Do Just One Thing

12/8/12

One energy hog in the kitchen is the stove, so an easy way to make sure your gas or electric stove works as efficiently as possible is to periodically clean the drip pans and grates. It's easy: When your stove is totally cooled down, remove the drip pans and grates and soak them in the sink for an hour in a mixture of baking soda and white vinegar. Use a scouring sponge to clean the burners on the stove and wipe dry with a towel, then repeat. Replace the drip pans and grates, then get cooking!

12/7/12

While bringing reusable bags to the store is always the greenest option when shopping, we often forget -- even when we have the best intentions. If you've saved a collection of sturdy shopping bags with handles, bring them to your local Goodwill. The resell store will reuse the bags in its own stores. You're helping a good cause and finding a way to reuse the bags without tossing them in the trash.

12/6/12

At the end of the year, many of us go around the house and replace the alkaline batteries in our smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and replace them with fresh batteries. This is a great idea. But those batteries are far from dead, and they shouldn't be tossed in the trash. Save those batteries and use them for other items like remote controls or children's toys.