Did you know you waste about a gallon of water every time you take a shower? It happens when you wait for the hot water to start running in the shower, and all that perfectly clean cold water goes straight down the drain. The next time you shower, consider bringing a watering can or bucket into the bathroom with you. Fill it with the cold water and set it aside. Then use the clean water to water plants, or add an all-natural soap to use it to mop and clean the floors. With some states facing the worst drought in history, this one thing really does help.

If you have a professional housekeeping service clean your home, you may want to find out about its vacuuming habits. Many companies use their own equipment, bringing it from house to house. The problem? Cross contamination between houses -- things like pet dander, mold and mildew can transfer from another house to yours. The simple solution is to insist the cleaning company use your own vacuum inside your home. While you're at it, you can insist it uses eco-friendly cleaners that you provide, too. Some franchises prohibit the use of unapproved cleaning products, so you may be better suited working with a local service company.

Light-emitting diode (LED) lightbulbs are all the rage when it comes to lighting. But shopping for LED bulbs can lead to unexpected surprises when you turn on the bulb for the first time; the light emitted can feel cold, clinical and not warm at all. When shopping for LED bulbs, the key words to search for on the packaging are "warm white" or "soft white." But more importantly, look for kelvin ratings -- a metric to measure color temperature. LED bulbs that are 3,000 kelvins or fewer cast a yellow light; any higher, and it'll likely be a cooler, bright white light.