Our top tips to stay safe with large-scale Christmas decorations

During the festive season there’s nothing better than seeing our streets and buildings adorned with Christmas decorations. But if you’re planning on decking the halls, you need to make sure this is done safely – especially if it’s on a large scale – as the last thing you want is for your winter wonderland to pose a risk to those enjoying the view. Take a look through our top safety tips that cover everything from hanging them correctly, to using the right power distros, and more.

Domestic vs large-scale decorations

Before we get started, it’s worth pointing out that it’s still important to safely put up decorations in your home. When it’s on a large scale – say for an event or within your business premises – the scale of the risk is also more substantial. Whether it’s the sheer size and weight of bigger decorations, the increased number of fire hazards from hanging lights and objects or simply the greater electricity consumption, proper care and attention is a must to reduce the chance of any dangerous complications.

Our top safety tips

Inspect your lighting

Before you even think about where your Christmas lighting should be placed, a full inspection of them should be carried out.

Over time lights can break or deteriorate and it only takes one faulty bulb to short or overheat to bring a risk of causing shocks and fires. While this can take longer with large-scale lighting and fittings, it needs to be done – legally you will also need these to be tested and certified safe by a qualified electrician.

Stay away from fire hazards

When it comes to potential fire hazards, broken lights aren’t the only risk here, many other decorations can be flammable and shouldn’t be hung or placed near any standard light fittings or heaters. Equally, make sure these decorations aren’t placed near any alarms or sensors within your buildings, as you can impede their effectiveness and create further risks to the public.

Anchor your trees

A Christmas tree is often the centrepiece of large-scale festive decorations, but whether these are indoor or outdoor, they must be anchored down so they can’t be knocked over. Whether this is through having a combination of weighted stands or brackets and tie straps to affix them to nearby buildings or walls, a solid grounding is crucial.

Secure what you hang

In a similar vein, any large Christmas display pieces or strings of lighting across ceilings or between buildings also need to be securely attached from where you hang them. Again, brackets or fastenings should suffice, but make sure these are also durable, and if outdoors, weatherproof, so they don’t perish.

Don’t overload your power supplies

On top of making sure your Christmas lights remain shining bright for all to see, you need to make sure you don’t overload your power supplies and that you’re safely distributing electricity between your installations. A way to manage this is with quality rubber boxes and power distros, plus these can limit the number of cables you need, adding an extra level of safety from fewer trip hazards.

If you’re looking for reliable power distribution equipment for your Christmas displays, make sure you have a look at the range we have here at Rubber Box. You can request a quote today, but if you need any assistance call us on 01282 677 910 or email info@rubberbox.co.uk and we’ll be happy to help.