Getting Your Tulsa Home Ready for Holiday Light Installation

If you are picturing your home glowing with professional holiday lights this December, the work that makes that possible starts in September. Most homeowners wait until November and are surprised to find that the quality installers are fully booked. Getting on the calendar now means you actually get the install date you want and the design you had in mind.

Here is what we walk through with homeowners planning their first professional holiday light installation, or returning customers who want to refine last year's display.

Why September Planning Matters

Professional holiday light installation is seasonal work packed into a narrow window. Quality installers typically start installing in early to mid-November and are fully booked through early December in most years.

October is when most bookings finalize. By early November, many installers have no openings for new customers. By mid-November, the only slots available are often from cancellations or less-experienced operators with spare capacity.

September planning gives you the time to think through the design, get a consultation, and secure your preferred installation date. It also gives you time to order any custom elements (specific light lengths, unique features, specific color patterns) that may not be standard stock.

Measure Your Property Honestly

Most homeowners underestimate the scale of their property. A house that looks modest from the street is often much larger in terms of linear footage for eave lights, roofline details, and landscape features.

What to measure:

Linear feet of eaves and roofline. This is the primary measurement for most holiday light installations. Get a rough count in whole sections.

Height of eaves above ground. Standard residential eaves are 10 to 15 feet. Two-story homes or homes with architectural features can be significantly higher, which affects safety and equipment needs for the installer.

Trees and landscape features. Any trees you want wrapped should be noted (species, size, approximate height). Shrubs, fence lines, columns, and other features also add to the scope.

Window and door trim. Accent lighting around windows and doors adds significant visual impact but also significant linear footage.

Walkways and paths. Pathway lights, mini trees along walks, and entryway displays are common additions to a main house install.

A rough measurement tells you what kind of project you are planning. 150 linear feet is a modest install. 300 linear feet is substantial. 500+ is a major display.

Decide on the Look

Before a consultation, think about the aesthetic you are going for. The main options usually fall into a few categories:

Classic white. Pure white C9 or C7 bulbs along the roofline create a timeless elegant look. Often paired with warm white lights on trees and in bushes. This is the most popular choice for homes with traditional architecture.

Warm white. Similar to classic white but with warmer color temperature, producing a cottage or farmhouse feel. Less stark than pure white, more inviting.

Multi-color. Traditional red, green, blue, and amber bulbs produce the classic festive look. Works particularly well on homes with a traditional neighborhood character.

Themed displays. Specific color schemes (blue and white, red and white, all red) produce distinctive looks for specific architectural styles or personal preferences.

Statement displays. Combining roofline lights with wrapped trees, peak stars or snowflakes, large pathway features, and coordinated accent pieces produces memorable whole-property displays.

Look at houses you admire and pay attention to what you like. Save photos if you can. Bring them to the consultation.

Identify Power Supply Access

Holiday lights need electricity, which means outdoor outlets near where the installation is happening. Identify:

Where your outdoor outlets are located. Most homes have 2 to 4 outlets spread around the exterior, often on GFCI circuits.

Whether those outlets are on circuits with capacity to handle the additional load. Professional installers can help assess this.

Whether you need extension cords across walkways or driveways, which creates tripping hazards and often looks bad.

Whether timers or smart plugs are desired for automated on/off. Most professional installers handle this as part of the installation.

Homes with insufficient outdoor outlet access may need electrical work before or during the installation. An outdoor outlet added in September is straightforward. Adding one in late November is often not possible in time.

Consider LED vs. Incandescent

Most professional installers now use LED lights almost exclusively. The reasons:

Dramatically lower power consumption. LED holiday lights use roughly 10 percent of the electricity of equivalent incandescent. Over a season of nightly use, the difference in your electric bill is real.

Cooler operation. LEDs do not heat up like incandescent bulbs, which reduces fire risk and is safer in contact with dry vegetation.

Longer lifespan. LED strands often last 5 to 10 seasons of professional use versus 2 to 3 seasons for incandescent. For installers, this is a big deal. For homeowners who buy their own lights, it also matters.

Brighter output. Modern LED holiday lights produce more light per watt than incandescent equivalents, which shows up in the display.

The one place incandescent still has an edge is color quality for certain effects. Some installers offer incandescent upgrades for specific features where the warmer glow is desired. Ask about this if aesthetics is very important to you.

Schedule the Consultation

A good holiday light consultation covers:

Walk-through of the property to identify opportunities and limitations.

Discussion of preferred aesthetic and color scheme.

Review of power supply and any electrical considerations.

Rough quote based on linear footage, features, and complexity.

Installation and removal dates.

Storage of lights between seasons (many installers now store the lights, which means you do not have bins of tangled strings in your garage).

Consultations usually take 30 to 45 minutes and are often free or applied to installation cost if you book. Schedule these in September or early October to have time for any adjustments before booking.

Typical Installation Timing

Installers in the Tulsa metro typically start installing in the first full week of November. Popular dates (weekends, Thanksgiving week) book first. Less popular dates (early November weekdays, mid-December installations for later displays) have more availability.

Removal happens in early to mid-January. Most installations stay up through New Year's Day at least.

Installation typically takes a few hours to a full day depending on the scope. Most installers handle the install while you are at work or busy with other things.

Ballpark Pricing

Holiday light installation pricing varies widely based on scope, design complexity, and installer. Rough ranges for Tulsa metro:

Modest installations (roofline only, 150 linear feet or so): $500 to $1,000.

Standard installations (roofline plus a few trees and pathway features): $1,000 to $2,500.

Statement installations (full display with multiple features): $2,500 to $6,000.

Large property installations (extensive display on large properties): $6,000 and up.

These usually include lights (storage between seasons), installation, removal, mid-season maintenance for any outages, and timer setup. Custom elements, premium products, and very specific designs can push higher.

Why Professional Installation Is Worth Considering

DIY holiday lights can absolutely look great. But there are reasons many homeowners eventually move to professional installation:

Safety. Professional installers are equipped for height work and have insurance coverage. Roof and ladder accidents are a real risk for homeowners, particularly at the heights needed for two-story installations.

Time savings. A two-day DIY installation becomes a half-day professional installation. That time savings is particularly valuable during a busy holiday season.

Design expertise. Good installers have done enough displays to know what works. The final result usually looks noticeably better than a first-time DIY.

Product quality. Professional-grade lights last longer, produce better color, and look better than consumer-grade strings.

Storage and logistics. If the installer stores the lights between seasons, you reclaim garage space and do not deal with tangled strings next year.

Mid-season maintenance. If a section goes out in mid-December, the installer comes back to fix it. DIY means climbing back up yourself in December weather.

What to Do Next

If holiday lights are something you are considering this year, now is the time to start the conversation. Give us a call at (918) 605-4646 or request a quote online. Here is what to expect: we respond the same day, use satellite imaging to measure and assess your property (no walkthrough required, though holiday light consultations typically include an on-site visit which we can usually schedule within a day or two), and send you a customized quote within a few days. If it is a fit, your installation date is locked in on our schedule. No contracts. Cancel anytime. Good installation dates in November and early December fill up starting in October. Starting now gives you options.