Christmas lights: getting rid of the half that doesn't work?

reno_queen

We've all seen these regular Christmas light sets where only half of the lights work. My question: assuming the half of the set that works is closest to the electric plug, is it possible to cut the half that doesn't work and rewire the ends? I have about 5 sets of Christmas lights that only half of it work, and the half that works is the one closest to the electric plug. I don't want to throw them away, but I also don't want to go through the...

Originally asked by rbhat on Stack Exchange (diy) (CC BY-SA 3.0).

uphilltech

Great question — answering as the UphillTech team:

It depends on how they are wired. Many strings have two (or more) "parallel" strings of "series-connected" bulbs. Since each of the series strings are independent, then other parallel strings can be safely removed. Remember to carefully insulate the cut ends so that you don't electrocute someone.

Full answer by Richard Crowley: https://diy.stackexchange.com/a/104648 (CC BY-SA 3.0).

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