The Guy Behind the Lights

Every year, the 1100 block of Diamond Avenue is transformed into a Christmas spectacular.

Some are calling it Miracle on Diamond Avenue. 

Others are just wondering how it all came about. 

Well, the man behind the lights is Todd Schroeder. And here's what he has to say about this South Pas tradition: 

Your home is pretty extravagant. When/why did you start decorating it? 

I started with some lights in 2004 and then added significantly more in 2005. But because our house was built in 1904 and had limited electrical capacity, I had to add extra outlets with their own circuit breaker to be able to handle all the lights I have today. It was my goal when I finally owned my own home to be able to decorate for Christmas and Halloween.

How long does it take you? 

It takes about 35 hours to put the lights up and 10 hours to take them down.

Do you have any help from family, neighbors? 

I decorate my own house without much help except for the little my kids contribute.

[Lexi, 8, and Cole, 11] like to help decorate for about an hour and then burn out/lose focus like most kids. I told my son that one day I will be too old to do the lights and he said he would come to my house at Christmas and do them for me. ...We'll see.

I also put lights on some of the neighbors houses since they are older adults and can't/shouldn't be climbing on ladders and roofs. They are very appreciative.

A couple of years ago one of the neighbors said we should wrap the tree trunks of all the ash trees on Diamond Avenue. I said OK, and he thought I was kidding—until I showed up with 20 timers, 31 extension cords and 24,000 green lights.

But wrapping the tree trunks takes help—and happily four or five neighbors are very willing to pitch in.

How much does your electricity bill go up in December? 

Last year my electric bill was an extra $420, but it's worth it since so many kids and adults smile when driving down our street.

How many lights do you have? Do you use the same ones every year? 

I put 35,000-40,000 lights on the house and 24,000 on the ash trees. Unfortunately, the lights don't last that long and I have to replace about 15 percent of the lights every year.

Some people ask me why I don't use LED lights:

1) They have a "cold" very different look than the traditional small lights.

2) It would cost almost $10,000 to replace all my lights with LED even though they are much more energy efficient. 

Can we expect extravagant decorations for every holiday—or just Christmas? 

My first passion is Halloween decor as many of my neighbors already know. So I balance my horror and macabre in the month of October with happy Christmas lights in December. But those are the only two holidays you can expect extravagant decorations. I do a little for Fourth of July.

Today is the last day to vote for Schroeder's home on Patch's Deck the House competition—in which we can win $100,000 for South Pas public schools! That's a lot of money. So go and vote—and hopefully Schroeder's home will make it to the next round!

Click on the attached photos to see Diamond Avenue adorned in lights!