Help us "fill the truck" with food donations for Northwest Harvest, this Saturday.

www.king5.com/community

Recyle Your CFL Bulbs

Puget Sound Energy is running a CFL Bulb Drive. Any local business with twenty or more employees can host a free PSE CFL bulb collection box. Employees, neighbors and customers can bring in spent CFL bulbs to be recycled. PSE's goal is to keep 50,000 CFL bulbs out of landfills this year. You can sign up on their website or give them a call. 1-888-225-5773 or www.PSE.com/bulbdrive

CFL bulbs contain mercury. They should always be recycled or disposed of at a household hazardous waste facility. Bartell Drugs, Lowes, Home Depot and Ikea offer CFL recycle services.

If you hapen to break a CFL bulb you will need to follow specific steps to clean it up safely. Start by airing out the room for 15 minutes and turning off your central heating system. Do not walk through the debris. Carefully pick up the large broken pieces and place them in a glass jar. Use packing or duct tape to pick up the smaller pieces. Place the tape in the jar with the larger pieces and seal the jar with a metal lid. If you absolutely need to vacuum, throw away the vacuum bag, sealed in a plastic bag, when you are done. Wash your hands thoroughly. Dispose of the debris at the local household hazardous waste facility.

Window and Door Event with York & Gray Lumber

Are you considering new windows? There will never be a better time to purchase new windows and entry doors then this weekend! Gray Lumber and York Enterprises has teamed up for a Last Chance Window and Door Sale. Stop by Gray on 6th and Proctor this Saturday to talk to experts on windows, doors and installation. Gray is offering 20% off of window and door purchases. This sale CAN be combined with manufacturer's rebate offers. York is offering 20% off of installation. Windows and doors need to be ordered by November 1st and installed by the 31st of December to take advantage of the expiring energy tax credit. The credit is good for 30% of the material cost up to $1,500.00. Everyone who makes an appointment on Saturday will receive 1 pound of Valhalla coffee. Gray is giving away a $250.00 gift card! Bring a non perishable food donation and help York "Fill the Truck" for Northwest Harvest. Hope to see you on Saturday!

Entry Door Facelift - Before

Beautiful New Entry Door!

Great curb appeal and energy efficient too.

Tour of Remodeled Homes, this weekend!

York Enterprises is proud to present our project on the Tour of Remodeled Homes! We worked closely with our homeowners to create a new layout, including an addition and complete remodel. The addition provided space for a large kitchen with an island, and a great room. There is a mud room that doubles as a comfortable laundry room. The bathroom was remodeled to include a large soaking tub, and separate shower. The home has a built in linen closet, two nicely sized bedrooms, and a closet under the stairs reminicent of Harry Potter. We hope to see you there! You can purchase tickets at Columbia Bank or online. www.mba-tour.com You can also purchase the tickets at any home on the tour. This is a great opportunity to talk to York empolyees, see our craftsmanship and meet our suppliers that worked on the project with us.

Concrete Sidewalk

Like many older homes, our older office needed some sewer work. To access the sewer we had to remove and replace some sidewalk. To make the patch blend in with the existing sidewalk, Chris used a "green" technique. Coke was poured on the new sidewalk. The Coke "ate" the top few milimeters off of the new concrete to give it a worn look. (You can also use root beer.) If you are in the area stop by and see Chris' stamped concrete work around our building and check out our "aged" sidewalk.

Check out your contractor!

When you are considering hiring a contractor to do a large or small job, protect yourself and check them out. The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries as made it very easy to check out contractors. From the home page HiringaContractor.Lni.wa.gov, you can find out many things about your contractor. All you need is their name, owner's name or license number. Make sure they are currently licensed and registered with L&I. Check to make sure they pay workman's compensation insurance premiums. If they do not pay, you may be held liable if they are injured while working in your home. You can also see if there are any outstanding judgements against the contractor. Insurance and bond information will also be posted. Don't forget to click on the link to the Department of Revenue to make sure the contractor pays taxes. If the contractor is not paying taxes you may be held liable for all tax obligations related to your job, even if you have paid taxes to your contractor. This sounds like a lot to check but it only takes a few minutes and may save you money and heartache later.
If you want to find out more about your contractor, ask for a list of previous clients with jobs similar to yours. Don't be afraid to ask for a list of suppliers too. Suppliers can be a great reference about the contractor's employees and business. If the contractor has a job in progress, visit the site. Check out the cleanliness and security on the site. Most contractors will have subcontractors working in your home. Ask what they require of their subs. Do they have insurance, warranty and etiquette requirements for their subs?
If you would like further information on checking out a contractor, contact the Master Builder's Association in your area or the Department of Labor and Industries.

Washington Appliance Rebate

The Washington Department of Commerce has begun an Energy Star state appliance rebate program funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The rebate period began on March 15th, 2010 and is not retroactive. The program will end when the funds run out so now is the time to make an appliance purchase. Rebates are offered on clothes washers and refrigerators that were purchased from a retailer in Washington State. The clothes washers must be Energy Star models with a Modified Energy Factor of at least 2.46 and a Water Factor of not more than 4.0. The rebate amount for a washer is $100. The rebate amount for a refrigerator is $75.00. Refrigerators must be Energy Star qualified and have a volume greater than 9 cubic feet. You must also show proof that the refrigerator being replaced has been recycled. Tacoma Power will pick up your old, working, refrigerator, recycle it and will pay you $30! When you call to schedule a pick up you can request a free Home Energy Kit which includes two energy saving light bulbs, a low flow shower head and a kitchen faucet aerator. Just call 1-877-577-0510 to schedule your pick up.