FAQ's

Please feel free to comment or ask about anything.

How many lights are there? 
2012
700=C9’s on the roof
127=C9’s in the star
800=minis on the chimney
3,200=800 minis on each arch x 4 arches
2,400=300 minis on each mini-tree x 8 trees
2,400=minis in the wreath
3,200=minis in the spiral tree
2,200 minis in the Ash tree
10=flood lights
5=Victorian lights
40=strobe lights
=15,000+ lights



2011
700=C9’s on the roof
127=C9’s in the star
800=minis on the chimney
3,200=800 minis on each arch x 4 arches
2,400=300 minis on each mini-tree x 8 trees
2,400=minis in the wreath
3,200=minis in the spiral tree
2,200 minis in the Ash tree
10=flood lights
5=Victorian lights
=15,000+ lights

2010
700=C9’s on the roof
127=C9’s in the star
800=minis on the chimney
3,200=800 minis on each arch x 4 arches
2,400=300 minis on each mini-tree x 8 trees
1,900=minis in the Ash tree
900=minis in the net lighting
5=Victorian lights
=10,000+ lights

How much wiring is involved?
If you were to stretch all of the wire used in the show end-to-end, it would be OVER 3 miles long. 

How much electric does the display consume?
The 2009 show, with everything on at once, drew about 2800 watts & 23 amps of power.
The 2010 show, with everything on at once, draws about 9600 watts & 80 amps of power.
The 2011 show, with everything on at once, draws about 12,900 watts & 108 amps of power.
           --This is equivalent to running 129 100W light bulbs at once. 

How are the lights controlled?
Every set of lights is computer controlled down to 1/20th of a second.  The controllers can be seen here and sequencing software used is Vixen.  There are six 16-channel controllers and four 24-channell controllers which works out to 192 individual channels.  

How long does it take to put together?
In all seriousness, all year.  Each controller takes 3-4 hours to assemble.  Plus hours upon hours to build the mini-trees, arches, star, make extension cords and not to mention countless hours to sequence each song.   Then there is the amount of time spent getting everything to work completely in unison to do exactly what you want.  

WHY??? 
Hard to answer that one.  Maybe the better question is “Why not?”.
 
Do you pay professionals to come in and set everything up?
Not quite……..we would hardly be considered professionals.
 
Can I do something like this?
Yes…………Anyone can do it once you get an understanding of all the different parts involved and how to set things up.  If you’ve got the time and curiosity, there are plenty of online resources. (http://www.doityourselfchristmas.com/forums/index.php)  Having some type of electrical/computer knowledge would help too.