Michael's stopped selling my tree, but I think they renamed it and this is it. If not exact, it's VERY similar!
I know, I know!! We aren’t even to November yet!! But it’ll be here in a few days, and that’s when I start to think about putting up my tree. I’m likely decorating on November 2nd or 8th, so it’s right around the corner. I always put my tree up early for work, but even if it weren’t part of my job, I’d still do it. The glow of a Christmas tree is unlike anything else. There’s something about that soft light at night, surrounded by ornaments we’ve thoughtfully collected over the years. It brings me peace and immeasurable joy... and quite frankly, that's what Christmas is about.
This year, though, I’ve been thinking about it earlier than usual because last season, my prelit tree from Michael’s (purchased in 2019) had an issue. I love that tree. It looks full and realistic, but when we put it up in 2024, an entire section of lights went out. My husband tried to fix it. Nothing worked. I ended up stringing extra lights over the dark section just to make it through the season, but it didn’t look great, and honestly, it bothered me every single night. I knew I’d need to replace it this year but kind of forgot about it until just now.
I took to Instagram, and many of you had some great tree recommendations. I am compiling them all here for you to browse. Most of the recommendations are for prelit trees, and the brand that was most often recommended was Balsam Hilll when someone didn't give me an exact tree rec. Below the recommendations, you can read all about my tree drama and my time as a faux Christmas tree research student.
These two were BY FAR the most recommended trees. I'm tempted to buy the second option. It's at a nice price point and gets good reviews. I like the look of it. I love the look of the first one, too, but it's just more costly.
I started researching because I thought surely prelit trees can't go bad this often. How wasteful is that?! I went down quite a rabbit hole. It turns out that prelit artificial trees only last about 3–10 years on average, and the most common reason people replace them is because a section of light fails. No kidding. When I bought mine, I thought, Wow, what a modern convenience, no more untangling cords every December. I didn’t think about what would happen when those built-in lights eventually stopped working.
So I have since learned that prelit trees eventually have lighting issues. The lights are wired in series circuits (yeah, you can Google that on your own), so one issue can cause a whole section to go dark.
LED lights tend to last longer than incandescent ones, but the wiring can still fail due to corrosion or power imbalances.
Which is why storage matters. Temperature swings, humidity, and dust can shorten the life of the light connections. Fuses and bulbs can sometimes be replaced, but if something else is damaged, there may not be an easy fix. So yes, if you buy a prelit tree, this can absolutely happen again, no matter the brand or where it’s from. And no, you shouldn't store your tree in your garage. Ask me how I know!
Also, please don’t take technical advice from me on how these trees work! I’m simply relaying what I’ve learned while trying to understand my own tree dilemma. In college, I had to take a one-credit class on building circuits to fulfill a science requirement. I vividly remember sitting in a lab, trying to connect wires with tiny alligator clips, aiming to get something to light up or make a noise. I got a B in this class, which made my GPA a 3.9. To this day, I’m still slightly bitter about it, but I can confidently say I am not the person to consult about electrical matters! I remember the professor telling us to pay attention because this could teach us how to fix our toaster one day... he should have just said Christmas tree, and maybe it would have gotten my attention better, ha!!
When I shared this whole situation on Instagram, so many of you said you’ve been through the exact same thing. Here’s what I learned from your messages:
- Many of you replaced your prelit trees with unlit versions and now just string the lights yourselves. It takes longer to set up, but the trade-off is longevity—you can easily replace strands if they fail.
- A few of you spent entire days cutting off the original lights to salvage the tree structure. Every single person said it took hours, patience, and a pair of wire cutters, but it worked.
- One of you wonderful gals recommended this Lightkeeper tool, a repair tool that helps restore power to dark sections. When you read the reviews, many had success, some did not.
- Some people said they still got another prelit tree, but looked at the brand's warranties before purchasing so they could get an idea of how long the tree might last. To give you an example, Balsalm Hill, one of the most recommended brands, has a 3-year warranty.
After hearing from so many of you and reading up on it, I'm going to go the Lightkeeper route first. If that fails, I’m considering buying an unlit tree, which I don't really want to do. I really love the ease of a prelit tree, so I still don't know if I'm kidding myself, and just going to end up with another prelit tree. If I do, I’ll make sure it’s LED (not incandescent, which is what I prefer the look of), has a decent warranty, and comes from a reputable brand like Balsam Hill, King of Christmas, etc. Those were some of the brands you all recommended.
I'll keep you all posted!
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