Christmas Light Removal and Storage in Hickory, NC
The part of the season nobody looks forward to. We take the lights down in January, pack them by the house they came off, and store them until next year.
January Is the Part People Forget to Plan For
Christmas lights go up in November in a good mood. They come down in January in the cold, on a wet ladder, usually by whoever in the house wants to do it least. It is the same job as the install with none of the payoff, which is why so many homes in Hickory still have a roofline lit in March.
It is also where most of the damage happens. Clips go brittle in the cold and snap off instead of releasing. Strands get pulled rather than unclipped, which is what actually breaks a run. Everything gets wound into one bin, and next November half of it does not light. The lights you paid for lose a season every year they come down that way.
Leaving them up is not free either. Sun and weather work on the product year round, clips left on gutters get harder to remove the longer they sit, and in a few neighborhoods around Hickory it turns into a letter from the HOA.
What Removal and Storage Covers
Complete Takedown
Every strand, clip, stake, timer, and extension cord comes off. Not just the roofline that shows from the street.
Roofline Left Clean
Clips come off the gutters and shingles rather than staying up for next year. We check the run as we pull it so nothing is left behind.
Sorted and Labeled
Product is packed by the run it came off and labeled to your property, so year two goes back up faster than year one did.
Stored Off Site
Your lights live at our facility until next season. Nothing goes in your attic, your garage, or the back of a closet.
When We Take Them Down
Takedown runs from early January into February. It is scheduled work, not something you have to call and request, and it is included in what you already paid in the fall.
Timing moves with the weather. Catawba County winters do not hand out many clear, dry, above-freezing weekdays in a row, and pulling lights off an iced roofline is how people get hurt and how product gets broken. When the forecast turns we push the route rather than working through it, so a cold snap can shift a week. We reach out before the crew comes.
If you need the lights down earlier than that, say for a listing photo or an event, tell us and we will fit it in.
Removal Only, If Someone Else Hung Them
Removal is also a service we sell on its own, and we do more of it than people expect. The usual reasons are simple. An installer took the money in October and stopped answering the phone by January. Somebody bought a house in December with lights already on it. Or a homeowner hung their own over Thanksgiving weekend and had a very different opinion about the ladder by New Year.
We quote removal only per property, the same way we quote an install, because a single-story ranch with one roofline run and a two-story with wrapped trees are not the same afternoon. Storage for product we did not install is quoted case by case, since we need to see what condition it is in before we agree to keep it for a year.
There is no requirement to book an install with us to have us pull someone else's lights down.
Christmas Light Removal FAQ
Is takedown included when you install my Christmas lights?
Yes. Every install package we sell includes takedown in January and off-season storage. You are not quoted separately for it and you do not need to call us to schedule it. It is the same price whether we are pulling one roofline or wrapping half a yard of trees.
When do you take Christmas lights down in Hickory?
Takedown runs from early January into February, weather permitting. We work around ice rather than through it, so a cold snap moves the schedule. Homes generally come down in a similar order to how they went up, and we contact you before the crew arrives.
Do I need to be home when you take the lights down?
No. Takedown is all exterior work, so nothing needs to be unlocked and nobody needs to take a day off. If you have a gate, a dog in the yard, or a preference about where the crew parks, tell us once and we will note it on the property.
Where are the lights stored between seasons?
At our facility, not in your attic or garage. Each property's lights come down, get sorted by the run they came off, and go into labeled storage under your name so the same product goes back on the same house next November. That is also why year two goes up faster than year one.
Will you remove Christmas lights another company installed?
Yes. Removal only is a real service we sell, and we do a fair amount of it for people whose installer stopped answering, who bought a house with lights already on it, or who hung their own in November and thought better of it in January. It is quoted per property. Storage for product we did not install is quoted case by case, since we need to see the condition first.
Where We Handle Removal and Storage
Same service area as our installs, across Hickory and Catawba County and the towns around it.
Hickory, Newton, Conover, Claremont, Maiden, Granite Falls, Statesville, Morganton, and Lenoir.
Not sure if you are in range? Check the full service area or just call.
Ready to Get Them Down?
Takedown and storage are included with every install. If someone else hung them, we will quote the removal on its own.