If Christmas spirit is measured in the amount of Christmas lights a family has up around their house, then this family from Australia takes the fruitcake.
The Richards family hung 502,165 LED lights on their house and across their yard to achieve a new world record, according to Guinness World Records. That measures out to more than 31 miles of twinkling holiday bulbs.
The centerpiece of the Richards family setup is a massive awning of tens of thousands of lights illuminating the way to the house.
Guinness reported that the Richards family’s decorations include “520 Lightorama channels controlling a 50-meter (164 feet) walk through, multi-colored canopy and an 18-meter (59 feet) light-controlled tree,” all of which is animated and synched to music.
David Richards said even with all the assistance he and his family received from friends and volunteers, the set up still took several weeks to complete.
“I started in October,” Richards told Independent Television News. “ I took a week off in October, and then have worked every weekend since.”
Guinness World Record officials certified the Richards home as having the most lights on a residential property. The Richards are actually reclaiming the title they once held. In 2011, the family set a world record with a measly 311,038 lights, but it was taken away from them last year by a New York family with an almost 350,000 light display.
But the Richards said their flare for Christmas decorating isn’t just for show. Their main reason for setting up the hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights is to raise money for SIDS and Kids Act, an organization that works to reduce sudden and unexpected death in children.
“The charity is very close to our hearts,” David Richards said. “We lost a child and SIDS looked after us many years ago.”
The Richards raised more than $70,000 in donations with their 2011 light show.
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