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We’re heading to the Seattle Home Show later this afternoon with our friends Mike and Elisabeth, our usual partners in crime for this particular event. We haven’t always had a great need to visit the show, as it is mostly focused on remodeling, landscaping, building, etc… but it is always a great place to get ideas and advice (though often, the companies who can afford to participate charge more than I am willing to spend; it is the gotcha of these types of events). There are a few things I am looking for this time though:

• Electricians to bid on replacing the remaining 25% of our house which is still Knob and Tube wiring (all safe, but insurance companies seem to want to get you to get rid of the stuff, plus, our light bulbs burn out quicker than they should, which is just plain annoying). We’ve received one bid from an electrician who I have worked with in the past, but for something of this magnitude, we’d want a couple more bids.
• Insulation experts/weatherproofing. Our gas bill is higher than I would like, especially given that our basement is freezing. A bunch of this I can likely do myself, and it is on my list to learn, but some stuff (blowing in wall-insulation, for example), is clearly in need of professional assistance.
• Roof cleaning (gutters/moss/etc…) We’re in pretty good shape up there, but before next fall, I’d like to get a good cleanup done. Seems like I could do this myself, but Joelle has no interest in me getting on the roof; frankly, she’s right – I don’t trust myself that much either!

I am sure there are other services out there as well; one nice thing is that even though these companies are expensive, they tend to have pretty good promotional deals offered if you book at the show. I assume this is even more so during the last few hours of the event (which is when we’ll be there). If they haven’t hit their numbers, I assume they might be a little more willing to play "let’s make a deal!" Let’s hope so!