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Pre-lit Tree or Tree + Lights?

HeatherB

HeatherB

Ain't nothin wrong with a few dust bunnies!
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Jun 2, 2010
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Yet another string of lights isn't working for our tree and DH is convinced that we should buy a pre-lit tree next year to avoid the hassle of putting the lights on the tree. But I'm not convinced. Wouldn't a pre-lit tree still have the same problems of some lights not working from year to year? Let me know about your experiences with pre-lit trees!
 
I've never had an artificial tree, but my best friend does and we talked about this very thing last week. They currently have a tree without lights. At one point they had a smaller prelit tree and lights going out was a huge issue. It only lasted them a few years. On the other hand, my in-laws have had a nice prelit tree for several years and haven't had any problems as far as I know. Maybe it depends on quality and price?
 
I thought a pre-lit tree sounded like a good idea until I heard someone say they had to replace their whole tree because some of the lights were dead. So I'm sticking with strings of lights because they're easier to replace.
 
We got our pre-lit tree at a good price last year so we were willing to give it a try. We sure are glad we did. Saves a ton of time and hassle. We've not had any problems with lights going out (yet). But if it happens and enough go out that it's noticeable we will definitely get another one. Never going to back stringing lights around a tree again.
 
We have had prelit trees for several years now. Our first one even had a function where it slowly rotated (that was cool, I didn't miss seeing any ornaments). Unfortunately, they do all stop working, but I blame that more on our storage options and high heat exposure . . . even with that, we do get 4+ years out of the trees.

We did buy a new tree this year because last year one section of lights went out and we had to put an extra strand on in its place. It's smaller in circumference AND there are no cords to plug in the different sections of the tree (which is what our last one had). This one, you just snap the pieces into the "trunk" of the tree and it automatically lights up. It's quite delightful.

I figure peeps spend $50 and up each year for a fresh tree, so for me to spend $70 on a tree and use it 4 years or more is a bargain! And I don't have to wrap lights!
 
OMG, this is me, too! Our beautiful, expensive, 9 foot tall, 4 year old pre-lit tree is done. The lights worked the very first year. The second year about a quarter of the lights were out. The third year, maybe half the lights were out. This year, almost all were dead.

What every happened to the statement "WHEN ONE LIGHT GOES OUT, THE OTHERS REMAIN LIT?"

I went out and bought 900 new lights and added them over top of the dead lights. When we take the tree down, we will cut off all the old lights. What a waste of money!
 
My prelit tree is about 11 years old. Over the past 3 years I've been losing some (not all) of the strands. This year, I have 2 strands of white lights mixed in to make up for the parts that have died. I used old lights I had since the new Xmas lights are a whiter light than the old ones I've had that are a bit yellow-er.
 
I have a prelit tree (bought in 2014) and all is still good. I will never go back to stringing lights and I also figure that since I don't buy the most expensive (less than $100) and works for 4-5 years is an OK deal in my books for not having to worry about stringing the lights.

I think the lights are just like everything else that may only last for 4-5 years because better options are constantly coming out.
 
I have a prelit tree (bought in 2014) and all is still good. I will never go back to stringing lights and I also figure that since I don't buy the most expensive (less than $100) and works for 4-5 years is an OK deal in my books for not having to worry about stringing the lights.

I think the lights are just like everything else that may only last for 4-5 years because better options are constantly coming out.
 
I bought a couple prelit ones after Christmas a few years ago. for like 90% off. I put more lights on them anyway...cause I love the extra! If they go out...$10 investment for a $100 tree! no worries here. I have one with colored lights, one with white lights. Love them. I don't fight to get these deals. Three, four days AFTER Christmas, Walmart, garden department has lots of them. Gotta store it for the year, but I do anyways?
 
Ditto. Our first pre-lit tree that is about 10 years old still has about half of the lights. The newer one lost lights after two years and this 4th year lost them all. My husband just pulled them all off and we put our own lights on it. Lights are so cheap, especially after Christmas. I am sure the longevity all depends on how long the lights are on each day.
 
i didn't even know pre-lit was an option til last year! We just bought a couple hundred lights for $4, i wont feel bad giving them to the second hand store when i decide the 'cool white' light is just no longer tolerable b/c i'm used to the 'warm white' glow at xmas! (wish DH had read the box before purchasing but still any light is better than none...) i'd feel way worse about throwing out a tree and would be snipping lights off like others mentioned and then i'd be back to square one with a non-prelit tree anyway
 
We have one pre-lit tree that I gave to my son this year for his apartment. It's about 4 years old and all the lights are working just fine. It was a pretty cheap one. It came with colored lights and I prefer white, so I always put extra white ones on it :) My new tree is also pre-lit and this is it's second Christmas. I have lots of extra lights around, so I figured that if part of it was out I'd just wrap a new strand. I love pre-lit, so much easier, even if it starts going out after a few years, it's worth it to me.
 
We had a pre-lit tree for about 6 years & never had a problem with it. Then one year half the lights went out. We threw it away and I got the real tree I always wanted. We had a real tree for 2 years. This year we went looking for a real tree and ended up buying a pre-lit tree again for a super good deal. I don't know if it was the stress of having all 7 kids with us, the thought of cleaning up all the needles everyday, or trying to remember to water it everyday that made us decided to get a fake one at the last minute...I think it was the really good deal that made us go for it. Anyway, I love it & we've had a few friends over and they couldn't tell it was fake...so, all is good.
 
We are a real tree house... if only they made those with pre-lit lights. :giggle

We are thinking of switching to a fake one... and now, I don't know what we will do... Proabaly see which is a better steal after Christmas, especially since we have light strings already.
 
We are on our 3rd year with a prelit tree from Costco. It's actually pretty nice and we haven't had any problems yet.
 
We have always had pre lit trees- until this year!
This year it was cheaper to buy a non prelit tree, and some light strings. I'm so happy we did! I love that I can move the lights to sit by my ornaments. And it looks more real, and is not as heavy as the pre lit one! It didn't take long to string the lights, and definitely not longer than setting up the the prelit one and checking the lights.
 
It is difficult and expensive to get real trees here, plus I get very sneezy around them, so we have always had an artificial tree with lights! I don't mind putting them up, but the tree makes me so itchy!!
Our current tree is around 7ft tall and I got it for a steal on boxing day a couple of years ago as well as a 200 (or 500, can't remember) light set. Yay!

Parents in law had a prelit tree, it only last them 1 year before bits stopped working. I figure, at least if the lights stop working on a string of lights, it isn't as expensive to replace.
 
I've been leaning towards getting a fake tree lately because my hubby loves the MOST expensive kind of tree at the farm we go to. It's usually at least $60 for the tree.... but it smells so good. :)

Also, for people who hate putting lights on their tree... I figured something out a couple of years ago, you should NEVER wrap the lights around (circularly) the tree. It's a huge pain in the rear! :giggle Instead, start on one side and go up and down the tree and move slowly around it that way. They are way easier to put on that way and easier to take off. You don't have to get dizzy going around and around the tree and getting everything tangled.
 
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