10/12/10

Many people complain that the extra cost of energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs prevents them from making the switch at home. With CFL bulbs becoming more common, stores are promoting them in unusual ways, including giveaways at the holidays and "buy one, get one free" deals. Keep looking for promotions to take advantage of these deals.

10/11/10

If you forget your reusable bags when visiting a grocery store, believe it or not, the least green choice is to buy a new reusable bag. It takes multiple uses of a reusable bag before you start to "save" in energy and resources by replacing disposable plastic and paper bags; and by not reusing a bag, you actually negate any environmental savings. If you forget your bags, the greenest choice is to choose plastic over paper. Pound for pound, plastic bags use less energy and resources to make than paper ones.

10/10/10

Underneath the bottom rack of your dishwasher is a filter designed to catch large pieces of food from clogging up your drain. This needs to be cleaned periodically. Remove it from the dishwasher and clean with hot, soapy water in the sink. If it's especially dirty, soak it in white vinegar.