The next time you eat out at a restaurant and want to bring leftovers home, ask for aluminum foil. Instead of hard-to-recycle paperboard boxes, plastic or Styrofoam, ask your server to simply wrap up your leftover chicken, pasta or fish in a few sheets of aluminum foil. When you bring your food home, transfer it to a reusable food storage container. Wash the aluminum foil, and crumple it up to toss into the recycling bin.

For years, a water-saving tip has been floating around the internet, suggesting that you put a brick into the water tank of your toilet. The idea is that the brick displaces water and turns a water-guzzling toilet into a more efficient one. But the reality is that while you do save half a gallon of water per flush using this method, it can ruin your plumbing. Bricks will disintegrate over time, and those particles and chunks will clog pipes. If you want to get the same effect without hurting your plumbing, try filling a plastic tub (like for margarine) with water and placing it inside. It'll do the job without disintegrating.

Using a dishwasher is one of the most water- and energy-efficient (and easy!) ways to get your dishes, utensils and cups sparkling clean. But there's a good reason not to pre-rinse your dishes: In addition to water waste, modern dishwashing machines are designed to work harder when they detect grease, grime and food particles. If the bottom rack is too clean, your machine will assume its job is done and not wash your dirty top rack dishes properly. Plus, modern-day dishwashing detergent is activated by grease; it won't work properly if your plates are too clean.