An infestation of spiders, ants and beetles coming into your home during the winter months could be traced back to one source: firewood. Keeping firewood stacked up or in a basket by your indoor fireplace could be the source. With warmer temperatures inside your home, nesting insects inside the wood become active and flourish. Even keeping firewood by your front door could be a problem -- all insects need is a small crack to enter. Rule of thumb: Keep firewood at least 30 feet away from your home and covered with a tarp.

If you run small loads of laundry throughout the week instead of running full loads, you are wasting a ton of water. Even brand-new, energy- and water-efficient models still use a lot of water, around 27 gallons per load (vs. 54 gallons in older models). While that's a significant savings, it's still a lot of water. Waiting for a full load can save you water, energy and money in the long run.

Using an automatic dishwasher is more energy- and water-efficient than washing by hand. And it's even more efficient if you run the dishwasher during non-peak hours, which are usually during late-night hours. But instead of waking up in the middle of the night to turn on the dishwasher, check to see if yours has a "delay" feature. This allows you to fill the dishwasher during the day and automatically start whenever you want, preferably during non-peak hours.