Why Do Christmas Lights Get Tangled? Simple DIY Trick To Keep Them Tangle-Free

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I don't know how Christmas lights manage to turn into a giant knot while sitting perfectly still in a storage box for eleven months, but somehow they do.

Every year, you put them away neatly and every year they come back looking like they've been fighting with each other.

There is actually a simple reason for it, and an equally simple way to make next Christmas much easier.


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It's The Loose Loops

A loose strand of wire has plenty of freedom to move around.

When you toss it into a storage box, the loops can cross over each other. As the box moves around, those loops can tighten and create the tangled mess you discover months later.

The solution is to stop storing the lights as a loose coil. A simple DIY Christmas trick is to cut a rectangle of sturdy cardboard and make a small notch at each end.

Secure one end of the light strand in a notch, then wrap the lights neatly around the cardboard. Put the other end into the second notch. Now the strand has a fixed shape instead of a pile of loose loops.

It's about preventing the wire from moving freely

You can also use an empty wrapping-paper tube for shorter strands. Bunnings recommends notching the ends of cardboard and wrapping the lights around the tube or cardboard to keep them organized.

The trick isn't really about the cardboard. It's about preventing the wire from moving freely and crossing over itself.

That's why throwing a string of lights into a plastic bin is practically an invitation to create next year's Christmas Eve nightmare.

I think I'll be using the cardboard trick this year.Because spending Christmas morning untangling lights is definitely not on my Christmas list.

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