AN EARLY 2018 PRESENT
Treat yourself to non-tangled lights next year,
Prevention is key when it comes to tackling Griswold-style holiday light knots.
It’s easy to wrap a strand around your forearm, toss it in a basement bin and ring in the new year.
But next season, you’ll have to deal with the rat-king tangles of your own making.
For the final life hack investigation of 2017, we tested three different methods of wrapping up a 50-light string about five metres long.
Pull out your coat hangers, cut up your gift boxes and finish that can of Pringles to see which one works best.
Test 1: Clothes hanger
The test: Using a clothing hanger with small hooks on either side, fasten an end of the string of lights to one of the hooks and begin wrapping the lights around the hanger. Latch the other end of the lights onto the hook at the opposite end.
The result: The width of the hanger doesn’t allow for much of the lights to be wrapped each time, so if you’re working with a string of more than 50 lights, this technique is not ideal. But for storage purposes, the hanger method can’t be beat.
The rating: 7/10
Test 2: Pringles can
The test: Enjoy a carton of Pringles or use another cardboard cylinder such as an empty wrapping paper tube that has a similar diameter to a Pringles can. Cut a notch along the top rim of the tube to hold one end of the lights and wrap the strand around the tube to the bottom. If needed, continue wrapping back to the top to slot the other end of the lights in the same notch. Put the Pringles lid back on to secure the strand.
The result: The objective with these methods is to not wrap the lights around themselves, but wrapping the lights up and down the cardboard tube makes it unavoidable. Still, it’s a creative use of leftover cardboard that can satisfy a salty craving too.
The rating: 6/10
Test 3: Cardboard box
The test: Using a leftover cardboard gift box, cut a rectangular piece of about 12-by-6 inches (30-by-15 centimetres). Cut out a notch near the top left side of the cardboard to hold one end of the lights and begin wrapping the string around the width of the board. Cut another notch at the opposite side to hold the other end of the lights.
The result: This size of board is perfect for a string of 50 lights, but if you’re storing lights any longer you may want to increase the size of the cardboard. If storage space is tight, be sure to wrap the lights with a blanket or tissue paper before storing to protect from breakage.
The rating: 8/10 Conclusion The effectiveness of these strategies is entirely dependent on the length of the strings of lights and the size of the bulbs. If you’re using a traditional 50-light, small-bulb string, these will all work relatively well. But the adaptability of the cardboard DIY light holder gives that method the edge. Pringle cans and clothes hangers aren’t going to be big enough to prevent a knotty Griswold crisis. Jonathan Forani is a Toronto-based freelance journalist in search of ways to make everything a little easier. Still looking for a life hack to six-pack abs.