Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Globe Light Size Comparison + Calculating Amperage

Globe Lights

Globe lights come in a variety of sizes, and I'll be the first to admit that the designations G30, G40, and G50 do not give a clue as to the size of the bulbs! Just remember the larger the number, the bigger the bulb. G50 are the globe bulb that most people think of when they think of globe style light bulbs, these are a large 2" diameter bulb. These styles of bulbs are available on both C7 (candelabra) base and C9 (intermediate) Base, we have some options for Medium base which is the size of a household light bulb but you'll have to call or email us for info on those bulbs.

More than just the size varies with Globe light bulbs, wattage of bulbs varies as well. G30 and G40 with a C7 (candelabra) base are 5 watts, where as C7 base G50 bulbs are 7 watts. You have to take this into consideration when decorating with globe lights because you DO NOT want to overload your wire. Speaking of which, here's the math on calculating amps for wire:


(Bulb Wattage) x (Number of Bulbs) = Total Wattage
(Total Wattage) ÷ 110 (Volts) = Amps

Example; Standard SPT-1 Wire handles 7 amps, so you do not want to exceed this, lets say you have 100 G4 Globe bulbs that are 5 watts a piece, your calculations should look like this

5 Bulb Wattage x 100 Bulbs = 500 Watts
500 Watts ÷ 110 Volts = 4.55 Amps

So as you can see, 4.55 amps is below so you can safely use 100 Globe bulbs on SPT-1 Wire. Most stringers we carry are SPT-1 unless noted and our spools of light light is available in both SPT-1 and SPT-2 options.

I hope this cleared up the confusion on bulb size of Globe lamps and let you have a little insight on how to decorate safely by calculating how many amps your number of bulbs are going to use.

Please visit our Globe Lights Page today!

--
Zach
All American Christmas Co.
www.aachristmas.com
www.allamericanchristmas.com

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Commercial Curtain Lights White Wire back in stock!

We just received our Commercial Wall of Light Curtain lights back in stock. These are the most popular Curtain light string we offer and for good reason, these sets look great and very well made. Our Wall of Light strings are 16.5 feet across the top and 9.5 feet tall so they are great for covering walls for parties and weddings. Their 456 bulbs provide plenty of light, and the drops are removable so you can remove lights if needed. These strings always sell out super fast so if you're wanting some for a project please don't delay and order ASAP before they are all gone again.

Click here to check out our Commercial Curtain lights

--
Zach
All American Christmas Co.
www.aachristmas.com
www.allamericanchristmas.com

Monday, July 11, 2011

MP3 Music Christmas Light Controller coming soon!



We started carrying this awesome controller last year and we quickly sold out! I'm trying to give everyone a heads up, we hope to receive these early September. So please bookmark the site or follow the blog (or RSS feed) because as soon as they are back in our hands to ship we'll update the site and blog.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Decorating with Rope Light

     Rope light is a super easy product to decorate with and can add great lighting just about anywhere. Rope light from stores like lowes or home depot come in  short lengths, but we here at All American Christmas Company sell rope light in spools of 150 feet that come with multiple power cords and other misc connectors that you'll need for a clean decorating job. Now most people will think, "Why on Earth would I need that much!!" but once you start wrapping the rope light around something those small strings from the hardware store will get used up quickly. We have always had the attitude, "If you're going to do something do it right and do it right the first time." and if you custom cut your ropelight to fit your application using a commercial rope light spool you're going to get exactly the right look with little fuss and hassle.

Rope light is pretty simple to decorate with, many people use this plastic neon lighting for mood lighting or accent lighting. You can install them around ceilings and floors for indirect lighting, You can use colors that coordinate with your room for a great effect! I've seen it even used to decorate behind desks and entertainment centers to add a cool mood lighting for offices and home theaters or even just a normal family room.


You can also use rope light to wrap things you want to light, you can use it around handrails on a deck or going up columns on the facade of a building. It's perfect for these type of applications and will a nice ambient lighting to a deck for entertaining guests or just relaxing outdoors. Rope light is also great for outlining tents for outdoor parties.



Installing Ropelight onto most surfaces is very, we offer a selection of clips but for most application you can use zip ties! Zip ties are easy to use, inexpensive, are not permanent, and shouldn't damage the surface. We also carry clips and rope light track. Our rope light clips can be nailed, or screwed, onto a surface and the ropelight track can use adhesive pads, glue, or silicone caulk.


Rope light comes in 3 typical sizes, 3/8", 1/2", and 5/8". These 3 sizes have a varying number of wire count, what that means is how many circuits the bulbs are wired in. Normally rope light has 2 wire, but if you want a chasing effect you will need to purchase a controller and 3 wire rope light, and if you want many different chasing options you will need to purchase 5 wire ropelight with the corresponding controller.

Please visit our Rope Light page to see all the rope light we have to offer!

--
Zach
All American Christmas Co.
www.aachristmas.com
www.allamericanchristmas.com