Year-round trim lighting is a genuinely good product and we expect to offer it. We have not installed one yet, so we are not going to pretend otherwise and sell you something we have not done.
What we can do is tell you everything we have learned about it, including the Colorado parts nobody mentions, and put you first in line when we are ready.
Because people ask us about it constantly and most of what they find online is written by someone trying to close them that afternoon. If this page talks you out of it, that was a useful thing for both of us.
We'll tell you when we're offering it, what it actually costs, and what we learned installing the first ones. No pitch in the meantime.
We'll be in touch when we have real numbers and real installs to show you. Nothing before then.
Different product from Christmas lights, even though most people find it while shopping for Christmas lights.
A low-profile aluminum channel is mounted along the roofline with individually addressable RGB LED nodes seated inside it. It stays up year round and is designed to read as trim rather than as lights during the day.
Colors, patterns, brightness, and schedules run from your phone. Warm white for most of the year, red and green in December, whatever you want on the Fourth of July, and it all changes without anyone going outside.
It is a one-time installation with a one-time cost, usually with a manufacturer warranty measured in years. There is no annual install, no takedown, and no storage.
This is the part a permanent lighting salesman will not walk you through, so here it is.
None of these are reasons not to do it. They are reasons to ask better questions before you sign.
Temporary holiday lighting is the easy category. Highlands Ranch's residential guidelines, for instance, say committee approval is not required for temporary holiday decorations. Permanent eave and trim lighting is the opposite and generally needs Architectural Review Committee approval with product specifications and placement photos. Castle Pines Village runs particularly tight review on exterior lighting. Get the written approval before you get the quote, not after.
Colorado's hail season runs roughly mid-April through mid-September and the Front Range sits in the heart of Hail Alley. A seasonal display is in storage for every bit of that. A permanent system is not, so ask specifically what the warranty says about hail and whether your homeowner's policy would cover a replacement.
Front Range UV is meaningfully stronger than at sea level, and budget plastic components can go brittle and chalky in a few seasons, with south-facing exposures degrading fastest. This matters far less for seasonal strands that spend nine months in a box. For anything mounted year round, UV-stabilized materials are the thing to insist on, and it is a fair question to ask any installer to answer in writing.
| Permanent trim lighting | Seasonal installation | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost shape | One-time, several thousand dollars | Annual, $800 to $2,500 here |
| Best if you're staying | Five years or more | Any length of time |
| Used outside December | Yes, year round | No |
| On the house in July | Yes | No, it's in storage |
| Exposed to hail and UV | All year | Never, it's boxed |
| HOA approval | Usually required | Usually not required |
| Scheduling and weather | Not a factor after install | Books out in October |
| Classic warm bulb look | Approximated by LED nodes | Actual C9 bulbs |
| If you dislike it | It's mounted to your house | It comes down in January |
If you are staying in the house a long time, want lighting for more than Christmas, and your HOA will approve it, permanent is probably the better buy. If you want the warm bulb look, are not certain about the house, or would rather not have hardware on your eaves in July, seasonal still wins.
Seasonal install across Castle Rock, Parker, and the south metro. Design, installation, in-season service, takedown in January, and storage until next year. We never drill your roof.
