Takedown & Storage · Waterloo

Christmas Light Takedown and Storage in Waterloo

January is Waterloo's snowiest month, with snow on the ground almost every day and close to twenty-one days when the high stays below freezing. That is when lights come down, which is exactly why most people would rather not do it themselves.

Takedown is scheduled through January on days when the eaves are clear of ice and the ladder can be footed safely. Clips are released from the eavestrough and shingle edge by hand, not pulled, and strings are coiled as they come down. Nothing is forced off an iced gutter: a frozen clip waits for a thaw.

What is done

• Remove by hand. Clip by clip, so eavestroughs and shingles are not levered.
• Test. Each string is tested; any failed string is noted for replacement before next season.
• Label by run. Front eave, left peak, porch, spruce. Next fall each string goes back to the same spot.
• Store. Off-site in bins or in your garage, dry and coiled.
• Report. Any damage spotted on gutters, shingles or soffits is photographed and sent to you.

Supplied or owned

Lights can be yours, with takedown and storage as a service, or supplied by the installer each year as part of the price, so you never buy or replace strings. Which suits depends on how long you plan to keep a display and whether you like to change it. The terms of either option are set out in the written quote.

Discard what is unsafe

Health Canada advises discarding strings that are frayed, have exposed wire or have loose connections. Those are set aside rather than stored, and you are told which ones.

Why not leave them up?

Seasonal strings are made to be put up and taken down. Left on the house through a Waterloo winter and into spring, clips get brittle in the sun, strings sag under ice and wind, and the eavestroughs they sit in cannot be cleaned properly. A string left in a gutter through the spring thaw also traps leaves and grit and slows drainage. If you want the house lit all year, that is what permanent lighting is for; seasonal lights come down in January and go back up, tested, in the fall.

Booking

Takedown is normally booked with the install, so it happens without another call. If the lights need to stay up past a particular date, say so when booking.

Frequently asked questions

Serving Waterloo and surrounding areas. Contact us for a no-obligation quote specific to your property.