Lift for installing Christmas lights: street lamps and the town square

For installing Christmas lights on lamp posts, poles and decorations strung across a street, a diesel 4×4 articulating boom lift (cherry picker, aerial work platform, MEWP) is used: the platform reaches over parked cars, the kerb and greenery, and the machine drives from post to post. For the town square, the pedestrian precinct and the shopping centre you take an electric lift: an articulating one over the stalls and benches, a scissor lift for working straight on at a façade. The town Christmas tree is dressed from an articulating or telescopic boom lift with a reserve of height and outreach, so that you can go all the way round the tree. Below: how to match the machine to the place of installation, how to work out height and outreach, what to watch out for when working at night, on the carriageway and near power lines, and how to plan the installation and the January removal.

Which lift for which decoration?

• Lamp posts and poles along streets — diesel articulating boom lift 16–20 m: it stands in a parking lane or on the pavement, and the platform reaches the luminaire over the carriageway. A horizontal outreach of 7.5–13.5 m means you do not have to reposition the machine at every post on the other side of a narrow street.
• Decorations and garlands strung across the carriageway, masts at junctions — an articulating boom lift of 20–26 m or a telescopic boom lift, when the cable runs high between buildings; the second fixing point is made from the same machine after it has been driven across.
• Town square, pedestrian precinct, plaza with block paving — electric articulating boom lift (15–20 m) over market stalls, the fountain and benches; no exhaust fumes and no noise, and on block paving you lay mats under the wheels.
• Shopping centre, atrium, station — electric scissor lift (7.7–14.3 m) for decorations on balustrades, columns and under a rooflight; narrow models 0.76–0.81 m pass through the arcade. Over shop windows and retail islands: an electric articulating boom lift.
• Town Christmas tree — an articulating or telescopic boom lift with a reserve: working height at least equal to the height of the tree plus 2 m, horizontal outreach equal to the distance from the machine’s standing position to the axis of the tree. For trees of 15–20 m a 26 m articulating boom lift comes into play.
• Façade of a town hall, hotel, church — as with installing advertising: an articulating boom lift over the pavement and entrance, a telescopic one for tall façades. Details in the article lift for installing advertising and signs.

How do you work out height and outreach?

The working height is the platform floor plus about 2 m of arm reach: for lamp posts it is the height of the luminaire, for garlands the fixing point on the façade, for the Christmas tree the tip. The horizontal outreach is measured from the place where the machine will actually stand (behind parked cars, behind a stall, behind a fence) to the point of work. Decorations are light, so the capacity of an articulating boom lift platform (usually 200–270 kg) is enough for two fitters with tools and a box of ornaments; heavy three-dimensional structures are passed up by a telehandler and only fixed from the platform. For how to read the reach from the machine datasheet, see how to read the load and reach chart.

What should you watch out for when installing lights?

• Power lines and overhead traction lines — near street lamps run supply cables, and on streets with a tram or trolleybus the traction line is live. Safe distances are kept and work near the traction line is agreed with its operator; while the decorations are being connected to the power supply, the circuit is switched off by an electrician with the relevant qualifications.
• Occupying the carriageway — standing the machine on the carriageway or pavement requires the consent of the road manager, signage and fencing off of the area under the platform; the installation is planned for the night or early morning.
• Weather — November and January mean wind, rain, frost and snow: the wind limit from the machine manual is observed, and in icy conditions the standing position is cleared of snow. The rules for working in winter are collected in the article lift in winter.
• Ground — the block paving of a square, paving slabs and the slab of an underground car park under the plaza must carry the wheel loads; mats are laid under the wheels (see how much a lift weighs).
• Licences — the operator of a mobile elevating work platform holds a qualification certificate from the Office of Technical Inspection (UDT), and in the platform of an articulating boom lift a safety harness with a lanyard is required. Decoration firms and municipal departments without a qualified employee take the machine with an operator.

How do you plan the installation and removal?

The season starts in November, and many crews fit decorations in the same short period, so it is worth booking in advance, right away for both the installation and the January removal. With several locations in one town a single machine visits them in turn, and with several dozen poles it is sensible to take two and finish in one night. Just give a list of points (poles, façades, the tree), heights, the machine’s standing position and working hours: we choose the models, organise delivery and collect the machine after the removal. The whole process is described in the article how to order a lift rental.

Frequently asked questions

Which lift should I use to install Christmas lights on street lamps?

For decorations on lighting poles along streets, a diesel 4×4 articulating boom lift is most often used: the platform reaches over parked cars, the kerb and greenery, and the machine drives from pole to pole. In our fleet diesel articulating boom lifts have a working height of 12.5–43 m and a horizontal outreach of 6.8–21.3 m, so they serve both estate street lamps and tall masts at junctions.

Which lift should I use for the town square, the pedestrian precinct and a shopping centre?

For the block paving of a square and inside shopping centres, an electric lift: an electric articulating boom lift (up to 20 m) over stalls, a fountain and benches, or an electric scissor lift (7.7–14.3 m) for working straight on, at a façade, at columns and under rooflights. There are no exhaust fumes or noise, the wheels do not mark the floor, and light models drive into a shopping centre.

Which lift should I use to dress the town Christmas tree?

For a Christmas tree 12–20 m tall you need an articulating or telescopic boom lift with a margin: the platform has to go all the way round the tree, reaching the top, and the machine often stands behind a fence or stalls. You choose a working height at least equal to the height of the tree plus 2 m, and a horizontal outreach equal to the distance from the standing position to the axis of the tree.

Can lights be installed at night and with a lane of the road occupied?

Yes, in towns installation often takes place at night or early in the morning, when traffic is lightest. Work on the carriageway requires the consent of the road manager, signage and fencing off of the area under the platform; for night work you have to light the work position, and the crew wears high-visibility vests. Delivery is planned so that the machine is on site before the lane is closed.

How long should I rent a lift for Christmas decorations?

Usually for a few days in November for installation and a few days in January for removal; with several dozen poles or several locations, for a week or longer. For a long period the daily rate is lower, and the machine can wait on site between stages. It is worth booking in advance, because the installation of decorations falls in the same short period for many customers.