Lighting, Extention cord tripping hazards ???

door mats. thats what i used last last year.

I've had pretty good luck using landscaping staples. They do a pretty good job of keeping the cords nice and flat. They are easy to install and remove and can be reused from year to year. They are like $4 per 25 at Lowes.

Just cut up some metal coat hangers and bend them into a U shape. Use them as a big staple to hold the cord close to the ground.

Ive used tent stakes or in the christmas stuff they have stakes for inflatbles and other decorations. But I do like the lanscape fabric staples idea better.

Diabolik said:

I've had pretty good luck using landscaping staples. They do a pretty good job of keeping the cords nice and flat. They are easy to install and remove and can be reused from year to year. They are like $4 per 25 at Lowes.

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I second that

Thanks for the help everyone, sounds like landscaping staples might be my best option! We get a lot of people so I think the mats might get moved or flipped with the amount of foot traffic. At times when we get larger groups together the whole yard will be full and people tend to hang out and watch the singing pumpkins for a while too.

I don't let people on my grass any more. Even with Landscape staples, I have had people trip over cords. One tripped over a cord attached to my projector and didn't cause damage but it messed up the effect. I use a cemetery fence around the front of the yard and rope up my walkway.

Diabolik said:

I've had pretty good luck using landscaping staples. They do a pretty good job of keeping the cords nice and flat. They are easy to install and remove and can be reused from year to year. They are like $4 per 25 at Lowes.

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Usually, I don't have much to add to threads like these, I'm not an expert at any one discipline... but tripping over cords is sort of my thing here. We have over 450 blowmolds and dozen or so inflatables and countless other lights. We have cords as far as the eye can see.

We keep people out of the individual scenes with little fences, but there are places where the cords cross paths.

I too absolutely recommend the use of the landscape staples to keep the cords down. Space them pretty close together. Easy to put in. Easier to take out.
Good luck and Happy Halloween!!

SavageEye said:

I don't let people on my grass any more. Even with Landscape staples, I have had people trip over cords. One tripped over a cord attached to my projector and didn't cause damage but it messed up the effect. I use a cemetery fence around the front of the yard and rope up my walkway.

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I totally agree, we fence off both sides of our walkway to keep the kids out of the yard but there is always one or two tots that ends up in our yard. The worst is when they cut across the yards in the dark rather than using the street. I wish we could fence our whole yard but it is just too big. I already put up about 100 feet of fencing now...

Diabolik said:

I totally agree, we fence off both sides of our walkway to keep the kids out of the yard but there is always one or two tots that ends up in our yard. The worst is when they cut across the yards in the dark rather than using the street. I wish we could fence our whole yard but it is just too big. I already put up about 100 feet of fencing now...

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We had to start adding fences around every scene, and we have clearly marked paths and sidewalks to begin with.
What surprises me is the amount of parents who will pick up their children and put them OVER the fences.

I 100% agree fencing is the best way to go! I can't get there this year though. I completely fenced off my projector area for the singing pumpkins, to keep people out of there, it's on covered side patio off of porch. As far as the yard, I think I'll try to put in a lot of very tightly spaced landscaping staples. My largest fear is we live on a corner lot, kids come busting into the yard from the side a lot .. I don't want anyone to hit a cord and face plant .. Not so much worried about the lights, it's just stakes with flood bulbs.

If you can't keep people out of the yard then go for the landscaping staples. Nobody can come up the front of our lawn due to the steep drop off, so they're forced to use the walkway. I always rope everything off just incase. I use landscaping staples to keep wires low so people won't be able to see them

If I have an extension cord that I need to keep someone from tripping over I normally just dig a shallow trench and bury it. Even cheap extension cords have ruubber insulation that will withstand being buried for a few hours. This way there is no chance for a trip. Just remember to pull it up after Halloween.

Scary Papa said:

If I have an extension cord that I need to keep someone from tripping over I normally just dig a shallow trench and bury it. Even cheap extension cords have ruubber insulation that will withstand being buried for a few hours. This way there is no chance for a trip. Just remember to pull it up after Halloween.

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I've seriously thought about doing that! I'm fairly certain since it's the front yard, that's where my DH would draw the line though. We already have a hard time getting grass to grow out there because of the maple trees, nothing likes to grow well under maples .. So if I dig up what's there my DH would wig. He's pretty good about all the halloween stuff as a whole, I try not to push the things he's adamant about.

That's a great idea! I saw in another post a while back that, I think it was Scatterbrains, used PVC arches wrapped with lights to do the same thing .. As a conduit for the cords over pathways. I couldn't figure out how to implement it here though. Our brick walk is clear, the cords go across the yard, the lights are in front of the trees. The kids often don't use the walkway because we are on a corner lot, they cut right across the yard. In the prime tot hours we have a lot of people just in the yard in general wandering around looking at stuff, watching the pumpkin projection or hanging out talking/asking questions.

I know you said without trenching but I suggest using a lawn edger. Run it along side the sidewalk and through the grass where needed, then shove the cord in.

Dogbite said:

I know you said without trenching but I suggest using a lawn edger. Run it along side the sidewalk and through the grass where needed, then shove the cord in.

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Ok, that might work! Wouldn't rip up the lawn, it should self heal. I'll talk to Dh about it! Thanks!!!

Diabolik said:

I've had pretty good luck using landscaping staples. They do a pretty good job of keeping the cords nice and flat. They are easy to install and remove and can be reused from year to year. They are like $4 per 25 at Lowes.

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This is what we do!