Before any lights go up, the surface they’re going on is worth a look. A few things worth checking on your roofline and exterior before decorating season:
Clear gutters first
Clips and light strands often anchor along the gutter edge or fascia. Gutters packed with fall leaves make that harder to do cleanly, and anything installed over debris is more likely to come loose in the first windstorm. Clearing gutters before decorating also means one less job waiting once the season’s over.
Check the fascia and siding
Moss, algae staining and general grime show up more once white lights are reflecting off the surface at night. If the exterior hasn’t been washed since summer, decorating season is a natural point to get it done rather than after, when ladders and cords are already in the way.
Mind what the cords rest on
Extension cords and light strands left touching damp moss or organic buildup on a roof edge can accelerate staining underneath. Cleaning that buildup ahead of time — rather than working around it after lights go up — keeps both the install and the surface underneath in better shape.
Plan for takedown, not just install
Whatever goes up over gutters and rooflines eventually needs to come down again, ideally before the next round of fall debris arrives. Building that into your seasonal plan avoids a scramble in late winter.
If your gutters and fascia need clearing before decorating season, gutter cleaning and house washing are both ours. And if you’d rather not deal with the ladder at all, holiday lighting installation covers the whole job — we design, install, maintain and take the lights down ourselves, and we own and store them between seasons.