Though it’s more energy-efficient to dry your clothes on a clothesline, there are times when you need to use a dryer. To make it as efficient as possible, place your dryer in a warm spot in the home (a cold garage or basement may not be the best place) since this will reduce the time the machine needs to warm up. Use the delay feature function to make the dryer run automatically during non-peak hours like in the middle of the night. And dry loads of clothes one right after another; the residual heat from the first load will speed up the drying time of the second.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

One of the biggest energy hogs in your home is running air conditioning all day long. There are some easy tips you can use to help keep your house cool during the summer months. The easiest? Use white blinds on your sunniest windows. The white color is reflective and helps reduce solar heat gain inside your home. It’s so effective, it can reduce heat by as much as 45%. This one purchase and action can pay for itself in a very short period of time.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Read this carefully: Only use this tip if you have LEFTOVER tomato soup, pasta sauce or ketchup! If your garbage disposal smells funny, don’t pour chemicals like chlorine bleach down the drain. You can neutralize the odors by using tomato-based food products that naturally deodorize. If you think about it, a dog sprayed by a skunk is “de-skunked” by being doused in tomato sauce; imagine what that can do for your garbage disposal. Just let the tomato mixture sit for an hour in the drain, then rinse it down with cold water.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION