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Johns DIY: Winterize Your Home

I regret to inform you that winter is, in fact, right around the corner despite the current 70-degree temperatures. Consider this gift of good weather as an opportunity to get your home ready for the inevitable cold. I wanted to share some easy ways to get your home ready for another icy cold winter as predicted.

October 2011
Unique and Bizarre Holidays:
Oct 1st: World Vegetarian Day Oct 3rd: Oktoberfest Oct 4th: National Golf Day Oct 5th: World Teachers Day (My wife would kill me if I left that day out) Oct 13th: International Skeptics Day Oct 16th: Bosses Day - just sayin Oct 29th: National Frankenstein Day Oct 31st: Carve a Pumpkin Day!
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3: SEAL AS MANY CRACKS AS POSSIBLE:

Warm air is trying to escape your house in as many ways as it possibly can. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, this could be wasting 5-30% of your energy use. Sealing cracks around windows, doors, and any other penetrations has a direct positive impact on your comfort. An easy way to seal one culprit, exterior doors, is to roll up a towel or use a draft snake on the floor in front of them. Draft snakes can be purchased at local stores, or created using fabric and sand or heavy grain (for example, inexpensive cat litter). Not only is it good for your comDraft snake in action fort, but will help with utility bills. Every little bit helps these days.

Monthly Awareness: Adopt a Shelter Dog Month BREAST CANCER AWARENESS AWARENESS
MONTH Computer Learning Month Lupus Awareness Month National Diabetes Month National Pizza Month National Vegetarian Month

4: RUN YOUR CEILING FANS IN REVERSE:

Dont think of fans as a cooling tool only. Many ceiling units have a handy switch which reverses the direction of the blades. Counterclockwise ro1: HAVE YOUR CHIMNEY CLEANED AND tations which produce cooling can be changed to INSPECTED: clockwise rotations, making rooms feel warmer. Air pooled near the ceiling is circulated back into I love firing up the fireplace to take the chill out of the living space, cutting your heating costs as much the room. Before you start the first fire of the as 10%. season, be sure you have your chimney inspected and cleaned. Over the years chimneys can develop cracks and start flue fires if not properly main- 5: CHANGE OR CLEAN YOUR FILTER: tained. I imagine I sound like a broken record when it One quick tip: if your fireplace doesnt use fresh comes to this one. I cannot stress enough how imoutside are to fan the fire, crack open a window. portant this step is. Dirt and neglect are always This will help keep much needed humidity in your the number one reasons we have to go out on a call. If you have a 1 wide filter I always recomhouse. mend a cheap fiberglass disposable filter. Inexpensive and they do the trick. Save your money 2: CLEAN YOUR GUTTERS: and do not buy a MERV rated 1 filter. They are When full of leaves and other debris, any remain- called furnace killers for a reason, and there are ing water in gutters can freeze and block the flow better ways to look at air quality issues. Be sure to check your filters every 30-60 days. When in they were designed for. This leads to ice damming bad for your roof. It could lead to leaks, doubt, throw them out! damage, and ultimately: mold. If you have a 5 wide disposable media air filter, Learn how to make your home this comfortable all winter long!

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Bears vs. Packers

NFLs longest rivalry since 1921 Bears lead all time series with a record of 92-85-6 Largest Victory: CHI 61-7 (1980) Smallest Victory: CHI 2-0 (1938) GB 2-0 (1932) Longest CHI streak: 8 Wins (1985 -1988) Longest GB streak:10 Wins (1994 -1998)

Post Season Facts: 1st Meeting December 14, 1941 1st Game Result: 33-14 Bears 2nd Meeting January 23, 2011 2nd Game Result: 21-14 G.B.
Wikipedia.org

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that needs to be changed every 6 months. Homes with a large amount of hardwood require more frequent changes, for either 1 or 5 styles. Electronic air cleaners need to be cleaned according to manufacturers recommendations. Not all designs are created equal, so know your filter system and its requirements. Visually check for moisture and insulation deficiencies. Verify that all bath vents do, in fact, vent outside. Again, there are some tax credits available here, and home improvement centers are running specials on needed materials.

