Can I Cut Led Christmas Lights

A pair of scissors will do the job.

Can i cut led christmas lights.

We explained in our article answering the question are christmas lights in series or parallel we discussed that while mini lights with small wiring harnesses wired in series cannot be easily cut to custom lengths parallel wired cords can be cut and terminated. As stated you must change the current limiting resister to match. This problem can occur when christmas lights are added to the yard and yard decorations. If however you are installing c7 c9 18 awg christmas light cords with sockets and screw in bulbs that are wired in parallel yes you can shorten them.

If you know or can measure the led current for each led end therefore for a series and the voltage drop of each and the applied voltage you could calculate the resistance and wattage of a resistor to limit the current to a safe value. This video will show you how to cut an led string so you will have a usable length without have to much left over. You should be cutting between the copper dots. Hold the lights still and cut along the dotted line.

Line up the cut carefully to avoid damaging the leds. With the lights unplugged cut the two wires that enter the last light in the series strand with wire cutters. Twist the two bare wire ends together. After twisting the wires together secure with a wires connector.

R v supply n v led over i led p i led 2 r. Cut the led strip apart with scissors. Electrical tape this is optional but if you want to make sure that your wire nuts are secured then it s best to purchase a roll as well. You can find led calculators to determine the propper resister but too many different voltages for different leds.

Sometimes christmas light strings are too long or too short. They re also available online. They will be used to cut and shorten your led christmas lights. Use wire cutters to strip the ends of the two wires cut in the previous step.

Wire cutters again a pair can be purchased in any hardware or electrical supply store. If you are handy with a multimeter it is really simple. When your three strand christmas lights are too long for the place you had intended and you do not have any shorter strands you can shorten your light strand in a couple of easy but time consuming ways. No you can t lengthen or shorten standard series wired incandescent and led christmas tree light strings that are made with 2 or 3 wire harnesses.