News

Energy Impact Illinois Launches Monday, October 31st

By Energy Men - October 29th, 2011

October 31st isn ' t only Halloween - it ' s the launch of the media campaign for Energy Impact Illinois, the place where the Energy Bills, " Little Bill and Big Bill " will be helping Chicagoland residents learn how to become more energy savvy and…

How Do You Engage Youngsters’ Minds? Show-and-Tell Helps

By Energy Men - September 8th, 2011

Over the past few months, EnergyMen has enjoyed sharing some cool information with Oak Park students about the world around us that is so rarely seen — the flow of air through windows and walls, for example. With this post, we want to share a vignette of the…

One Amazing Home: Check it Out at `Four Thick Walls’

By Energy Men - September 1st, 2011

As was noted last week , we had the pleasure of collaborating two weeks ago with Oak Park students and the Chicago Center for Green Technology. Included in that update was brief mention of two homes we visited in Oak Park, where we measured the…

Boost Your Energy Efficiency IQ, Lower Your Energy Bills

By Energy Men - August 19th, 2011

OK, class, time for a pop quiz! Of these two actions noted below, which one has a bigger impact on lowering your energy dependence? A.Diligently turning off your lights when you leave the room, or B.Switching from incandescent lights to compact fluorescent bulbs. If you…

Problem #3: Inadequate Levels of Insulation

By Energy Men - August 2nd, 2011

In two previous posts, here and here , we detailed two of the three fundamental problems of home insulation: excessive air leakage and improper insulation installation. In this, the final installment of our series, we briefly touch on…

Tomorrow, the EnergyMen finish a job that’s lasted almost one year…

By Energy Men - July 26th, 2011

Tomorrow, the EnergyMen finish a job that started with a Home Performance Assessment almost a year ago. It has been a truly collaborative effort, as our customer has done lot ’ s of work on his own to implement many of the recommendations in the original EnergyMen report.

Insulation Insights #2: ID’ing Improper Installations

By Energy Men - July 11th, 2011

In our last post, we discussed how you must combat three fundamental problems in order to achieve maximal insulaton protection : excessive air leakage, improper insulation installation, and inadequate insulation. We

Insulation Insights: Keys to Year-Round Energy Efficiency

By Energy Men - July 6th, 2011

When you think about home insulation, you may conjure images of a family gathered around the fireplace while Old Man Winter looms menacingly outside in relentless search of a way inside. If it ’ s applied properly and in the right places, your home insulation…

Energy Efficiency is Number One!

By Energy Men - June 20th, 2011

While several clean energy technologies play an important role in reducing carbon dioxide emissions, none compare to energy efficiency , according to a new report by the International Energy Agency. “ Increasing energy efficiency, much of which can be achieved through low-cost options, offers the…

DRIVING A HYBRID, AND LIVING IN A GUZZLER?

By Energy Men - May 25th, 2011

Fact # 1 – Heating and cooling our homes uses just as much energy every year as all the cars and trucks on the road. Fact# 2 – Almost every house ever built in the U.S. is wasting…