Hello, new member from Portland, Oregon

[DrizztGuen]

Hi, I'm new to this forum. I currently live in an apartment but want to start planning a mini light show for next year. It will only be on our patio but I think it will still be a fun project to learn on. I've been reading and watching videos but still need to understand a lot more before I can even start planning what to buy. I have created an example sequence in XLights but turning that into something real seems to be a bit more challenging. Anyway looking forward to the journey.

BTW, I haven't seen anything about people doing this on an apartment balcony or patio. Am I just not finding them or is it just something most people don't do?

 

[scamper]

Welcome to ACL. I have seen albeit very few, but some none the less displays on patios, It is more common place in the UK and Europe as space is limited.
I don't see a problem with it and aside from making sure you don't upset your neighbours I reckon it could be a good thing as you can be very creative with the space you have.
If you have made the sequence in Xlights you are half way there as that is one of the biggest things to learn.
All you need now is a controller, power supply and lights.
If you haven't already read the 101 manual on this site as it will explain everything in great detail and give you all the options.
Then before you go ahead and buy anything you can post a list of what you are looking at and someone can guide you through it.
Anyway, good luck and have fun.

 

[DrizztGuen]

Welcome to ACL. I have seen albeit very few, but some none the less displays on patios, It is more common place in the UK and Europe as space is limited.
I don't see a problem with it and aside from making sure you don't upset your neighbours I reckon it could be a good thing as you can be very creative with the space you have.
If you have made the sequence in Xlights you are half way there as that is one of the biggest things to learn.
All you need now is a controller, power supply and lights.
If you haven't already read the 101 manual on this site as it will explain everything in great detail and give you all the options.
Then before you go ahead and buy anything you can post a list of what you are looking at and someone can guide you through it.
Anyway, good luck and have fun.

Thank you very much. I'm about 25% of the way through the 101 manual. Still reading through it. I've also watched several videos from CanispaterChristmas.

Initially I'll probably just start with pixels on the front railing (railing and vertical bars) and some candy canes. As you mentioned, I do need to be considerate of the neighbors. I thought I could probably just turn down the brightness to 20 or 30% and hopefully it won't bother them. Also my apartment faces the parking lot so people will be able to see it as they drive by.

Curtis

 

[scamper]

I thought I could probably just turn down the brightness to 20 or 30% and hopefully it won't bother them.

Don't be fooled by these pixels. 20% is usually VERY bright. My first year I ran everything at 100% and I am sure it could be seen from space. Turning them down to 50% makes no visible difference. But you are on the right track as you can modify it and work it out as you go, also you can set the pixels back from the edge so the neighbours can't see (except for the glow) and as long as you don't run it too late, I am sure they won't mind too much.