Used incandescent mini lights

[UncleBuck]

I have a chance to purchase several sets of used incandescent mini lights. They are two to three years old. My question is, knowing that incandescent lights fade after time how many years of use would I have left in a set that is two to three years old. If I could get another 3 years out  of them I would be happy due to the fact that I will be changing to LED's. Any thoughts?

[SteveMaris]

I think the main issue you would have is random bulbs going out constantly. That is what I have experienced with older light sets. YMMV.

[Jeffl]

I think five is about the best you will see unless they are clear.  Clear will last as long as you want to fix them.  Blue are one year and gone.  What I see is they fade about 25% the first year and about 10% each year after depending on how long they are in the yard.   The worst enemy after that is scratching.

Don't forget.  The M/F ends are always handy for projects.

[taybrynn]

Spot on JeffL ...

Most of my 2009 minis in red and green or still looking rather good.  The whites are also fine and will last longest.

I stopped using blue because they look really good only one season, two max.

I still doubt that LED is the future anymore, because I think the future is really RGB LED. 

LED may be a necessary interim upgrade because of the time it takes for commerical RGB to become affordable ... it may never become a retail mainstream item ... thus lending standard LED(s) even more longevity.

[tbone321]

Like anything, it really depends on both the quality of the light sets and how they were used and stored.  I have had sets fail in two years and I still have sets that are well over 10 years and still work just fine.  Sure, the bulbs are a bit faded but still look good in the dark.  Bulb life tends to be related to how badly they are rattled both in use and in storage.

[Gary]

Like anything, it really depends on both the quality of the light sets and how they were used and stored.  I have had sets fail in two years and I still have sets that are well over 10 years and still work just fine.  Sure, the bulbs are a bit faded but still look good in the dark.  Bulb life tends to be related to how badly they are rattled both in use and in storage.

Yeah, I agree. Perhaps it's because they're indoor sets that have always been indoors, but I have light strings that are 20 years old and haven't replaced any bulbs on them, or at least not not since I can remember. And they've been on a timer for the month of December and then some. Maybe the newer stuff is junk in comparison? Or the blinking on and off kills them? I can't testify as to my luck with incandescents outdoors, because I've started this "habit" with LEDs. Couldn't be bothered to calculate wattage/amperage maximums... hurts my brain.    I knew I wasn't going to be tripping any breakers for a long time with LEDs. And I got them all on sale, so it didn't hurt the pocketbook too much.