Battery Christmas Lights

How battery Christmas lights work

A battery light carries its own power. The batteries sit in a small box, which usually holds the switch as well, and the lights either run from it along a wire or are built into the same piece. With no lead to a socket, the light can go anywhere the box can hide: behind a vase, inside a wreath, under a swag of greenery on the mantelpiece.

LED bulbs draw very little power, which is why battery lights so often use them, and you will find LED pieces among ours. A light that has turned dim usually just needs fresh batteries, so keep a spare set to hand through December.

Where battery lights work best

We suggest starting with the spot and working back to the light. A shelf, a dresser or a bedside table suits a single lit piece. A mantelpiece, a mirror or a banister suits battery operated fairy lights wound through a garland, with the box hidden at one end. A glass jar or a lantern filled with lights makes a quick centrepiece for the Christmas table, and with no socket needed, it can sit right in the middle. For a string, measure the length you want to cover before you choose, and allow a little extra so the wire can loop and dip.

Stars, berries and paper pieces

A few of ours are stars, which look their best in a window or at the top of a bookcase, where they catch the eye from across the room. You will also find berry lights, which sit naturally in a garland, a wreath or a bowl of pine cones on the hall table. Paper, which a few of ours use, softens light into a gentle glow that suits a bedroom or a quiet corner of the sitting room.

Colour, timers and light settings

Many of ours glow warm white, a soft shade much like candlelight. Some have a timer, which switches the lights off after a set number of hours, so the batteries go further and nobody has to remember them at bedtime. You will also find lights with more than one setting, so you can choose how they shine. As a rule, a steady light reads calm on a sideboard, while one that flashes or fades livens up a window.

Taking battery lights outdoors

Some of our battery lights are made for outdoor use. Only lights meant for outdoors should go outside, and even then they do best with some shelter: a covered porch, a sheltered tree or a window box under the eaves. A wreath on the front door suits them where a canopy keeps the worst of the rain off. Keep the battery box dry and off the ground, tucked behind a pot or under a ledge, and check it after a downpour. Lights meant for indoors stay indoors, however mild the evening.

Looking after battery lights

Use fresh batteries of the type the light takes, and change the whole set together rather than mixing fresh and part-used batteries. Where a light is plastic, as some of ours are, a soft, dry cloth wipes it clean. The few of ours that use paper need a dry spot and a box where nothing can crush them. In January, we suggest taking the batteries out before you pack the lights away, since batteries left in over the months can leak. Wind any wire loosely round a piece of card so it does not kink, and store the lot somewhere cool and dry.