2/21/13

When cooking at home, be sure to match the size of the burner to the size of the pot you're cooking with. According to Recyclebank, a 6-inch pot on an 8-inch burner actually wastes 40 percent of the burner's heat. Simply moving the smaller pot to a smaller burner can help save energy and get the job done. And when reheating food, skip the oven and opt for smaller users of energy, like a countertop toaster oven or microwave. They have less space to heat up and can work just as well in a jiffy.

2/20/13

The most commonly recycled plastics are those marked with No. 1 and No. 2 on the bottom, like milk and detergent jugs and soda bottles. But denser plastics -- often used in yogurt containers, deodorant cases and water filters -- are made from harder-to-recycle No. 5 plastic. One company, Preserve, is trying to make it easier to recycle No. 5 plastics with free recycling bins all over the country. The items are collected and recycled into new products, like kitchenware, razors and toothbrush handles. Find bins near you and learn more at mygimme5.com/Recycling.

2/19/13

When shipping items from home or at a pack-and-ship store, what's the greenest thing to keep in mind? It's not the materials used to pack the goods, but how much they weigh. Choosing everything from the proper size box to the lightest bubble wrap can make a big difference in keeping costs down and fuel usage as low as possible. Oversized boxes and heavy paper filler can dramatically increase shipping costs and add to the amount of fuel used by planes and trucks to transport your goods. And remember to reuse boxes and packing material as an added way to go green.