Permanent and AFFORDABLE Holiday LED's

[@rflournoy]

I had a company come out to give me an estimate. He measured 42 feet and estimated $6800! I bought all the wires, pixels, connectors, channels, controller, 12v 60A power supply, and rented a boom lift to do it myself for about $1000. The only difference is that I did almost 100 feet instead of 42 feet. And I got to spend an afternoon with my grandson on the boom lift. :) DIY is the way to go if you have more time than money, or if you have a few skills.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s super rad! Agree, DIY is way more fun and cost effective. And boom lifts don’t suck either!!

[@johnotranto1735]

Those channels look like a great place for birds nests and bee hives. Well protected and out of sight.

[@DadDoingStuff]

🤷🏻‍♂️ Time will tell.

[@johnhubbard6262]

Time is money, and as you get older you start to realize time is finite so that pre-made is more of a bargain than you think - in effect giving you more of a commodity (time) that is normally irreplaceable, or unrecoverable. But then there is the satisfaction effect - Pre-made frequently looks well pre-made/plain/cheap/one size fits all, so you can save time, spend more money, than toss that crap because the effect is sub-par. Watching your video if I was going to do this the time would totally be justified number one because the finished product looks both custom and one of a kind (that effect is what makes people seeing it say - How can I get that). But secondly as a builder I see the potential for your system to match many different mounting applications depending on your roof and eves with only small easy modifications. Very nicely done project, and definitely worthy of an investment of time.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Well said. Time is definitely $. One big factor for me, I like doing this type of thing. If it was painting a room in my house, I’d hire someone because I hate painting, even though I’m perfectly capable. But yeah….getting it just how you want definitely has an upside too. Appreciate you taking time to watch and comment!

[@randledmadden]

Gotta love a guy who prioritizes cheap and practical. Fantastic video.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks man! Appreciate you saying that!

[@roberthernandez7564]

Something to consider before you embark on making your own LED channel vs. buying something pre-made - Time and Tools still cost money. And the more professional of a look you want, the more time and money you will invest. Don't undervalue the time you'll save buying pre-made pixel channel.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Can’t argue with that. Clearly you need some tools to do this properly. And it for sure takes some time. For me, time well spent mostly because I like doing this type of thing.

[@christophec.482]

On the other hand, don't underestimate the value of what you're learning. 😊

[@JB-fh1bb]

When I saw the title tag “AFFORDABLE” and it started with “this took a *lot* of weekends and a *lot* of manual labour” I knew it was going to be the “my time/energy is free” type of affordable

[@mr.c6674]

You must be selling these things. What you comment can apply to EVERYTHING. People can go out to breakfast, lunch, and dinner every single day, hire a chef, or have food delivered, cuz you know, time grocery shopping and cooking takes skills and cookware. Buying the tools it takes to make one project doesn't end at that one project. A drill and saw can be used around the house for other stuff.

[@DadDoingStuff]

@chrisophec.482 Funny you say that.......you also get better as you go. First 20' took me hours to get installed. Last 20' took me 10 minutes. Once you learn what to do, stuff moves a lot quicker!

[@JV-pu8kx]

Simple jig for drilling the holes: Starting with a block of wood, drill two holes the desired distance apart. Insert a pin or dowel in one of the holes. Use the other hole to guide the bit. After drilling the first hole, advance the channel so the first hole and the pin meet. Use the guide for the nest hole. Rinse and repeat.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s an awesome pro tip! I’ll be using that on all kinds of projects!! 😎

[@drewspears5301]

I agree. Large repetitive jobs like that are perfect to spend 5 or 10 minutes making a jig for. Makes it quicker and reduces fatigue.

[@JV-pu8kx]

@@drewspears5301 Also reduces error.

[@imontheinternets]

Something to consider if you are doing this, look into 12V or 24V modules. When you get into wire lengths of 100ft, voltage drop starts to come into play and 5V may not be enough to make it 100ft+ to the end LEDs. Usually this shows up as color issues at the end of the string.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Voltage drop for sure comes into play. When testing long runs I could definitely see a change in the color by the end of the strands. Power injection is a must. Using a larger gauge wire (larger than the strand wire) and injecting at the end of every strand seems to do the trick pretty well. Definitely can't rely on the strands themselves to keep the voltage. I assume that would be regardless of the voltage, but probably more pronounced with 5v like I did. Either way, great call out!

[@joe_duck]

On his diagram it looked like he tapped 5v into every new strand.

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@joe_duck correct

[@taylorgibson8372]

Christmas lights are something i dread every year. A one-time install with multiple uses year-round is right up my alley. Thanks for some great ideas!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Exactly why I wanted to do this! Also tired of storing a ton of C9 light strings and all the extension cords!

[@abe677]

Excellent video! A friend of mine and I talk about nerdy projects all the time and we agree - the packaging is the real challenge. You did a great job of covering what is usually the most difficult aspect of these projects.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Appreciate you saying that Abe! You and your friend are right on point!

[@lesfogerson1092]

Best video I've seen on outdoor lights. Please make a video on just the control and the programing. I want to put my box outside but I want to load programs remotely if possible. Thank you.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Appreciate the comment! Working on that video already. So long as they can get Wi-Fi, then they can totally be outside. Do your homework on WLED software. It has a lot of great features.

[@thejedijohn]

This was so well explained. Thank you! I really appreciate you walking through the process in a way that people can follow rather than building up to some big reveal and making things opaque.

[@DadDoingStuff]

ROFL! Ahhh….the big “reveal” videos. 🤣 Thanks for watching!

[@stickysden]

I can see that in your situation it's better for the bullet lights than the strip lights. You have done a very good job! Also, you have explained it well! Good luck on your next projects. I hope I explain mine half as well as you, Sir! 🙂✌🏽

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks so much. I definitely have some different style lights in mind for some future projects. Really appreciate you taking time to comment!

[@wb116711]

I truly love the way u did your lights and basically followed your idea. I haven't put lights on the house yet due to bad weather this week. I'm trying to see where u ran the t-clips on the wires if u don't mind sharing? Awesome job, and thx for sharing your knowledge!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the comment! When it comes to the T clips for doing in-line power injection, there should be a little power injection pigtail at the beginning and end of each of the LED segments. I used the one at the end of each segment to connect the T to. On the power injection line itself, I just used a utility knife to carefully remove the outer casing, exposing about an inch of the red/black wires inside. Then crimp the T connector around those black/red wires. I just ran the power injection line parallel with the LED segments, and then figured out where to splice in that T connector. This was way easier to do once the power injection line was already run. PAY CLOSE ATTENTION to the +/- so you don’t accidentally inject the power backwards. That would cause all kinds of problems. Ok, one last thing….depending how long your run is end to end, you may need a larger gauge wire for power injection. This also depends heavily on what voltage your lights are. 12v is better over long distances than 5v when it comes to voltage drop in the wires. Higher volts also won’t require as large a gauge wire. Lower volts means you need more current, means you need a bigger wire. So in my case, I have 722 LEDs spread across about 200’. Even with an 18awg parallel injection line adding fresh power every 50 LEDs, I still get a visible color drop towards the last 50’ of that run when trying to run true white on these LEDs. Most other colors I really don’t see a difference. So, I will likely add one new power injection straight from my PSU and tap that into the last 60-70’ of that run. And that new injection line is gonna be bigger, probably 12awg wire instead of the 18awg. I think that’s gonna correct the voltage drop. Sorry I went on a bit of a tangent there! I hope that’s helpful!

[@BroncoOverlandAdventures]

I really appreciate your time spent figuring this out and sharing.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thx so much! Happy to help out!

[@mbaerenstecher]

Thank you so much. Not only was the content what was looking for, but also presented it perfectly. Nice tone, pace and clips.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thank you sir! Appreciate you taking time to say that!

[@casycasy5199]

fantastic video.vey well explained.would love a video on the controller ,you explain things so well

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks dude. Appreciate you saying that! I am planning a video on the controller.

[@WillPemble]

Nicely done, mate! The downspout hack is briliant!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thank you sir! Appreciate you saying that!

[@Cowboy_Steve]

Wow this is fantastic! I really enjoyed your breakdown. I would love to do something like this on a more basic level to just highlight all the roof lines of my barn. Lucky for me, when and if I do decide to tackle this project, my life long best friend is an electrical engineer that is just amazing with stuff like this. No need to break my brain trying to figure this stuff out if he can do it in his sleep lol. REALLY nice job! I bet to solve the bird and critter issue would be to make some framed screens that would just sit on your spacers you used for the screws. Easy to pop off if you needed access. Thanks for sharing 🤠

[@DadDoingStuff]

Love that idea! Thanks Cowboy Steve! 👍👍

[@nikkicrouse6713]

10:59 the perfect habitat for birds and bats my dude. I’m referring to the attic (mostly) but the light idea is top shelf.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Yeah....totally possible that birds decide to start nesting up there. I'm definitely gonna have to keep an eye on that and add modifications if it becomes an issue.

[@BenjaminSearle]

Thank you so much for specifically discussing what others have glossed over. If you wanted to go into even more detail in how you ran the cables from the controller and how you routed them through your attic or crawl space or whatever, I would appreciate it! We have different roofing styles but to gather ideas for how to run mine would be greatly appreciated. Even if not, great work on this one and thank you again!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hi Ben. Thanks for the comments. I could go through that in a quick video pretty easily. There a few points I didn’t touch on in regard to actually attaching the cables and running them. Good call!

[@gerrymaddock9234]

@@DadDoingStuff I'd be interested in that as well. Great video btw. ....and go Pens! ;)

[@freddyg1210]

@@DadDoingStuff I would be interested as well. Thanks! Awesome video!

[@Hans_914]

Neat concept/execution that can be used for other things as well. I appreciate the ingenuity and innovation.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks! Appreciate the comment!

[@kmcegardner]

I've chosen 1/2 Vinyl J Channel so I don't have to rip cut. I REALLY like the downspout idea though. Looking at my temp setup and it is clear that the downspout will have more room to house the power injection wire. Or if i need to run another zone and follow this path, I can place the wire in the downspout better. But, I don't think I'll have. a problem with the J Channel. I bought 500 LED, space 2.5" apart, and I used 10.4' of the 12' J Channel. I'm thinking I'll cut off the excess, and then I'll have a modular install! I love your video! I am watching it over and over as I am doing my build.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Dude, I like your modular idea with J channel. This also gives you a chance to fully test prior to install, which can save a lot of headaches. If you are doing long runs of 5v, go bigger gauge on the powered injection wire. (Lesson I learned after doing mine). If you went 12v, you can probably get away with 18awg just fine. Again I like the idea of J channel, I just couldn’t find adequate J channel when I looked. Would love a link to what you found! That’s awesome!

[@kmcegardner]

@@DadDoingStuffWell, 5V and after about 200 pixels with 18awg power injection, I have issues. It was just inconsistent lighting, but about a week ago, they quit working all together. So at the moment I have half of my project lit up! I’ll try a heavier gage wire for power injection and see what happens!

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@kmcegardner If they are out all together, there’s likely something else going on. If anything they should be lit, but potentially less bright due to voltage drop. During my install I ended up with a bad string of lights that I had soldered in. Nothing beyond that string would light up. Once I found the bad string, I replaced that section and everything was money.

[@kmcegardner]

@@DadDoingStuffWLED stop LED was my issue. Now it’s definitely just voltage drop. Less intense colors or fading.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Heavier awg wire will definitely help. I just did my update video and talked about this. I had to add a 12awg power injection towards the end of my longest run. Made it MUCH better!

[@RoySATX]

Great job. The only problems I see are with birds wanting to nest in them or vermin (rats, squirrels) using them as raceways to get around/enter your home. Also, you didn't say why you chose 5v over 12v but using the 12v WS2811s would have been slightly more expensive but would have meant you wouldn't need to inject power as often if at all. I have A LOT of experience with these lights and there are places I would recommend one over the other - there's no wrong choice but in running long lengths for permanent installation like yours I recommend going for the 12v if for no other reason than not having to inject power every 50 or 100 lights. Depending on the installation, 12v may eliminate the need to inject power altogether and that can make up for the extra cost of the 12v lights.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hi Roy, I’m definitely still a noob and learning more all the time about the voltage part. In my mind, less volts = less fire risk. (That could be WAY off base, but it seemed to make sense) That was the primary reason for using lower voltage. I did have to inject power every 50 pixels which was a bit more work, but not terrible with a parallel injection run. I’m not worried about squirrels or rats here, but birds could be a concern. I’m already thinking about how to solve for that should it become a problem. We also get wasps that like to build nests in our eaves, so I need to keep an eye on that as well. Appreciate your knowledge and comment!

[@TheHupka]

Awesome job - I really like your design!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Appreciate that! Thanks a ton!

[@WatzTX]

Used downspout as well, but cut them in half on the other axis. Got two 1-1/2” deep channels from each 2x3” piece. You can also get a vinyl glue for joints.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hmmmm🤔 never thought about glue. Good call. Did you rip them with a table saw? If I did it again, I might actually use some power snips. Vinyl sawdust is pretty statically charged so it makes a big mess.

[@WatzTX]

@@DadDoingStuff yes, cut them on a table saw. Agree it’s statically charged and messy. But it works! Used the RH Adhesives HH-66 Vinyl Cement. My install was just over 120ft 700+ pixels

[@KenMayer-g7f]

tried 12mm drill bits and they gouged hole , ended up buying metric step drills which works great. love the downspout idea.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Yeah I did the same with a standard 15/32 bit, but it doesn’t make a clean hole in something that thin. Step bits kick butt for clean holes in thin stuff!

[@trevors7905]

Awesome! To take it a step further and before mounting one could also add side holes for more lights to have the option for a glowing effect (hidden lighting).

[@DadDoingStuff]

Solid idea! Direct and indirect lighting. 🤔

[@ross-owen]

awesome video. do you have another showing the configuration/wiring of the power supply, controller, etc...

[@DadDoingStuff]

Not yet......but I'm gonna do one. Lots of people asking about that part. Thx!

[@stephenrrose]

Loved the video, and the explanations. a little intimidated on the controller stuff though. research coming up!!!! Thank you for the video! Subscribed!!!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the sub! I’ve got a new video coming up that will dive a bit more into the controller and WLED. Stay tuned!

[@jch92592]

Thank you for taking the time to share your process.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks dude, appreciate that!

[@Jasonoid]

Great idea, thanks for sharing. The first company to come up with an affordable option will get TONS of sales on these mounting systems

[@DadDoingStuff]

Yeah for sure. Lots of people/companies doing these permanent lights these days! Thanks for watching!

[@JamesMossR33]

That's a great DIY job! I bought 200 12v pixels with the plan to find some sort of pvc channel and drill the holes as you have. I couldn't find any suitable channel here in the UK that was fairly cheap and available that I could be sure would work with my roof. After finding some 45x25mm channel I thought might work, and then working out how I'd drill the holes the correct size and accurately spaced with my available tools I just looked into Permatrack. Surprisingly available here, 2" hole centres, side firing to suit my roof and £150 for enough to do my roofline. Due to my initial DIY 3" spacing calculations I had to buy another 100 pixels. I'd left it too late this year to do the full install so I did the controller box and just strung the pixels out for Christmas.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks James. At least you got them all working on the controller for now! The spacing can make a huge difference on the number of pixels needed (as you just learned). Appreciate you watching!

[@GeorgeNovosel]

Nicely done. Perfect amount of detail and good logical flow of your thoughts.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks so much George!

[@frostproctor]

Love this! Sounds like a good spring project for the house and shop ❤

[@DadDoingStuff]

💯 it’s definitely more fun work on it when it’s not super cold out!

[@peterdruet1414]

Great video! I'm planning to do permanent lights this year and you've given me lots of good ideas. I have one question. With all of the strings soldered together, how did you get them installed in the channels? I see 2 possibilities. 1. Install the channels on the house empty. Then install all pixels into the channels. 2. Install pixels into channels first. Install channels on house. Then solder together. Either way seems difficult.

[@DadDoingStuff]

You aren’t wrong. No way is easy. I soldered mine first, then installed 1-2 channels on the ground before I mounted them to the house. Soldering on the ladder SUX! In fact, I made my strands too long, then just trimmed them down. That’s easier than soldering when they are already on the house. That said, if I started over, here is what I think I would do. For each section of channel, I would cut the pixels to match that length. So in my case I would trim a 10’ section to 43 pixels. If it was shorter section, like for a short part of the eave, then it would be less pixels. But for each section of channel, it trim the pixels strand then add waterproof 3-wire connectors (kind that screw together). That way I could physically mount each segment of channel without worrying about wires, then just screw them together. Only part to manage after that would be power injection lines, but I think those would be pretty easy if the channels were already mounted. This setup would also make life better a decade from now when I need to paint my house. Because then I could just unscrew the sections of channel and take them down temporarily. Hopefully that all makes sense. I always learn as I go, plus gather new ideas from other viewers.

[@devonotwell]

Very informative and quality video! I would like to see the rest of the build like the controller and stuff too if possible! You’re getting my subscription for everything I said above but probably more for the shirt you’re wearing, classic!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Haha, classic indeed! Yeah I can do a video on the controller and specifically how I wired that and got it onto my network. Thanks for watching and subscribing!

[@dale3645]

You can do the same thing with VINYL (Siding) J Channel. It’s smaller, cheaper & looks better.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Probably does, but totally not available where I live. Almost zero vinyl siding out here. I did look for J channel and just couldn’t find any.

[@lisat9707]

Have it readily available here but soffit... Can you slide it under that soffit edge and secure it🤔

[@Zilaneconstruction]

Great job a lot better than what most people do. I just bought a little more expensive system on AliExpress that comes with the aluminum channels and the larger bulbs and everything so I’m excited to install it but yeah, I hate the look of like a Govee system with all the wires exposed.

[@DadDoingStuff]

It’s a fun project and I love how cool they look, plus all the fun effects you can do. Best of luck with your project and thx for watching!

[@carlostavaresjr958]

Nice Job. I use pixels in my Christmas lightshow and I 'm going to take you tips on making gutter track for them. This is the only project I need to do. in regarding those JST connectors you can dip them in diaelectic grease and shrink wrap them for a water proof seal if it comes up to them. In the lighting community we have standards now with water proof connectors are part of it now and we see few JST based pixels. I think the offerings with JST are the cheaper way like you did cut them off and use whatever connector you want. Great video!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the info! Connectors were definitely one of my most time consuming parts of the project. It also makes it challenging if you have to swap out a whole segment. With mine I have to re-solder. But connectors would make that job really easy!

[@barbarianatgate2000]

Great video. I think the only change I would make is, instead of cutting the wires and using all the butt connectors, you could slide a piece of shrink tubing over the wire before connecting. Once they're connected, hit it with the heat gun and you've got a much faster waterproof connection that, if need be, can still be sliced and disconnected for maintenance or replacement.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Not a terrible idea. I dove into this with so much confidence that I’ll NEVER have to cut those apart……maybe. 😂 Actually I’ve been looking at better waterproof 3-wire connectors. Something that would let me just unscrew them if needed. Pretty sure my next project will have something like that.

[@WilliamFrick]

Deutch make some pretty good weather proof hi-reliability connectors. Have used them on automated agricultural equipment and similar projects. Clever use of downspout vinyl as packaging is the bug for things like this. Good job ! @@DadDoingStuff

[@PaganWizard]

I just watched another video on this where the guy used PVC pipes to hold the ARGBs, and he used a CNC to cut all of the holes needed to mount the lights. While it looked OK, I think your method looks A LOT cleaner than PVC pipes, but more importantly, your method makes this something that just about anyone can do, not a whole lot of people have a CNC machine, which are fairly expensive, including the "entry level" CNCs. GREAT VIDEO!!!!!!!!!!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks I really appreciate that! I have seen a few that did PVC. I don’t want to knock them, but no way I was gonna mount PVC pipes permanently on my house! Thanks for watching!

[@stevesheridan7012]

Thanks for sharing your great doable idea and links for items to buy. Would you add some links for the videos you watched to make and set up the control box and software you chose to use since you didn’t show that part of the project. I do lots of handyman stuff, but electrical is my weakest area. Thanks again!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the comment Steve. I will be adding a video where I talk further about the controller and such. But, go check out some videos from these guys. youtube.com/@TheHookUp?si=8UhQzSFfu8f_YdWU youtube.com/@DrZzs?si=hXo4bOwX8uMY_Y3F Both are great resources.

[@nooknerdz]

Love the video! Please increase your general audio level...I had to crank it all the way up just to barely hear you. Otherwise, the content itself is spot-on!! Thanks for sharing!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the feedback. Since that video I finally threw down on some actual wireless mics. Audio should (hopefully) be on point going forward. Appreciate you watching!

[@broderp]

Its all great unless your house has soffits. The overhangs on many homes are not open like your home. That makes work, looks great!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Yeah this wouldn’t work for soffits. Most soffit installations I’ve seen use puck style pixels or strips. There seems to be a lot of products available for soffit mounting, but they aren’t cheap. I did this because I don’t have soffits and couldn’t find a suitable product that I actually liked for my type of setup. Appreciate your comment!! 🤘

[@Kevinw4040]

I’m installing 12v pixels now on my house. I special ordered flat pixels spaced @12” in custom lengths from an online vender. 4 strings of 100 pixels were 100$. I’m using 5/8” x12’ long J channel from Lowe’s. Mounting under my eaves. I’m half way done now it looks like Govee or Jelly fish lighting. I’ll have about 400$ in it. I looked into custom 8’ long metal track online but it was gonna be more for the metal and shipping than the lights, wire, etc. great job by the way very informative.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Awesome job! Your build sounds legit, and affordable!

[@jerseyman99]

But if it looks looks like Govee lighting, then the Govee lighting would be cheaper with much less DIY? genuinely not intending to be snarky, but genuinely curious as to why you choose DIY? (I keep vacillating between Govee and DIY but moving towards Govee)

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@jerseyman99 I’m curious about Kevin’s answer as well, but for me it completely depends on what type of installation you need. Govee is definitely more plug n play, but the adhesive based mounting makes me nervous about its longevity. Also need to make sure you have 110v AC outlets placed in the right spots to plug in their controllers. If I had white soffits and access to power outlets, I’d definitely consider Govee as an option. The last thing that I don’t fully know about Govee is if it requires an active internet connection or not. (Lots of IOT devices do these days) My WLED doesn’t require an internet connection to run as it only relies on my local network for any configuration. That said, I also can’t turn my lights on/off remotely when I’m not home. But given everything is on a calendared schedule, that capability isn’t something I need or would use.

[@DanielRichards644]

for reference on why the 1/2" bit was too big, 1/2" is 12.7 MM, there are 25.4 MM in 1", the 15/32" bit gives you a hole that is 11.90625 MM which is why it's a better fit for 12 MM.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks dude! You did all the math that I was too lazy to do. LOL I kinda wonder now if 11.9mm is even better fit than 12mm. They fit nice and snug for sure!

[@DanielRichards644]

@@DadDoingStuff a LOT of the CAD blocks I work with are in Metric but I draw houses in Feet and Inches so i've had to commit to memory the 25.4mm=1" conversion ratio and I would say the 11.9 would be a tighter fit and as long as you can still insert the object tighter is always better in this case. But I think you learned why some people are willing to spend the money on the premade pieces, cause it takes a real commitment to saving money to do that many holes.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Dude, you aren’t wrong about the commitment!

[@jbsimmons54]

Good thing you have a programmable controller. An interesting Christmas concept that's fascinating with lights is the sequence: set all green; walk a red led through the string; increase to two red leds and walk that; increase by one red led until the whole string is red; then start with one green led and walk that to the end; increase then green by one led and walk it until you have a green string again; repeat. The thing you can vary is the walk speed. The larger the ealking group, you might need go slow the walk speed down to get a consistent effect. Have fun programming. You can also apply this concept and variations to other colors.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Love that idea dude!

[@jbsimmons54]

@@DadDoingStuff Don't forget to switch off the green pixel before walking red into same pixel address, otherwise you'll get shades of brown. You'll enjoy inverting bits that are on to off and vice versa. Best thing to do is create an array in memory of total number of lights x 3 (RGB colors). Then map that array onto the data line map via fast write. Or do it the hard way, bit by bit. Kinda way the controller is set up to do that with it's internal color programming as well. You simply write to the array via DO WHILE, IF THEN ELSE loops. Don't forget DELAY, DELAY INCREMENT, and DELAY DECREMENT variables. Many ways to implement it in code from simple to complex. It will be a learning curve. A few months later you'll say "I shoulda wrote it this way and saved time and lines!" We all go through that learning an IT language.

[@chrismiller3262]

Great job, I think I am going to do this, I need to learn more about how to operate the LED's first. Thanks

[@DadDoingStuff]

Lots of good videos out there. Tons of options. Study WLED, and check out the channel “The Hook Up” Appreciate you taking time to watch and comment!

[@jimbola77]

wow!!!!! frickin amazing man! thank you so much for sharing! i need to do that asap! that is so nice! you are very creative...

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks a ton for the positive comment! I really appreciate you dude!

[@sharazar]

My only concern is making a place for birds to next as I already have that 'problem" in my shed over hang, but I do not mind there. I would almost want to keep the other have of the gutter to make a cover, or add something else to over the wires so no birds, or other living thing get up there and chew on stuff.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Totally valid concern. That could happen. I'm gonna keep an eye on them and deal with that if it occurs.

[@RussHudson-kv8qq]

Great clip! where i live most of the area uses Facia gutter, so no word. The gutter hang down 2" below the rafter. This was a perfect solution to my issue. I have a 4/12 pitch on the rafter, so I bought 1 piece for a test. I cut the gutter at the angle of the pitch and just flip the other half, and walla . On my way to HD to buy the rest of what i need

[@DadDoingStuff]

Right on! That’s super rad. Good luck on your project dude! 🤘🤘

[@BostLabs]

I love the detail you put into this video. 👍👍

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks so much, I really appreciate that!

[@Pens724]

We have a security camera that works well on our front porch, but after having christmas lights around the porch the wife likes how much cleaner the picture is and was wondering how we could add lighting without them being "christmas" lights. This maybe the trick. I'm curious on the controller portion, so we could program it for different holidays etc.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Lots of good content on YT for controllers and such. Honestly it depends how plug n play you like things. If you aren’t doing a super large amount, something like Govee lights are a good option to do your own DIY holiday lights but also have the controller part all pretty much plug n play. That said I will be doing a detailed video about my controller and wiring. Hopefully pretty soon.

[@Pens724]

@@DadDoingStuff myself, I wouldn't have a problem doing wiring, programming, etc., I always like to learn those things. The wife on the other hand would want it simple in case she'd ever have to deal with it.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That struggle is real dude! I will probably never get my wife to use the WLED app or interface! 😂

[@livinginoz7]

​

[@Jesd003]

Looks great. I did ws2811 pixels this year also. I tried using j-channel and pvc, but wasn’t having luck with making clean holes. I gave up and shelled out for permatrack. Yes, it was more than my supplies, but it is great quality. I ran 12v pixels with 16ga and only had to inject once every ~200 leds. I picked up an esp32 and 5v pixels for a wreath. Then I also got 7 bulbs from aliexpress loaded with WLED in my outdoor sconces. Next year I think I will do the top ridges of my roof in ws281x C9 or C7s if they are available.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Permatrack defintely looks good and cuts down on a lot of work! I like your idea about some C9’s…..always been my favorite bulbs!

[@jjcrazylegs7081]

Great idea! I have been thinking about doing something like this for my house. Thank you for the blueprint.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Very happy to help!

[@davidswanson5669]

For Christmas ask for a metric drill bit set. I love having them for those rare (but not so rare) occasions.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Dude I just got some quick change metric step up bits. LOVE those things!

[@TheOoze777]

Great job! I've been wanting to remount my pixels in a similar fashion (currently using pixel mounting strips zip tied to PVC pipes). But, like you, I'm not willing to spend the money on Permatrak. This appears to be a great alternative. Thanks for sharing.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Happy to help. I think any decent J channel or C channel would work. Good luck on your project!

[@tedebayer1]

Metal (or plastic) J channel for light mounting and running wire in is a good alternative, just as cheap and much smaller for those who have metal soffits. You can also mount close to the wall to get more lighting effect on the house itself.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Where do you find plastic J channel? I looked online because I wanted that first. I just never found any. But maybe my Google skills are lacking….🤷🏻‍♂️

[@AKJammer1]

@@DadDoingStuff Big box stores, both Lowes and HD have it. I have that plastic soffet material so can't get to the back of my facia board, and the gutters are right even with the bottom for the most part. Maybe I can do something into the aluminum strip holding the soffet....

[@DadDoingStuff]

@akjammer1 As I was researching this project, I found a lot of products were actually geared towards soffit mounting solutions rather than back side of the fascia. (and most of the content online seems to be centered on Utah for some reason) It's one of the reasons I started looking for my own solution. Also probably better to do the low-profile puck lights with soffits rather than the pixel strings.

[@AKJammer1]

@@DadDoingStuff Thanks. Yeah, I've been researching for the past couple hrs myself. The problem with those surface mounted puck lights is the exposure. I like the way yours just have the tips exposed with the rest hidden. Less HOA issues that way. I saw TheHookUp's review of the different lights and still thought yours was better. This'll be a Spring project for me, so I've got plenty of time to come to a decision. I'll probably also buy something in small quantities and test them out. Maybe on the back shed. ;-)

[@fitzmagic]

Great project, I love the downspout idea!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks, really appreciate the comment!

[@garyjr3961]

Great idea. I did this to my house and used j channel vinyl and it worked great

[@DadDoingStuff]

Right on! I figured J channel would work pretty well.

[@RR-rm6ge]

Great video! Great info, I used the "puck" lights for my eaves, but this will look very cool on other areas. Thanks!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Happy to help and thanks for watching dude!

[@wtdudley05]

Bro! This is an excellent video. Thank you kindly.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for watching and taking time to comment!

[@EvanGoss]

Have you thought about what you'll do when its time for paint? Do you think you'd take the lights down, mask them, or some other approach?

[@pibblesnbits]

Paint on the channel will likely last longer than the LEDS. The channel is behind the eve and under the overhang, it's completely out of direct sunlight and the paint will last very long. Only issue would be repainting it when changing the color of the house lol.

[@EvanGoss]

@@pibblesnbits I'm referring to typical house painting (eves, walls, etc). Some painters spray, others will use rollers and brushes, but either way, I would think that protecting the lights would be a priority.

[@sharazar]

@@EvanGossI would assume you would want to either remove the full channel. or atleast mask over either each light or a line over all the LED in a line. you would not want to get paint over the LEDd

[@DadDoingStuff]

Awesome question. I did discuss this with another viewer. Luckily those eaves shouldn't need to be painted often. But that said, I think if I was going to get a full paint done, I'd just take all of the channels down, then re-attach them after. I think it would be less time consuming than trying to mask or paint around them by hand.

[@spuds6423]

I have a feeling Clark Griswold might not approve!!🤔🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Seriously, cool job 👏 subscribed 😄

[@DadDoingStuff]

Those little lights aren’t twinkling Clark. 🤣🤣🤣

[@rcwrecker78]

Very well done. Was thinking of doing the same but the cost of sourcing the material vs the govee set from Costco made sense to me to go with the Govee. I have the elite set and it comes with white led chips. Their app does good as well. 300’ worth cost just under 700. That does all the eves around my house. Yours looks very professional. Great job vs the cheap unprofessional install look way of govee but, at the end of the day they’ll both outlive their life and will have to be demoed either way.

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s a really decent cost for 300’! And probably a ton less work than mine. Enjoy playing with them and all the cool effects! Appreciate the kind words! 👍👍

[@brandonschreiber7955]

Great work, great explanation, great video. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, learning and projects!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks so much! Appreciate you comment!

[@jeffro.]

This is not a bad idea! I like the way you did the power distribution, a lot of ppl don't think it through, and they have problems, starting with inconsistent lighting. (But it gets worse!) Good job overall! Now you can spend your time designing programs for holiday lighting, special events (e.g., kid's prom, graduation, wife's B'day, etc!) I have considered doing this, but until recently, i guess not serious enough! I started out (many years ago) with a string of LED lights that were difficult to put up (had to hang off high roof, i was dangling upside down.) So, i left them up for years until we moved, they just weren't lit on non-holidays! But it got me thinking about doing what you're talking about. This was quite a few years back, when LEDs weren't as rugged as they are now. (Some "pixels" died after 1 or 2 seasons, but they weren't really pixels since they weren't individually programmable.) Since now they are programmable, reliable, and rugged (if you choose correctly), I'm thinking more seriously about this (in our new home). I'll have to work out the power density, to maximize the light density, before i do anything. And of course, there's the cost.... Bur, yeah, I'll definitely make my own mounting channels, it'll save LOTS of $$$. Thanks for taking the time to share! 👍👍👍 PS: After watching more of the video (haven't gotten to the end yet(, i have a few practical questions: 1. Since your channels are open at the top, have you had any problems with critters messing with your wires? I'm thinking house sparrows making nests, but it could be mice, wasps, just about anything, depending on where you live. 2. I suppose behind the facia it's out of the rain, but since it isn't actually enclosed, I'm thinking the seasons could be kinda rough on the insulation, connectors, etc. Again, depending on where you live.... Overall, the price point seems reasonable! I'd be interested in your answers to my questions....

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hi Jeffro and thx for the comment. LED technology has certainly evolved and come a long way. In parallel, consumer access to this technology has become pretty darn affordable. So that stuff is cool. As to your questions…and I’ll be discussing both of these in my upcoming video. 1. The critter question has probably been the number 1 question from viewers. It’s definitely something I’ve been concerned about, but so far has not been an issue even a little bit. We do get birds that nest in parts of our roof but nothing on my tracks yet. We get wasp nests on occasion but so far those haven’t been a problem either. This would for sure depend on where you live. One deterrent I’ve heard about is to used shavings from Irish Spring soap as mice and rodents apparently hate it. 🤷🏻‍♂️ 2. This would vary based on your particular house and roof. For ours, the open tops of the trays are really quite protected from weather and sun. They stay mostly dry and only get any moisture if there is a heavy wind along with rain. We live at the base of the sierras so we don’t get a ton of rain here. But we do see a fair bit of snow and temps from low teens all the way into the 100’s. Obviously, where you live and type of house would be a factor. Appreciate you watching and stay tuned for an update video on this project!

[@garagehobbies]

I have considered this but with all the fires in the last 3 years... Heck no. Great install. I might consider Mattos EVO pixels though as they are UL listed.

[@DadDoingStuff]

It’s one of the reasons I chose 5v lights. I REALLY hope with proper wiring and an oversized power supply that I don’t have any issue!!! I’ll definitely look at those Mattos for future projects. Thanks for watching.

[@luis55g]

Great idea on using the vinyl downspouts. I was really trying to figure out an alternative to Dr. Zs perma track. I knew I would still use the dig quad so I bought that. Great video you have WON A SUB!! can’t wait to see your other videos. By the way did you use Wled to run them?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thx man! I hear ya about the permatrack. It’s rad, but pricey. Yes on WLED. I’m just an about to do my 1yr update on this project where I’ll get more into some of those details. Learned a lot more since posting this video.!

[@thogar1]

Thanks for this video and the diagrams. Well done. i was a little unclear on one thing. For each down spout tube, did you cut it to get two usable channels? Or did you just cut off the top producing one channel. Thanks.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Good question. I cut it in half, getting a pair of 10’ channels from each downspout.

[@douglasteachout1958]

What do you do when one inevitably burns out? How long do they last? Does intense sun embrittle the plastic LED covers (my summers reach 105 degrees of brutal sun)?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hi Doug, while I haven’t had to deal with that happening yet, my plan would be to just replace that single LED pixel and solder a new one into place. I learned that those solder/shrink tubes work really well with a heat gun alone, so the soldering process becomes pretty much less difficult. Regarding the sun, time will tell. We get to about the same temps here during the summer and we get about 330 days of sun a year. My install overall has them out of direct sunlight most of the time. But if that becomes a problem down the road, I would just swap an entire strand out if need be. Hope that helps!

[@munnzie1021]

Great video! I want to do this to our house as well. Love the use of the downspouts for spacing and mounting, great idea! Have you had any issues with birds or wasps trying to use them as a new home? How do they hold up during the winter/summer? I'm pretty sure I live on the same end of town (I recognize those mountains with the wild mustangs 😉) Thanks for the awesome content!

[@DadDoingStuff]

So far zero issues with birds or critters. Also zero issues so far due to weather. They are tucked pretty nicely behind the fascia board and that seems to keep them pretty protected. We’ll see how this coming winter shakes out, but I don’t anticipate any issues. I’m ready for snow and ski season! Appreciate you watching!!

[@Citizen_JQP]

I really like this idea as well. Although, i might need to modify how i attach the vinyl. Florida climate as it is

[@munnzie1021]

@@DadDoingStuff That's great to hear! I'll have to do this in the spring... not sure I want to be on the roof when it's snowing! Looks like ski season might be here!!!!

[@81pepperman]

I like it! I would like to find those lights?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Links in the description!

[@RONPackwood]

Will you please tell me how you control your lights

[@DadDoingStuff]

WLED running on top of an ESP32 controller.

[@dessertbooger9397]

It would be a good idea to use the cut half of the downspout as a cap to keep out bees,birds and squirrels that will eventually make those tracks their home. Just leaving an extra 1/2” would work fine as a forced friction cap

[@DadDoingStuff]

That topic will definitely be part of my 1-yr update video on this setup. It’s a good idea.

[@ngennaro]

Love it! Could not justify buying these premade ones given the price. This is excellent. Where can I buy the shirt? I love that saying!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the comment! I’ve had that shirt for like 15 years, but it looks like Amazon has one similar. amzn.to/4eQBRWp

[@Knightlife07]

I'm a bird and I love this guy.

[@JanSevera]

😂

[@dougholcomb6851]

I came to the comments to look for a comment like this lmao

[@DadDoingStuff]

😂😂 Might be totally right dude! 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@2mustange]

Great information. If i could get a pixel string with RGBCW/RGBWW/RGBCCT I would totally do something similar. Can't seem to fine pixel strings with those led types though

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks! Yeah I’ve only seen RGB or RGBW. Do those others do anything well beyond RGBW? (I’m still a noob when it comes to in-depth LED knowledge)

[@chriswkbrd]

Awesome video, thank you! I'm going to do a version of this.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Sweet! Thx for watching Chris!

[@themarkfunction]

Great vid, thank you! I like vinyl downspouts for all kinds of low cost, DIY projects. You mentioned "injecting" more power to the roof lines a few times. What does that mean?

[@DadDoingStuff]

The basic version: You get voltage loss over distance (especially with a low 5v system like mine). So the longer the run, the LEDs that are farthest away from the power source won’t be as bright. This is most noticeable when trying to achieve a cool white color with RGB pixels. The initial feed from the controller has positive, negative, and data. To counter the loss in voltage, you need to add additional power straight from the power supply (needs to be from the same power supply not a separate one) and “inject” that every so often. Each injection can be a home run back to the power supply, or you can run a larger gauge cable and run it in parallel with the LED strands, just tapping into it every so often. Dedicated home runs are best, however they aren’t always practical depending your house and roof layout. I did this about every 50 LEDs. Also note the every positive off the power supply or controller that goes to a LED or power injection line should always have a fuse inline. Hope that helps!

[@themarkfunction]

@@DadDoingStuff OK yes I definitely understand the voltage drop over the lines. So then each 50 lights basically has its own power lines, but they all share a single data line?

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@themarkfunction Precisely!

[@themarkfunction]

@@DadDoingStuffAwesome, thank you!

[@dennisstoddard2008]

You are a genius! Thanks for sharing. 👍👍👍

[@DadDoingStuff]

If only I could convince my wife! 🤣 I appreciate the comment!

[@HoneyRowland]

Inwould love a video to be educated about 12v vs 5v. Can you recommend someone you found that helped you as you were learning? Id love to set these up for feeding and caring for our animals to go around their pens and such. Would be nice during summer to srtup something overhead since its cooler and woukd be easier to weed and harvest the garden fkr morning sales. Thanks for sharing. I live the gutter look and how its hidden and professional looking and a huge time saver. Can these be ran off a small solar panel?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for all the questions! Check out youtube.com/@TheHookUp?si=m4mYaISdnB2k9IoD to learn more about 5v versus 12v. This guy REALLY nerds out on this stuff. Unless you have a need to have programmable patterns and such, I would probably steer away from individually addressable LEDs (like the ones I used) and just get standard lit ones that are only one color. They would be way easier to use for those types of applications. Solar is possible, but really depends on size of panel, size of battery, and how many LEDs you were gonna use.

[@thejerkofalltrades3862]

This is very nice and professional looking. This system would retail for about $10,000 US.

[@DadDoingStuff]

LOL. It’s kinda crazy how much they can cost! 😳

[@randybanner2721]

Awesome build!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thx dude, appreciate that!

[@DrZzs]

Awesome video! Thanks!

[@DadDoingStuff]

The man the myth the legend! Thx for watching and for all of your great content dude!

[@blainehouser4354]

Great Idea! I’m Definitely Doing this!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Right on! Good luck on your project!

[@lovewenwin]

Cant wait to see this year's update

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thx! Soon, probably right after Halloween!

[@nemloc]

any issues with birds nesting in the open protected back gutter? or wasps?

[@DadDoingStuff]

Great question! Not yet…..but that could definitely be an issue. I’m gonna keep an eye out for the birds. Wasps are more of a concern, but I’m going to have my pest control guy hit those eaves every time he comes out to hopefully keep them at bay. Birds are just gonna be a thing that IF they decide to start nesting, I’ll have to implement a solution.

[@davidhutchins7925]

I want to put permanent Christmas lights on my house so bad, and have already bought some and tried some out. The only trouble is what do you do when you paint your house? I'm a professional paint contractor and have been doing it for almost 30 years. Every time you paint your house something you can have to be done to all those lights and that's going to be time consuming, and expensive. Just wondering? Peace from California!

[@DadDoingStuff]

That’s a really good question. It would definitely create a challenge. I’m not a paint contractor so I can’t speak from experience here, but…..how often does it need to get re-painted under the eaves? (Unless changing color entirely) Our house is stucco. It’s 10 years old. Our stucco trim definitely needs a fresh coat. Also I’ve done some of the outside of the fascia trim by hand already. But under the eaves see very little sun/weather. So I don’t know how often they need to be painted. That said, if it was only once per decade, I think you could take these down a few sections at a time and put them right back up. Maybe a good reason to look at waterproof connectors instead of soldered….🤔

[@famousamoso7]

I mean unless youre painting your house every few months you would just remove the channels prior to painting.

[@johnmayer4747]

Christmas and Halloween Light show enthusiast here. Good rule of thumb is power injection for 5vdc pixels should be every 50 pixels regardless of how many feet you are going. I use 5vdc pixels on my light shows and my cards are always about 5 feet away from the pixel strands and every 50 pixels use a power injection for both positive and negative lines. 2nd use IP67 pixels for waterproof pixels. 12vdc pixels are better for long runs and less wiring when it comes to power injection. Suggest you NOT use the plastic downspouts unless they are UV rated. Plastic electrical conduit are rated for UV an may be a better solution. Overall, very informative video.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks for the info. Cards? Are those the controllers?

[@Eggwelder]

Aren’t vinyl downspouts UV rated already? They do spend their intended purpose in the sun all the time…..

[@johnmayer4747]

Several years ago they were not and had mine taken down due to how brutal the sun was on them. They were very brittle and had them fall apart when taking them down. You would think the newer ones should be but would would have to research it@@Eggwelder

[@DadDoingStuff]

@@Eggwelder pretty sure they are UV rated already. Don’t think you would normally paint one, so they would be in the sun a lot. Although my channels won’t see much direct sunlight.

[@derrickking9491]

Roger that. Thanks! Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas!

[@kevinhickey4889]

Happy Holidays!!

[@DadDoingStuff]

Meant to say also….checkout the WLED subreddit. Great community there with lots of helpful folks.

[@dalmagik]

Dude, impressive as hell! 🤛 what a project. Design, fabrication, installation…🫡🤯 cheers, big time. 🤘

[@DadDoingStuff]

Thanks a ton! I appreciate that!

[@PMPerformance]

This is pretty genious! I did something similar with a color matched vinyl siding j channel to my soffit for my Govee lights

[@DadDoingStuff]

Vinyl siding J channel.....that's a great idea!

[@PMPerformance]

@@DadDoingStuff I got beat up pretty bad on Reddit for it, but I think it turned out pretty good for what was easily avail

[@DadDoingStuff]

Don't worry about internet haters dude. Unfortunately, there are a ton of them out there. Only reason I didn't use J channel is that I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for.

[@PMPerformance]

@@DadDoingStuff I typically don’t let the haters bother me. I have a channel as well and learned you gotta have thick skin to be a content creator. Lol

[@mikelandry1086]

What brand LED’s do you go with and and for the LED controller can you do a video on that. 19:34

[@DadDoingStuff]

These LEDs are Alitove. Link in description. I’m planning a follow up video about the controller and wiring. Cheers!

[@allenmcclure6017]

Solder is Better or the butt connectors but you could use Liquid Electrical Tape on the Connecting plugs. I would Recommend to Test any connection you make that is not the one already tested. Also if you Do use Solder Do not use Acid Core! make sure its Rosen Core. On a Hole this is an Really Good Idea. And a Time Saver. you can do this in the Summer when you have nice Weather. i want to Say Thanks for That.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Great info dude! Appreciate that!

[@georgelza]

just checking, you mentioned about 750 led's/pixels ?, what was your total run length?

[@DadDoingStuff]

I have 722 (about 165’) on LED1, and 162 (about 40’) on LED2. So 884 total pixels on that controller. When I add more to the yard/ house later, I will need to add additional controllers for sure.

[@enragedninja]

To anyone wanting to do this i suggest to get pixels >5vDC, so the 12vDC or 24vDC.

[@DadDoingStuff]

I actually agree. I talk about that in my update video I recently did. I’d do 12v if I was gonna start over.

[@northwiebesick7136]

Forgive me for such a stupid idea and question, but why don't you just do outdoor rated shrink wrap tubing with a water resistant adhesive sealer? Sure it's not necessarily easier, but I'm sure there's got to be a way to do it, and IF it ever needed to be replaced, it would be easier to replace a strip or string, if those quick connect ends were still there, to where all you had to do was remove a piece of shrink tubing to be able to pull them apart, right? Or am I just seriously overthinking things? And yes, before anyone says anything, I know I MIGHT need to have shrink tubing on the individual wire strips, to beef it up so the bigger outer one will shrink tightly to everything under it, but still... Even IF you didn't use shrink tubing there just HAS to be a way around the limitations of removing the quick connectors, right? Oh, one thing to think about, since the whole drain-gutter thing looks like a bird sanctuary... Put some kind of mesh over the top and the ends, to keep birds and rodents from nesting DIRECTLY on top of the LED string wires... Another thing i would like to say, if you're looking for inspiration for projects like this, is looking on KZbin for a channel called DavesGarage (i forget if there's a space or not) he has done basically the same setup as you, except more high end, and with strips instead of strings... even compared to yours, his is way better looking... but then again, he does LED light stuff for a hobby, and id the creator of the nightdriver project, which is software that is similar to, but more advanced than the WLED project, for ESP boards and the like, although I'm not an expert on the stuff as I've never used it before, so you'll have to figure out which is best for you, on your own. He doesn't show his lights on his eaves very often in his videos unless he's specifically saying something about them, but dam, they look good. Also, if you want inspiration on Christmas light automation, even though it doesn't specifically say how they do it, check KZbin for an event held around Christmas in my area called "Christmas in wadena" and look at the promotional videos about it, cuz dam... that thing IS, and LOOKS insane, EVERY year, with a new aong once in a great while. One thing you should know about the Christmas in wadena show, though, is that they put the thing up every year, and don't just leave it up permanently, and I'm sure once you check it out, you'll understand why...

[@DadDoingStuff]

Hey Dude. As with most projects, I learn as I go and often think of things afterward that I would change. Or learn new ideas from viewers 😉 That said if I was gonna start over, I would probably use IP67 waterproof connectors and place them at every junction of the channels. That way if I needed to remove a section to work on it, I could just unscrew both ends and remove that single 10’ section. Definitely more work to install, but could be nice later. Far as birds…..yeah definitely a concern that I’m gonna keep an eye on. I very well might be adding some little screen covers to keep them off the wiring. Time will tell on that one. Appreciate the info on the other channels. Lots of great content out there to get ideas!

[@northwiebesick7136]

@@DadDoingStuff to be honest, the Christmas in wadena one was just so you could look at their finished setup, and honestly, unless you are going to rope your local radio station just down the street, into giving you a bit of tower space around Christmas to cover the town with a radio station for the evenings, and have the lights move in special patterns like the Christmas in wadena people do, it's more just a showcase of what a finished product could do, if you wanted to do. I honestly don't think ANYONE would want to do what the Christmas in wadena people do, because the guy that does that, does it as a free will offering to the local food shelf, where he tells people that want to donate, they can drop food or money off in a designated area of the show, and it's one person setting everything up and tearing it down every year as far as I'm aware unless he has any family to help him... Now the Dave's garage one, that can really give you lots of ideas because he does a lot of stuff when he's not talking about his previous job at Microsoft, with LEDs and things, from small projects to big projects, and he's a good guy to learn a bit about LED setups in general from, even if he doesn't necessarily show putting them together...

[@ericapelz260]

The big problem with the factory connectors on pixels is resistance and corrosion. Even under shrink, they corrode. Lastly, most shirk tube large enough for the connector won't shrink tight on the wire. When you need to take them apart, the waterproof connectors are the way to go. Dave's project is great, but as far as I know, he wasn't supporting the standard protocol used in Christmas displays. If you want to build a show, you need to be able to stream to it with Falcon Player and xLights. Also, Wi-Fi gets saturated with streaming data fairly quickly, so there is a limit to how many Wi-Fi devices you can use. ESP32s with wired ethernet and WLED work well for a handful of strings like, this video shows. A Falcon F16 control board is well worth the money for larger shows. My show is small but I add a little to it every year.

[@ericapelz260]

@@northwiebesick7136 You don't need to blanket the town with your radio station. My setup uses a Signstek FM transmitter and is easily heard for a couple blocks. Much further than you can see the show, and not powerful enough to violate FCC rules. As for all the animations, xLights or Vixen Lights are relatively easy to learn, and both pieces of software are free. It's not a cheap hobby, but it's fun and easy enough to get into.

[@spuds6423]

Remember, those little rodentia love to chew on wires!!!🤔😄

[@rachaelb9164]

I like the way this looks better than the J channels but we have issues with paper wasps here and those things would love these lol. It’s hard enough to keep them out of the gutters even with gutter guards on.

[@DadDoingStuff]

Yeah that’s a real possibility for sure. Time is gonna tell, but I’m definitely keeping an eye on it!

[@TimSpreitzer]

@@DadDoingStuff Do you have any bird nests or other guests yet? That would be my concern. GREAT JOB coming up with this solution and taking the time to share and help others.

[@fin3125]

Love it. Do you have any melting issues in the summer? Also, I want to do it around my window. It looks too wide for that. I wonder if I can heat it and reform it on a board so it is thinner. If you need to do the same, can you give that a try with some scrap you may have?

[@stevebabiak6997]

Just find plastic extrusions that are smaller, don’t mess around trying to heat and reform because it won’t end up sufficiently uniform in appearance. If you search for H290 or H291 you will see U-channel in plastic that you could buy in smaller sizes. Good luck.

[@fin3125]

@stevebabiak6997 thank you so much

[@DadDoingStuff]

Found this stuff AFTER I did my project. 5' lengths, but already in a U shape and relatively cheap. www.homedepot.com/p/Barrette-Outdoor-Living-1-02-in-x-1-379-in-x-59-5-in-White-Vinyl-Fence-U-Channel-73040830/315645143

[@DadDoingStuff]

I'm already working on an idea for doing this around windows. Most likely, I'll be using strips rather than strands for that one. Stay tuned!

[@fin3125]

@DadDoingStuff Awesome..thank you