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Tri-State Home Show hours are 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday at the Chattanooga Convention Center, 1150 Carter St. Admission is $8 (ages 17 and older). Friday is Senior Day, with a $5 admission for ages 60 and older. Bring a canned good on Saturday and Sunday to donate to the Chattanooga Area Food Bank and get $1 off admission. Many vendors will award door prizes. For more information, visit www.homeshowchattanooga.com.
With Chattanooga Realtors selling a record number of homes in 2015, the annual Tri-State Home Show is marking its 50th year with its biggest event yet in the city, according to organizers.
"We have the most vendors and the most companies that we've ever had," said Terry Greene, executive officer of the Home Builders Association of Greater Chattanooga, on Friday morning as the three-day expo kicked off at the Chattanooga Convention Center.
The home show will celebrate "the big 5-0" with more than 500 booths, organizers said.
"There's no better place to come learn about the latest in building trends and products," said association President Chris Mabee of the Cornerstone Construction Group.
One highlight for visitors, Greene said, is a Kohler semi trailer parked inside the convention center that features plumbing fixtures - including working shower heads.
People who file through the truck can switch between different models and stick their hands in the cold water that blasts from the shower heads. The water recirculates through tanks inside the semi-trailer and is cleaned by filters.
The Kohler truck usually only appears at home shows in major markets, Greene said.
"We were able to get them here because they were halfway between Orlando and Chicago," he said.
The booth outside the Kohler semi truck is staffed by employees of Modern Supply, a kitchen, bath and lighting showroom on Shallowford Road.
"The coolest thing about this is you get to see these [shower heads] in operation," said Mike Burgner, Modern Supply's branch manager.
Ray and Evelyn Gilliand were among those who came to the home show on its opening day Friday. They made the trip from Dallas, Ga., a city of about 13,000 west of Marietta that's almost a two-hour drive from Chattanooga.
The couple came because they're building a home in Kentucky - though they didn't anticipate hiring a builder here.
"We're looking for ideas," Ray Gilliand said.
Chattanooga area home sales continued the upward trend in January. The Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors said earlier this week that January home sales were up 11.5 percent from a year ago to 581 units, or 60 more homes and condos than were sold in January 2015.
Contact staff writer Tim Omarzu at tomarzu@timesfreepress.com or www.facebook.com/MeetsForBusiness or twitter.com/meetforbusiness or 423-757-6651.