Typical energy loss numbers For those of you with humidifiers, now is the time to change the pad, check the 8: HAVE YOUR FURNACE OR BOILER INSPECTED: water flow, and adjust dampers and thermostats accordingly. The better you Call me self-serving, 5 media air filter treat your humidifier, the better it will but this is BY FAR the serve you. Avoid the water leak horror best way to winterize stories and be proactive. Dont worry if you have questions call us with your home. I have them, or we can take care of them when we are there. very strong convictions about this step. Gas burning appliances 6: INSTALL YOUR STORM DOORS OR WINDOWS: can be very dangerous as their by prodThis step is straight forward. Replace all the storm windows and doors uct (carbon monoxide) you removed in the spring. This is much easier to do during the nicer is odorless, tasteless, weather were now experiencing. Also, taking this step has a huge and potentially lethal! impact on air penetrating or escaping the house. Storm windows and Your furnace, working doors can improve energy efficiency by as much as 45%. CO poisonings on the rise for you 24/7, could be the biggest culprit If you do not have storm doors or windows, this may be a great time to if you neglect to maintain it. Based on statistics, poisoning numbers think about adding them. There are still some energy efficiency redue to CO2 levels in the home will continue to rise. Insist on a CO test bates available, and many companies are running specials as they transition into winter. Obviously, do your research before purchasing. for all of your gas burning appliances. Certified contractors perform them to verify your familys safety, and ensure that your equipment is Like everything else, it is important to understand your needs, and working at peak efficiency. study all the options. The easiest way to prevent being without heat this winter is to have your equipment tuned-up annually. Murphys Law is that mechanical things will break, always during the most inconvenient time. For the Places to add more insulation include, but are not limited to, exterior walls and crawl spaces, floors, between windows, and attic space. Of present, do the one thing for yourself that will create a little luck and good fortune Call Brenda today for your winter preparation packthese, adding insulation to the attic has the greatest impact. Also include insulating all bathroom exhaust vents. Hot humid air in that vent age. You cant possibly be prepared for everything, but a little preparation now, at your convenience, could save you a service call at the mixing with cold attic air can create water damage, which ultimately WORST possible time later. leads to mold problems. .

7: ADD INSULATION IN CRAWLSPACES AND ATTICS:

SUDOKU BREAK

Corcoran Contest Corner:

How To Solve Sudoku As you can see from last months issue we Puzzles: added a new twist on To solve a Sudoku, you our referral and testionly need logic and monial initiative. We patience. No math is have decided that required. Simply make from now on everyone sure that each 3x3 who submits a testimosquare region has a nial gets 1 ticket, evenumber between 1-9 ryone who gives a Our winners: Michele, Avery, Evan, & Justin with only one occurreferral gets 1 ticket, rence of each number. and a video testimonial gets 10 tickets (and well even shoot it if you Each column and row of would rather). There are no limits on the amount of referrals you the large grid may give out. Just be sure they mention your name when they call, and only have one instance you could be the next lucky winner. of 1-9.

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ITS A DOGS WORLD:

When you drink Vodka over ice, it can give you kidney failure, When you drink Rum over ice, it can give you liver failure, The economy has been tough on everyone and there is When you drink Whiskey over ice, it can give you heart probno doubt that it has been tough on all the great organilems, zations fighting for me. I am not saying go out and adopt When you drink Gin over ice, it can give you brain problems. a dog on a whim, but if you are or will be in the market for a new pet why not check out your local rescue or Apparently, ICE is really bad for you. shelter. There are a lot of great pets like me out there just looking for a permanent home. Thanks for reading and hope you visit me soon! Get the word out and warn all your friends...

I just want to take a minute to remind everyone that this month is National Adopt A Dog month. If it werent for John and Lindsey adopting me I would probably still be in foster care. The truth is not all dogs are as lucky as me, and given an opportunity to be part of a loving family.

Random Humor
I did not know this.....

