Just a thought. Has anyone tried using eye hooks, pulleys and cable for hanging lights? One eye hook at one end, small pulley at the other, and small diameter cable. You only have to put it up once and it stays. No more climbing up the peaks to hang lights. We used this method on a 120 ft. antenna and it worked fine. Would be great, if you face turns blue and you don't like to climb LOL if you know what I mean. At end of year you lower cable to take lights off, and the cable stays. Next year zip tie lights to cable and pull them up. Me, I do not like to climb if I don't have to. Maybe someone could incorporate this into their setup and save alot of time each year.
I did that with my static display at the last house I lived in. I wanted to hang snowflakes from the "sky" throughout the display area on one side of the house so I ran cable between three or four trees across the yard. I used dark green vinyl-clad clothesline cable - virtually invisible at night and it blended in nicely during the summer. It worked great!
____________________ Dear, please stop referring to me as "the mad scientist"... How many times do I have to remind you I'm NOT a scientist! http://www.clearwaterlights.org
That will work great ,but I was referring to peaks or gables on houses. This way you can lower the cable to put lights up or take them down without climbing. I will try to draw up something and post it so you get a better idea. I might take awhile cause not real sure how to get drawing on to post
Sorry to say I can't get drawing to go. Will wait till my 7 y/o granddaughter gets home so she can show me how. Short version, cable between two pulleys, tension er on top, lower tension er to bottom or one end, hook up lights as you raise, put cable clamp on bottom end once up all the way, reverse at end of season.
The first thing that comes to mind is that you either have to keep lines strung through the pulley year round, or you have to climb up at the ends of the run to thread the pulley each year. There may also be more sag in the line than you want to put up with, with the straight edge of the eve adjacent to it.
Not really, if I can get the picture posted it will help a lot. It is just a cable between two pulleys with tension that you raise and lower each year. the cable stays and you take the lights off as needed.
I'm with ya on the ladders and heights thing, Pete! Maybe sagging could be minimized if you put cup hooks every x feet along the gable, and, unless you have a really high peak, use a length or two of pvc pipe to push the cable/lights onto the hooks from a comfortable position. Just a thought.
That, and a 120' antenna is just screaming "super mega tree"!
My granddaughter said "Your drawings aren't so very good grandpa," so I will be off to Home Depot shortly to pick up stuff and take pictures. Don't ya just love grand kids?? And I meant turnbuckle not tensioner. Will post pic asap.
Part of yearly expansion of my Christmas show this year I will be adding five falling stars to my LOR controlled displays. I will be adding more stars up to 16 once my budget recovers for car repair bills.
I want the system to be modular and to reduce my setup time each year. I am going to build a panel to mount my stars to on a 3' wide panel by 10 foot tall system similar to what I used for my house face lights show in this picture.
I will be able to just lift it into place on hooks and plug the lights in. I will post pictures once I have them built and hung in a couple of weeks.
