Can you recycle old printed photographs with your scrap paper recycling? Yes and no. It all depends on how the photo was printed. If it was done in an old-fashioned chemical processing fashion, then no. If it was printed using modern digital technology, yes. How do you find out? Simply tear it. If the photograph rips with a very clean tear, it can be recycled; if it's hard to tear and rips in layers and not so cleanly, you likely have a nonrecyclable photo that needs to be thrown into the trash, not the recycling bin.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

According to The Sierra Club, front-loading washing machines are far more energy- and water-efficient than top-loading models. In fact, front-loading machines use up to half the water and energy of older models, making them truly a greener alternative. But the environmental organization makes a point that if your current washing machine works, use it. Just use cool or cold water versus warm or hot whenever possible, and choose the shortest cycle to make the machine a leaner, greener model.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

You've heard of secondhand smoking, but did you know there is also thirdhand smoking? The children's health advocacy group Healthy Child Healthy World says thirdhand smoke is when a smoker leaves toxic residues on things like clothes, fabric, furnishings, walls, bedding and other porous surfaces in a room. While the simplest step to protect children is to avoid smokers altogether, that isn't always possible. If you go into a room that has traces of smoke, open a window and use fans to circulate air. Ask smokers to change clothes and wash their hands before interacting with infants and children. The charity says to think of smoking as insecticide: Cigarette smoke has over 2,500 hazardous chemicals in it that no child should be exposed to.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION