| Amp |
A unit of measure for the amount of electricity flowing through a light set. Short for ampere. |
| Amp Capacity |
The measurement of how much voltage a conductor or device can carry before sustaining damage. |
| Voltage |
A measure of the force with which the electricity is being "pushed" through a circuit. |
| Bulb Voltage |
The measurement of how much voltage a particular bulb can take before sustaining damage. |
| Kelvin |
Unit of temperature measurement for objects that give off light. |
| Lumens |
A measure of the total amount of visible light emitted by a source. |
| Watts |
Measures the rate of power usage. To determine total watts, you need to multiply the watts per bulb by the number of bulbs. |
| Diodes |
A two-way electrical device that conducts an electric current in only one direction. It causes the LED to seem brighter. While many products boast of a high diode count, it is the size of the diodes, not the number, that matters in brightness. |
| Full Wave Rectified |
A diode used to convert currents. It delivers more voltage to the bulb, thus more illumination from the LED. It prevents flickering. |
| Commercial |
Lights or items intended for extended use. Commercial items can weather the elements longer and sustain more wear and tear than residential items. |
| End to End |
A mini-light set that has a male plug on one end and a female plug on the other. Plugging sets into one another permits you to increase the overall length. |
| Male Plug |
A plug with exposed conductors that fits snugly into a female connector to establish an electric current. |
| Female Plug |
A connector having one or more recessed holes with electrical terminals inside. Male plugs fit within to establish an electric current. |
| Fused plugs |
Fuses prevent sets from being overloaded due to a short circuit or due to plugging in too many sets together. A fused plug is a safety feature. |
| Stackable plugs |
A plug that has a male and female connector and can be plugged in to each other. |
| Polarized |
On Christmas Lights Etc., a polarized plug is a male connector plug with one prong longer than the other. Polarized wires cannot be connected to non-polarized ones. |
| Lead Wire |
Spacing from beginning of the string to the first bulb. |
| Tail Wire |
Spacing from the last bulb on a wire to plug. |
| Drops |
Strings that hang down from a main string of lights, often found on icicle lights or patio strings. |
| Prelamped |
Light strings that contain the lamps preassembled to the string. |
| Wire Gauge |
Thickness of a wire. |
| SPT1 and SPT2 |
A symbol that denotes the insulation thickness of a wire. |
| Cutting rope light |
Slicing pre-measured sections of rope light apart for custom projects. See Rope Light Resource Page. |
| Splicing |
Joining two separate pieces (wire for example) together. For Rope light, a set of pins can be used to complete the splice. |
| CSA Approved |
An item that meets all of CSA Standard's safety recommendations. |
| UL Listed |
An item that meets all of Underwriters Laboratories safety standards. |
| UL Recognized Components |
Refers to the electrical components on a product that have been tested to UL specifications. |
