoor elements, the plastic on indoor lights can become brittle, and the wiring may degrade much more quickly.
What Could Happen if You Use Indoor Lights Outside?
So, what actually happens if you put indoor Christmas lights outside? Here are some potential risks and problems you could face:
Electrical Hazards: The most severe consequence of using indoor Christmas lights outside is the increased potential for electrical hazards. Because indoor Christmas lights do not have the same level of insulation as outside lights, they have weaker protective coatings, meaning using them in damp locations increases the risk of moisture breaching the seals.
This not only increases the potential of electrical shock when handling them, but also for greater hazards such as fires. The thicker insulation on outdoor specific Christmas lights won’t degrade as quickly as indoor specific lights, better protecting them and whoever handles them from live wires and electrocution.
Water Damage: Indoor Christmas lights are not waterproof, so if they’re exposed to rain or snow the wiring can be damaged. If moisture gets into the wiring of your Christmas lights, they could short-circuit, ruining the lights or even worse, causing a power outage.
Damage to your Christmas Lights: Using indoor Christmas lights outside raises the likelihood that they will be damaged. The wiring, insulation, and bulbs of indoor Christmas lights are not designed to handle the harsher conditions winter weather brings. Due to inhospitable conditions, indoor Christmas lights can become brittle, crack or even break when exposed to elements they’re not designed to withstand.
Voided Warranties: While both indoor and outdoor Christmas lights come with warranties and/or guarantees, they are often contingent on using the lights for their intended purpose. This means that if you use indoor lights for outside use, you’ll likely be unable to claim a refund or replacement if the lights become damaged while using them outside.
In Conclusion, it may be tempting to use your indoor Christmas lights outside due to convenience, but it can lead to some serious consequences. On top of damaging or altogether destroying your Christmas lights, injury, power outages, and severe electrical hazards are potential consequences of doing so. Which is why it’s best to only use indoor Christmas lights where they’re designed to be used: inside.
