Holiday Hangers Corp.
HH
Holiday Hangers - Permanent
recessed anchors with removable hooks.
Suggested Retail $21.95 (starter kit)
Reviewed by Leon A. Frechette
10/20/07
Holiday/Hangalls Hangers - Permanent recessed anchors with removable hooks
About five years ago, my wife purchased commercial Christmas lights on sale at the end of the season. Every year since then she's asked when I would hang the lights. Here we are, again nearing Christmas, and the lights are still in their boxes.
Simply put, I am reluctant to hang the lights because I just don't want to mar our new (and freshly painted) fascia boards and soffits with staples, nails, or any other type of fastener. To me, Christmas light hangers are an eyesore. I have looked at every type of light-hanging hardware on the market but have not found anything that would both hold the lights and subtly blend into the environment. I have specifically looked for light-hanging hardware where part of it remains in place and part of it (such as a hook) is removable when it's time to take the lights down for storage.
In June 2007 a California company contacted me and it appeared that they had just the product I had been searching for. I believe their Holiday Hangers are one of the best products to hit the face of the earth in a long, long time!
Basically Holiday Hangers consist of a nylon anchor that screws into a hole you drill so it becomes a flush-mount system, similar to a drywall screw anchor. If you pre-paint the head of the recessed anchor in a color similar to the fascia or soffit where it will be installed, you will never see the anchor. It will simply blend into its environment.
The beauty of the Holiday Hangers anchor is that its two slots accept a specially designed galvanized spring steel hanger that drops down and over a central support in the anchor. This simple removable hanger only drops down 1 5/8" from the surface, but the company just came out with a lower profile hanger that drops down only 3/4". These hooks can hold up to 10 pounds, depending upon the material into which the anchor is fastened. What a great idea!
This is not just a seasonal product; you can hang Christmas lights, plants, windsocks, chimes, bird feeders, birdhouses—whatever you want to hang. Incidentally, Holiday Hangers and Hangalls Hangers are the same product.
The inventors (both contractors) offer a complete starter kit that comes with 32 recessed anchors, 32 hooks, 1 anchor driver, and a 1 5/8" anchor drill that will cover 60-plus linear feet. Once you add a cordless drill, tape measure, and pencil, you are on your way to installing a recessed hanging system that will blend into your environment.
The cleverly designed drill bit slips over the driver tool when you are ready to drill anchor holes. To install the anchors, simply remove the drill bit from the driver and fasten the anchor with the driver tool. However, during testing I noticed that if I accidentally dropped the nose of the drill downward, the drill bit would slip off the driver tool and fall to the ground. If you're on a ladder, it's a long way to the ground to retrieve the drill bit. I have brought this to the company's attention and they are working to make the drill bit fit the driver tool more securely. I will keep you posted once a solution has been reached.
Installation
If you plan to install the recessed anchors into the edge of the fascia boards, the material needs to be at least 1 1/2 inches thick. If the fascia boards are not thick enough, then install the anchors into the soffit material where the soffit material attaches to the short framing members. To be effective, the recessed anchors must be fastened into solid material so they can carry any type of load.
To fasten lights, space the anchors about 2 feet apart if you are installing the anchors into the center of the fascia boards' edges. However, if you are drilling in soffit material, space the anchors according to the layout of the short framing members, which could be 16-, 19.2-, or 24-inches on center.
Drilling pilot holes for the recessed anchors is easy using their combination drill bit/driver tool. First install the driver tool into the chuck of a cordless drill. Then slide the drill bit over the driver tool. Now drill your pre-measured and marked holes. Be sure to drill the full depth of the drill bit (up to the collar). If your fascia boards or soffit are aluminum or vinyl, slow down the drilling speed until you get through the material. Then before drilling into the wood substrate, check the bit and remove any aluminum or vinyl that may be stuck to it before you continue drilling.
To install the recessed anchors, remove the drill bit by grasping the collar (not the bit itself because it could be hot), pulling it from the driver tool. Now slide an anchor onto the driver tool and insert the anchor into the pilot hole. Using a slow speed, screw the anchor into place, being careful not to overtighten as it could damage the anchor.
Installing the hooks is the simplest part of the whole process. Slide the a hook up into the anchor and turn the hook 90 degrees to allow it to drop down over the center support. To remove, simply push up on the hook and turn it 90 degrees to allow the hook to drop out of the anchor's cavity.
No need to re-hang Christmas lights year after year—and no more staples or nails to fuss with. Holiday Hangers is one system that can blend into your environment, just remove the hooks. Whether you are hanging Christmas lights or a birdhouse, there's no other hanging system that compares to what Holiday/Hangalls Hangers offers!
Basically Holiday Hangers consist of a nylon anchor that screws into a hole you drill so it becomes a flush-mount system, similar to a drywall screw anchor. If you pre-paint the head of the recessed anchor in a color similar to the fascia or soffit where it will be installed, you will never see the anchor. It will simply blend into its environment. 
The beauty of the Holiday Hangers anchor is that its two slots accept a specially designed galvanized spring steel hanger that drops down and over a central support in the anchor. This simple removable hanger only drops down 1 5/8" from the surface, but the company just came out with a lower profile hanger that drops down only 3/4". These hooks can hold up to 10 pounds, depending upon the material into which the anchor is fastened. What a great idea!
The cleverly designed drill bit slips over the driver tool when you are ready to drill anchor holes. To install the anchors, simply remove the drill bit from the driver and fasten the anchor with the driver tool. However, during testing I noticed that if I accidentally dropped the nose of the drill downward, the drill bit would slip off the driver tool and fall to the ground. If you're on a ladder, it's a long way to the ground to retrieve the drill bit. I have brought this to the company's attention and they are working to make the drill bit fit the driver tool more securely. I will keep you posted once a solution has been reached. 
Drilling pilot holes for the recessed anchors is easy using their combination drill bit/driver tool. First install the driver tool into the chuck of a cordless drill. Then slide the drill bit over the driver tool. Now drill your pre-measured and marked holes. Be sure to drill the full depth of the drill bit (up to the collar). If your fascia boards or soffit are aluminum or vinyl, slow down the drilling speed until you get through the material. Then before drilling into the wood substrate, check the bit and remove any aluminum or vinyl that may be stuck to it before you continue drilling. 
To install the recessed anchors, remove the drill bit by grasping the collar (not the bit itself because it could be hot), pulling it from the driver tool. Now slide an anchor onto the driver tool and insert the anchor into the pilot hole. Using a slow speed, screw the anchor into place, being careful not to overtighten as it could damage the anchor. 
No need to re-hang Christmas lights year after year—and no more staples or nails to fuss with. Holiday Hangers is one system that can blend into your environment, just remove the hooks. Whether you are hanging Christmas lights or a birdhouse, there's no other hanging system that compares to what Holiday/Hangalls Hangers offers!