When smoke detectors in the home need to be replaced, don’t toss the old safety devices into the trash: Recycle them. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the majority of smoke detectors in the U.S. contain a minute amount of americium-241, a radioactive element that can take 432 years to decompose safely in the ground. First Alert, the leading manufacturer of all types of detectors, will recycle old ones free of charge. Get an account number by calling toll-free, 800-323-9005, and be sure to write “FOR DISPOSAL ONLY” clearly on the packaging when sending in your detectors. First Alert will recycle the plastic and remove the radioactive material for safe disposal.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

If you’re fastidious about mowing your lawn, this tip might be challenging for you, but try it anyway: Let the last few weeks of the mowing season pass without that weekly chore. Grasses, wildflowers and even weeds that grow wild produce seed heads, which are essential food for birds in the fall and winter months. When birds are making their annual migrations, they’ll stop to feed on the seed heads of grasses and weeds. When the ground is covered in snow, the tall plants will poke through and provide much-needed sustenance for a variety of birds. If you can’t allow your whole yard to grow wild, even a small section of unmowed lawn can help our feathered friends.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

With fall weather here, now is a good time to take a look at birdhouses in your yard and give them a good cleaning. A used nest is a great thing, but an old bird nest is not. Old bird nests in a nest box can be covered in things like droppings, feather dust and pieces of decaying insects. Remove the old nests and give the birdhouses a good washing. Then fill them with a variety of dried grasses from the yard to make them attractive to new birds to come and call home.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION