Here's how to fill your home with holiday cheer, without a safety hazard
Every December, we turn our living rooms into holiday showpieces, some bright enough to make Clark Griswold proud. It’s a familiar ritual—wrangling tangled lighting strands and Christmas ornaments, debating warm versus cool bulbs and trying to cover that one dark patch on the tree that looks weird from every angle.
While we’re busy worrying about how the tree looks, many of us are ignoring the one thing that matters most: how safe it is. You know who can’t ignore this serious holiday hazard? Fire safety pros. Ahead, we talked to Andy Roszak, a former firefighter and the founder of the Institute for Childhood Preparedness, a home-safety nonprofit. According to Rosnak, there’s one holiday tree mistake that stands out as the most dangerous.
Keep reading to find out the bad habit that almost everyone is guilty of at some point—and what you should do instead.
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What’s the common mistake you’re probably making with your Christmas tree?
“Leaving the lights on while you sleep is the No. 1 mistake people make,” Rosnak says. “It adds a huge amount of unnecessary risk.”
Here’s why: Once a tree is cut, it immediately begins to dry out. Even a fresh tree can drink up to a gallon of water a day, and when it doesn’t get enough, it becomes extremely flammable. “A dry Christmas tree can ignite in about 10 seconds,” Roszak says. “In 60 seconds, an entire room can be fully involved.”
Electrical issues make things worse. Overheated bulbs, pinched wires, frayed cords and old light strands pushed past their lifespan all increase the likelihood of a spark—especially during long, unsupervised stretches, like overnight.
How big of a problem is this?
Bigger than people realize!
Christmas tree fires aren’t all that frequent, but when they do spark, they’re particularly deadly. Rosnak says the U.S. sees 150 to 160 Christmas tree fires each year, but they’re more than 2 1/2 times as likely to cause a fatality as a typical home fire.
“One in 52 tree fires results in a death,” he says, compared with 1 in 135 for regular house fires.
Most of these fires start from electrical issues like worn cords, shorts and damaged lights. In fact, 40% of Christmas tree fires are caused by electrical malfunctions. And the timing is telling: Over one-third of them happen in January, when people stop watering, trees become brittle and decorations are still plugged in out of habit.
Are LED lights safer?
LED lights are a major upgrade from the hot-to-the-touch incandescent bulbs many of us grew up with. They run cooler, use less energy and last longer. But Roszak is quick to clarify that “safer” doesn’t equal “risk-free.”
“With LEDs, the hazard isn’t the heat from the bulb,” he says. “It’s damaged wiring. If a cord is kinked, pinched or chewed through, you can still get a short—and a short is enough to start a fire.”
Because they don’t heat up, LEDs don’t have to follow the old “no more than three strands connected” rule that applied to incandescent lights. That prevents heat-related fires, but the wiring remains a real concern. Regardless of type, if the cord is compromised, it’s a hazard.
Many households also use a mix of old incandescent and newer LED strands. If that’s you, keep the three strands-rule in place. Not sure what you’ve got? Incandescent bulbs warm up when plugged in, while LEDs stay cool and tend to have a slightly different-looking glow. Or check the tag.
How long can Christmas lights stay on safely?
Roszak’s rule is simple: If you’re not awake and in the room, turn them off. “Supervision is everything,” he says. “Most fatal fires occur at night because people are sleeping and they’re not detected early.”
He suggests making it a family Christmas activity: Lights on in the morning or when you get home, and lights off when the house winds down at night. “We tell kids the tree needs to ‘go to sleep’ too,” he says. It reinforces the habit and cuts risk dramatically. This also applies anytime you leave the house for errands, work and weekend outings.
Do these rules apply to outdoor lights too?
That’s the safest course of action. The Consumer Product Safety Commission and other public safety agencies encourage people to turn off both indoor and outdoor lights when they go to bed or leave the house.
But outdoor lights are built differently, giving you some peace of mind. “They’re rated for weather exposure and use thicker-gauge wire,” Roszak explains. Still, wet extension cords and aging outlets can pose hazards, so don’t ignore your outdoor setups. The best course of action is to put your lights on a timer so that you don’t forget to turn them off. Make sure your outdoor outlets are GFCI-protected.
How else can you stay safe?
Luckily, staying safe from Christmas tree fires just takes a bit of knowledge and some diligence. Here are some easy precautions to take to dramatically reduce your risk.
- Water the tree daily. The wetter the tree, the safer it is.
- Inspect every light strand for frayed wires or chew marks before plugging them in.
- Replace flickering bulbs, which can signal wiring issues.
- Avoid running cords under rugs or furniture, which causes overheating.
- Use only UL-listed lights—skip no-name versions.
- Fully unplug lights at night; don’t just switch them off.
- Use timers or smart plugs to automate on/off schedules.
- Check smoke detectors, especially near sleeping areas.
This year, keep the sparkle without the risk: Turn off the lights when you’re asleep, check wiring and outlets, and keep the tree hydrated. With just a few mindful habits, your holidays can be both festive and safe.
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Sources:
- Andrew Roszak, paramedic and founder and CEO of the Institute for Childhood Preparedness; interviewed, December 2025
- Consumer Product Safety Commission: “Holiday Decoration Safety Tips”
- NIST National Fire Research Laboratory: “Holiday Fire Safety”
- National Fire Protection Association: “How to Help Prevent Home Christmas Tree Fires”
