Is Christmas light removal included?

Yes — Removal Is Always Included in OTHS's Christmas Lighting Lease

For Salem and Albany Oregon homeowners and businesses, removal in early January is included in every OTHS Christmas lighting lease. It's not an optional add-on, a separate service, or a line item you can decline — it's part of the same seasonal fee that covers design, installation, and in-season maintenance.

You don't schedule removal separately. You don't pay extra at the end of the season. The lights, clips, timers, and hardware are OTHS equipment from the start, so when the season ends we come retrieve our own equipment.

When Removal Happens and How It's Scheduled

Most removals happen in the first two weeks of January, after New Year's celebrations wrap up. OTHS reaches out to schedule a specific removal day that fits weather conditions and your availability — Pacific Northwest January weather can shift quickly, so we keep scheduling flexible. If a forecast brings high winds or freezing rain on a planned removal day, we reschedule to keep the work safe and the takedown clean.

For most residential properties, you don't need to be home during removal. As long as the property and all installed lights are accessible from the exterior, our affiliate crews — each with 10+ years of professional Christmas lighting experience — handle the takedown and check in with you afterward, either by phone, email, or a brief property walkthrough if you prefer.

What's Included in OTHS Removal Service

The removal visit covers everything that went up:

• Complete strand removal from rooflines, eaves, fascia, trim, landscaping, and any custom display elements
• Hardware retrieval: clips, hooks, timers, photocells, extension cords, and connectors
• Clean detachment with no nail holes, screws, or staples to repair — the commercial-grade clip system attaches and detaches cleanly by design
• Property walk-through to confirm no debris, no leftover hardware, no overlooked strands
• All retrieved equipment goes back to OTHS for inspection, repair if needed, and off-season storage

Not included in removal: snow or ice removal from your roof, gutter cleaning, or other services unrelated to the lighting installation. Those are separate services if needed.

Why This Matters: Lease Model vs DIY Buyback

The lease model assigns the end-of-season workload to OTHS, not to the customer. In practical Salem and Albany area terms, that means:

• No January ladder work for you. PNW January weather brings icy roofs, slippery gutters, wet conditions, and short daylight windows — exactly the wrong time to do height work yourself.
• No storage problem. Your garage, attic, or basement stays free of bins of tangled lights for 10 months a year.
• No February inspection or repair burden. When strands fail or get damaged in storage, that's an OTHS equipment problem to handle before next season — not yours.
• No end-of-season billing surprise. Removal is already in the annual lease price you agreed to up front.
• Safety: our affiliate installers, each with 10+ years of professional Christmas lighting experience, handle removal in winter conditions safely and efficiently. That experience matters more in January than in November.

For Salem, Albany, and surrounding Willamette Valley properties, OTHS provides same-day estimates on new Christmas lighting lease inquiries. Contact us for current-season availability.