This past weekend I attended the San Jose Home Show. What great timing! I have to say this was perhaps the best three hours I invested to learn all about a multitude of products. Some of the things I was able to check out:
- heating and air conditioning system: I've asked my contractor to upgrade from the 80% efficiency unit to the 92% efficiency unit. The payback will definitely be there on natural gas savings as we plan to be in the house for the long term. I also asked him to add electronic air filters to the system which will help with all our dust allergies. We're going with a Carrier system. Interestingly enough, Carrier is offering a nice cash rebate on its Infinity line and so is our gas company PG&E. We will be buying our system in May to take advantage of this deal.
- driveway stone: I saw Belgard, Country Cobble, Calstone, McNear and Home Depot. Mcnear seemed best value for $5-7 sq ft installed on the Belgian Cobblestone. The top end Calstone runs $15 sq ft installed, absolutely beautiful. I will check them all out but curious if anyone out there has any recommendations. I like the 3 stone pattern type.
- hardwood floor: our contractor has installed several different manufacturer products and he is recommending the WFI brand. I saw Mirage at the show which was highly recommended by a few vendors. I will check out both.
- garage doors: Martin seems like good value for the money with plenty of choices.
- deck composite wood: I really liked the Fiberon “Tropics” line better than Trex – www.fiberondecking.com Jatoba color. It’s maybe 10% more than Trex at $2.65/sq ft non-installed but looks a lot like our previous real wood deck which was Brazilian Ironwood.
- garage floor: I saw a couple of vendors of epoxy urethane/poly urea chip floor coating. www.thegaragefloorcompany.com is one of them. It's about $4/sq ft installed. My contractor discouraged us from going this route. He claims they are hard to keep clean and don't hold down very well. He is recommending a linoleum tile, more expensive but easier to replace tiles if damaged and easier to clean.
- landscaping architects: I had the chance to see several and samples of their designs and work. Ultimately I think the choice here really rests on your personal taste and how the designer's work matches it. Landscaping is a work of art.
I also picked up a foot thick pack of literature and ideas on bathrooms, kitchens, landscaping, tiles and other finishes. I absolutely recommend any home builder should visit one of these shows and ask lots of questions!
