Those holiday lights sparkled wonderfully during the holidays but when are you going to take them down and how will you do it safely?

They’ve twinkled with the spirit of the holiday, but the holiday is past. Now, the neighbors are beginning to wonder when you plan to take them down. Unfortunately, those Christmas lights just won’t take themselves down, neatly pack themselves in a box and store themselves in the basement or attic where they’ll patiently wait for the holiday to return.

If the holiday lights are coming down, you’ll have to do something about it; you’ll have to get out there on a ladder and take them down. Or, you could ask your husband, “Can you take the holiday lights down already?” Another option is to hire a professional to take the lights down, then safely and neatly store them so they're ready to go back up for Christmas 2018.

For the sake of argument, let’s assume you choose to take them down yourself (or send your husband out to do it).

The first thing to do is to make sure the ladder is set up safely – on solid and level ground, extending three-feet past the roof and with the feet back by a ratio of 4:1 (i.e., 5 feet back if the ladder is resting against a point 20 feet in the air).

The problem this time of year is that the ground is often buried under snow; finding a solid and level place to set up the ladder requires clearing away some snow. Then, since snow is made of crystalized water, there is a distinct possibility that the ground will be soft. You don’t want one leg of the ladder to start sinking into the ground while you (or your husband) are 20-feet up.

You also want to dress appropriately. This is a challenge since, as cold as it gets this time of year, you’ll probably want to bundle up with layers. Bulky clothes may keep you warm but they’re problematic when negotiating your way up and down on a ladder. They can get in the way. They can snag on the ladder.

In any case, if you want to do it yourself, or send your husband up on the ladder, that’s an option. Still, another option is to have someone else handle it for you unless you want to wait until June to take the lights down.