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tips

Keeping your home comfortable without breaking the bank

Follow these winter tips to save energy and money. Don’t jack up your thermostat. The Department of Energy recommends keeping the thermostat at 68 degrees while you’re awake and at home. But when you’re asleep or away, you can turn it lower. Our friends at the Citizens Utility Board in Minnesota,…...

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Free CUB guide: Protect yourself from online crooks

NOTICE: CUB’s newest publication is Internet Privacy: A Guide to Protecting Yourself Online. (You may have heard WBBM radio report on the guide over the holidays.) If you’ve read the guide, please tell us what you think. We like to hear your comments so we can improve our library of…...

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CUB releases first-ever internet privacy guide to help IL consumers avoid online crooks and scam artists

For the first time in its three-decade history, the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) has released a guide on internet privacy to help Illinois consumers prevent online crooks and scam artists from stealing their personal information, and their money. Consumers can get a free copy of “Internet Privacy: A Guide to…...

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Yes, it’s time to start thinking about winter

It may not seem like it, but winter is approaching and it’s time to make your monthly to-do list for getting your home ready for the cold season. A suggested schedule: September: -Have your furnace inspected by a certified HVAC professional before the winter. If you have a heating system…...

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What do you need to know about the upcoming solar eclipse?

What’s happening?  On Monday, Aug. 21, a total solar eclipse will pass over the continental U.S. for the first time since 1979—and a 70-mile swath of Southern Illinois (including Carbondale, Carterville, Makanda and Waterloo) will be among the nation’s best places to see it. In fact, the Makanda area will…...

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My summer EE checklist (grandpa would be proud)

By Scott Allen, CUB Environmental Outreach Coordinator (Hillsboro) As the weather turns warm, it’s time to get your home ready for summer. And that reminds me of the jobs I used to do for my grandpa, when I was a kid in Griggsville, Illinois, population 1,200. Over time, Grandpa Jerry, a…...

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DIY: Window weatherization

Do your windows have drafts? Here’s one way to tackle the problem. You can buy a window insulation kit for $15 to $25 online or at your local hardware store. It should come with double-sided tape and plastic film for covering the inside of your windows. 1) Clean the window…...

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Give us your best winter efficiency tips, you could win $100

As we pull out our winter jackets from storage and hunker down for the (hopefully  short) winter, CUB wants to receive your best cold-weather energy efficiency tip. We want to hear hear from the real experts on Illinois winters: utility customers like you! Fill out this form and you could be randomly…...

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Prepare your home for the cold!

It may be hard to believe that winter is coming with balmy temperatures on the first day of fall, But now is the time to prepare your home for the cold months ahead. Make sure your windows and doors are properly prepared by: Inspecting cracked or broken glass, examining door frames…...

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Lessons from my summers in India: Staying cool without breaking the bank

By: Sagar Dommaraju Illinois summers are hot—but they’re nothing compared to the ones I experience when I visit relatives in southern India. Temperatures there easily top 100 degrees, cooling rains rarely fall, and—if you live in a rural village—air conditioning is unavailable at certain peak electricity times. But those stifling…...

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