How Much Electricity Do Halloween Decorations Use?

This is the page we could not find anywhere when we went looking, which is why it exists. Nobody publishes a watts-per-prop-type reference for Halloween displays, and it is the number you need before you plug the fifth thing into the same outlet.

Typical draw by prop type

These are indicative ranges to plan with, not specifications for any particular product. The actual figure for your prop is on its rating plate or in its manual, and that is the number to use.

The circuit arithmetic

A standard household branch circuit is typically 15 amps at 120 volts, which is about 1,800 watts. Continuous loads are conventionally limited to 80 percent of a circuit's rating, which puts the practical working ceiling closer to 1,440 watts — and that circuit may already be feeding things inside the house.

1. List every prop that will be on the same circuit.
2. Write down each one's watts from its rating plate, or measure it.
3. Add them up, using the fog machine's heating draw rather than its average, because that peak is what trips a breaker.
4. Compare against roughly 1,440 watts for a 15-amp circuit, then subtract anything already on that circuit indoors.
5. Split across two circuits if you are close. Different outdoor outlets are often on different circuits — check before assuming.

The fog machine is the item that catches people. Its heating element draws far more than anything else in a typical yard, and it draws it in bursts, so a display that sits comfortably under the limit on average can still trip when the machine kicks in.

Measure instead of guessing

Every figure above is a range, and your props are specific. A plug-in energy meter tells you exactly what each one draws in about thirty seconds, and it is cheap enough that there is no good reason to plan a display on estimates.

Measure indoors at a bench before deploying, note the figure on a label on the prop or its storage bin, and you will never have to do it again. The cumulative kWh reading also tells you what a month of running actually costs, which is usually less than people fear for LED-based displays and more than they expect for blower-heavy ones.

What helps

Measuring instead of guessing

Electricity Usage Monitor

P3 International

Every watts figure on this site is a specification or a measurement. This is how you get your own measurement, for your own props, in about thirty seconds each.

Type

Plug-in energy meter

Reads

Watts, amps, volts, kWh

Use

Measure each prop before you plan the circuit

Indoor or outdoor

Indoor unit, so measure inside then deploy

Good

• Turns a guess about circuit load into a number
• Cheap, and useful year round on anything that plugs in
• Cumulative kWh reading shows what a month of running actually costs

Less good

• Indoor device, so you measure at a bench rather than out on the lawn
• One prop at a time
• Display is hard to read in an awkward outlet position

9.0/ 10★★★★★

• Accuracy8.8
• Ease of use9.2
• Planning value9.4
• Off-season use9.6
• Value9.2

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Running the whole display

Outdoor Smart Wi-Fi Plug, 6-Outlet Power Stake

BN-LINK

Six weatherproof outlets on a stake, with scheduling. This is the part that turns a pile of extension cords into a display that switches itself on at dusk.

Outlets

6, weatherproof

Form

Ground stake with a short lead

Control

Wi-Fi app scheduling

Placement

Central to the display, off the ground

Good

• One cord from the house instead of six
• Scheduling means the display runs whether or not you are home
• Weatherproof outlet covers rather than open sockets

Less good

• Wi-Fi at the far end of a yard is often the real limitation
• Total load across six outlets still has to stay inside the circuit
• App account required, which some people will not want

8.8/ 10★★★★☆

• Weather rating8.6
• Outlet count9.4
• Scheduling9.2
• Setup effort8.4
• Value8.6

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Long runs and heavy loads

12-Gauge Outdoor Extension Cord

Various

Gauge is the number that matters and it runs the counterintuitive way: lower is thicker. For a long run feeding blowers and a fog machine, 12-gauge is the one to buy.

Gauge

12 AWG, the thickest common household size

Use

Long runs, high total load

Rating

Outdoor rated, look for a W in the jacket code

Trade-off

Heavy and stiff

Good

• Least voltage drop over a long run
• Handles a fog machine plus blowers without getting warm
• Thick jacket survives being walked on and mowed near

Less good

• Heavy and stiff, which makes it a pain to route and to coil
• Costs noticeably more per foot
• Overkill for a single string of LEDs

8.6/ 10★★★★☆

• Current capacity9.6
• Weather rating8.8
• Run length9.4
• Handling5.8
• Value7.2

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What a month actually costs

The honest answer is that it depends on your rate and your mix, and we are not going to invent a number. What we can tell you is the shape of it:

• LED lighting is close to free across a month, even a lot of it.
• Inflatable blowers dominate most displays' consumption, because they run every minute the prop is up.
• Fog machines are high-peak but intermittent, so they matter more for circuit load than for the monthly bill unless you run one constantly.
• Animatronics barely register, because idle draw is tiny and motion is brief.
• A timer cuts the total substantially by removing daytime hours — which is the cheapest saving available.

Multiply your own measured watts by your own hours and your own rate. That is a number you can trust, and it takes two minutes with a meter.

Reducing the load

1. Put everything on a timer. Fewer hours is the biggest single reduction, and it costs nothing after the purchase.
2. Replace incandescent string lights with LED. The difference is large and permanent.
3. Use battery or solar for perimeter props so they add nothing to the circuit — see solar versus plug-in.
4. Run the fog machine in bursts, which reduces both consumption and peak load, and looks better anyway.
5. Split across two circuits rather than running one at its limit all evening.

And get the cord gauge right for the load, because a long thin cord feeding a heavy draw is both a fire risk and the reason your lights dim when the fog machine fires. The extension cord roundup covers sizing, and electrical safety covers when to stop and call someone.