- MURPHY

Da Coach Needed Help...He Called Da Corcorans

As many of you know, ex-Chicago Bears head coach Mike Ditka is in da restaurant business, among other interests. Currently there are two different eateries - in Chicago near the Water Tower and across from Oak Brook Terrace with a third in consideration for the North Shore. Keep your eyes peeled. added supply was. A great tribute all due to recognizing the importance of looking at ALL aspects Da Coachs restaurants have home-field advantage, sporting outstand- of the project and ing food and up-tempo environments. Likenesses of sports legends are the environment. It painted on the walls, not only lending quiet strength and dignity, but makes all the difserving as reminders of all things great in Chicago sports. Just as his ference between a style of coaching did back in the good old days of the Super Bowl winning game plan, Bears, the coach demands the best. His staff was having problems and another costly loss. with the comfort at both locations, and wanted to tackle them. The Oak Brook Terrace location was a different story, with an entirely At the Chicago location, the problem was, like his infamous temper, the new set of challenges. This location is a newly added franchise comclients were not cool. No place for this when it comes to Da Coach. plete with new equipment and a hi-tech control system. But what Also, the equipment was nearing the end of its expected life, and dis- theyd been experiencing was a multitude of comfort and control playing some design flaws. After Da Coach got the same old facts problems, parts failures, and building over pressurizations. These and figures from several HVAC companies, he called for an engineer- problems needed to be met with a sophisticated game plan complete ing solution. with understanding how the equipment was operating, and where the short-comings came into play. After a visit with the Corcorans, the staff learned that new equipment alone would not solve the problem. Through the load and duct calcu- After careful testing and research, we were able to determine areas in lations we provided, they learned they would need to address three which we could make a difference. Wed need to make a few adjustareas: to better condition the bar, the private dining room, and the ments here, some controller reprogramming there, and get all of the kitchen. Rather like addressing offense, defense AND special team kitchen mechanical equipment operating. Without that, the kitchen problems to come up with the winning combination. exhaust was robbing the space of air conditioning, and wasting their However, executing the right play requires the right players and coordinators. The opposition sticks to replacing boxes and avoids the skills needed for perfect performance. Because the restaurant is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner, we needed to adjust our game plan to include the ductwork and holes required all while keeping the restaurant up and running. During the post-game interviews, the head chef was shocked by how easily the bar area cooled down, and even how powerful the newly money. We needed to implement the perfect offense. Just like football, our services come down to a good game plan developed by the smartest people we can partner with. This game plan can be implemented, repeated, and met with success. It can be applied to all of our home, commercial, and restaurant clients. By switching plays and coverage we can adapt, discover, and solve all the comfort robbing and energy wasting problems you can pass our way. Check out all Da Coach has to offer!: MikeDitka.com

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Octobers designation as National Adopt a Shelter-Dog Month holds a special place our hearts. As you may recall from Murphys articles, he came to Lindsey and me from foster care following the tragic loss of Garran. He has been, and continues to be, a treasured addition to our family. Always being dog people, Lindsey and I started married life with a Husky and a Yellow Lab. One day we noticed that Garran the Husky did not seem himself. His lack of energy and playfulness prompted an immediate visit to the vet. What followed was one of the hardest weeks of our lives. Garran was kept at the vet for observation and initial testing, but his condition worsened. He was transferred to an emergency facility where he spent an additional two days. Frustrated with the lack of a diagnosis and coupled with his declining appetite, we brought him to a specialty animal hospital in Buffalo Grove. They tried medicines, IVs and feeding tubes with no improvement to his condition. After much discussion, consultation, vet-networking and sadness, we reached the toughest decision weve ever had to make: to humanely and painless end his fight. We will never know what all of Garrans problems were or what caused them. We only knew that, in part, white blood cells were attacking themselves, leading to kidney failure. What we also knew was that we had done all that we could, had exhausted all efforts, and that our loneliness in the loss of Garran would be felt by Frank the Yellow Lab, too.

October 2011
Inside this months issue:

Winterize Your Home, Quick Tips To Get Your Home Ready Monthly Awareness and Unique Holidays of October Bears Vs. Packers Statistics

Lindsey and I did our research and found the perfect match. Murphy (formerly known as Har- ley) was living with five other dogs in a foster home. After meeting him, we were convinced he was just what the three of us (yes, we must include Frank), needed to help fill the void Garrans early demise had left. I hope you can swing by the shop someday and meet Murphy. He will no doubt melt your heart as he did ours. So, as we celebrate National Adopt a ShelterDog Month, Remember the Underdog! - John

Da Coach Needed Help...He Called Da Corcorans

Dogs Blog: Murphys PSA Random Humor: Watch Out For This Killer Ingredient Women: Be Sure To Get Yearly Mammograms, They Can Help Save Your Life! info@corcoranheating.com

MONTH 2011

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