Rain, wind and what happens to your date

Do you work in the rain?

No. We do not put anyone on a wet roof, and we will not start a job if rain is arriving during it.

This is not caution for its own sake. A wet composition shingle is slick, wet Spanish tile is worse, and a ladder on wet concrete moves. Add a person carrying strands with both hands and you have the single most dangerous situation in this trade. It is also the one place where rushing costs somebody an injury rather than an hour.

There is a work-quality reason too. Clips seat properly on a dry edge. Working wet means working fast, and fast is how spacing drifts and a roofline ends up looking uneven.

What happens if it rains on my install day?

We watch the forecast for your date and we tell you as early as we can — usually the day before, sometimes the morning of if a system moves.

Then we move you to the closest open slot we have and text you the new date. We do not make you chase us for it. If the weather clears in the afternoon and the roof dries, we will often still get you done the same day, and we will tell you that too.

A rain delay does not cost you anything and it does not change your price.

How far does a delay usually push me?

Honestly, it depends where in the season you are. Early November there is room behind you, so a delay is often a day or two. The first week of December there is much less room, because everything behind you is already booked.

That is the real argument for booking early, and it is a more practical one than "dates fill up." Early bookings have slack behind them. Late bookings do not.

What does wind do to a display?

Ordinary coastal wind does very little. Clips are designed to hold a strand under load and they do their job.

A hard Santa Ana is a different animal, and anyone who has lived here through one knows it. Sustained dry wind off the inland side can lift a strand out of a clip, twist bulbs out of alignment, pull a section loose at the end of a run, or take down something lightweight in the yard entirely. It can do that to a display that was installed perfectly.

Wrapped trees generally ride it out well. Long unsupported roofline runs and anything staked in the ground are what usually need attention afterwards.

Who pays to fix wind damage?

We do. Wind repairs are covered by the same all-season maintenance as a dead bulb. There is no separate weather charge and no argument about whether it was our install or the weather.

After a big wind event, text us — a photo of the section that moved is ideal. We would much rather come out and re-seat a run than have you look at a crooked roofline for three weeks because you did not want to bother us.

Should I turn the lights off in bad weather?

You do not need to. LED C9 strands, connectors and timers are built for outdoor use and rain is a normal condition for them.

The one thing worth doing is what you would do anyway: if a strand has visibly come down and is lying on the ground or across a walkway, leave it alone, unplug at the outlet if that is easy and safe, and text us. Do not get on a ladder in weather to fix our work. That is what the maintenance is for.

Does rain delay takedown too?

Yes, and it matters much less. January takedown is not tied to a specific evening the way an install is, so a wet week just moves you a few days. If you have an HOA deadline for lights being down, tell us and we will work to it.

What about fog and marine layer?

Marine layer is not a problem to work in as long as the roof is dry. Heavy overnight damp can leave a roof slick well into the morning even with no rain in the forecast, which is why a crew sometimes starts later than you expect. That is a judgement call made on site, and it usually costs an hour rather than a day.

What this means for your quote

Weather does not change your price, and rescheduling is free. What it should change is when you book — an earlier date has more room behind it if the sky does not cooperate. Text two photos of the front of your house and tell us the date you want.

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