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Thread: mini tree height

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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Piedmont NC
    Posts
    126

    Default mini tree height

    how tall are your mini trees?

    and how far are they from the road where people view them?

    would like to build some, however my viewing distance is rather long.

    wanted to get some ideas.

    thanks

    bert-nc

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Rockford, IL
    Posts
    313

    Default Re: mini tree height

    I have 20 of these that I use as my mini-trees.

    http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...ct_id=15054483

    They are advertised at 4 feet tall, however they're closer to 3 1/2 feet if you don't count the fairly long "branch" sticking straight up that's impossible to put lights on and have it look right. Also, the pot on the bottom cuts off a foot, but given that's about how high the snow is mid-december it works to my advantage. So in the end, the lighted height is about 2 1/2 feet, they are located anywhere from 20 feet to 40 feet from the street and look to be about the perfect size IMHO.

    One more thing to note is that I got them at 75% off (about $6 each), so they're roughly the same price as building them but look way better in the daylight and have a more natural-tree like appearance during the show.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Pacifica, Calif (30mins from downtown San Francisco)
    Posts
    1,500

    Default Re: mini tree height

    My mini-trees are "traditional" (cough, cough) tomato cages and range in height between 30 inches and 40 inches ... I set the second cage higher or lower as necessary. The shorter ones have 200 incans, while the taller ones have 300. I do wrap them with Saranwrap-like material (industrial clear plastic wrapping available at a leading office-supply warehouse near you) in order to insulate the strings from the metal cages to avoid GFCI trips; it adds to the reflection of the lights as well.

    My layout is at points but a mere sidewalk away from the viewer ... most are seeing the trees at about 20-25 feet. Personally, I like to watch the show from the across-the-street neighbors -- which is closer to 50 feet away -- but they seem to have drawn the line at letting strangers come into their living room to listen to the music on their stereo and watch out of their plate-glass window.

    HTH.

    \dmc
    ________________________
    The only thing more dangerous than a software engineer with a soldering iron
    or a hardware engineer with a compiler is a liberal-arts major with either.
    Christmas lights: http://www.PacificaLights.info/
    uC/LED hacking: http://www.dmcole.net/

  4. #4

    Default Re: mini tree height

    Quote Originally Posted by dmcole View Post
    but they seem to have drawn the line at letting strangers come into their living room to listen to the music on their stereo and watch out of their plate-glass window.
    rofl!
    2012 - 22,200 Lights, 144 Channels (6 Ren24SS)
    2011 - 11,000 Lights, 62 Channels (3 Ren24SS)

    http://www.thousandsoflights.com

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Covington, GA
    Posts
    74

    Default Re: mini tree height

    Mine are made from tomato cages as well. They are about 27" tall and roughly 10' from the street. 100 minis of each color on them.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    Oceanside, CA
    Posts
    2,068

    Default Re: mini tree height

    Mine are a little over a yard tall:


    I am very happy with the height for my yard. If my yard was bigger, or the view from the street was farther, I might want them bigger, but they're perfect for my display.
    The perfect is the enemy of the good. -Voltaire

    Click here to show/hide my display details ...

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Piedmont NC
    Posts
    126

    Default Re: mini tree height

    going to do a prototype in the next few days. should be 4 feet tall, made from pvc pipe.

    I saw where someone on the forums had done this, so I am borrowing their idea.

    will post a pic if it looks half way decent.

    bert-nc

  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2011
    Location
    St. Peters, Missouri
    Posts
    217

    Default Re: mini tree height

    ...letting strangers come into their living room to listen to the music on their stereo and watch out of their plate-glass window.
    Now that's funny!

    Asking mini-tree height reminds me of the time I asked an old country boy, "What's the difference between a big pond and a small lake."
    He said, "Depends on how good the fishin' is."
    i can quit this addictive hobby anytime after the next project

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Location
    Rolling Meadows, IL
    Posts
    212

    Default Re: mini tree height

    I have 10 - using tomato cages wrapped in chicken wire to hold the cone shape when wrapped in lights - have 100 blue and 100 clear lights on each. They are about 30" each and are 20-25' from the road, 10-15' from the sidewalk
    2012 - Added lights and sequencing for 4 houses. Added to my house: 3 x E681's with GECEs for 624 pixel megatree, Roofline, Yard Outline. 28 FASTs using REN48LSDs. 6 x Ren64XCs, 1 Ren48lsd, 8 Ren24SS, HLS, Nutcracker
    2011 - 4 Ren 64XCs - 245 Channels - Added 3 x 10' Arches, 10 MiniTrees
    2010 - 3 x Ren 64XCs - 177 Channels - Added 48 Channel Megatree
    2009 - 2 x Ren 64XCs - 128 Channels

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Piedmont NC
    Posts
    126

    Default Re: mini tree height

    just finished my first mini tree a few days ago,

    4 ft tall----350 clear mini lights

    doesn't look to bad from the road, light strings run two inches apart.

    would add about 150 more lights but that means i am going to have two channels tied up per tree

    using ssrenard 16s

    bert-nc

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