Keep the fireplace damper closed during summer months

With the cold winter months behind us, don’t forget to close up your fireplace during the warmer seasons ahead. It’s important to keep the damper closed. Having an open flue is essentially equal to having a small window open in your home. The open flue can make your home up to 8% less energy-efficient, and an inactive but open fireplace is an invitation for wild animals to find their way in. Just give it a firm close to help seal up your house.

DON’T FEED THE DEER

It may seem harmless (and even charitable) to put food out to feed deer. But the reality is, your supplemental food supply can do more harm than good. Even during the harsh winter months, deer survive using their body fat and by grazing on whatever natural vegetation they can find. Throughout the year, when they find the supply of food that you provide, it can disrupt their movement. And worse, the food can make them sick because it can play havoc with their digestive system. Rather than putting out food, leave areas of your yard wild to help our wild friends.

PAPER IN THE CRISPER

When you fill the produce and crisper drawers in your refrigerator with fruits and vegetables, there’s one more thing you should add: a sheet of newspaper or a torn-up brown paper shopping bag. The addition of thick, porous paper on the bottom of the drawer does two things: First, it helps cushion produce and prevent bruising; and second, it absorbs a gas called ethylene, which the produce gives off as it ripens. Too much ethylene can cause all of your fruits and veggies to over-ripen very quickly. This little trick can help you cut back on food waste and save money, too.

SPORTS DRINKS ON PLANTS

Water is water, right? So pouring some leftover soft drink or sports drink out of the bottle and onto the ground should be fine for plants, correct? Actually, no. While, yes, these are beverages we use for hydration, they contain high amounts of sugar that can hurt plants. Just like salt, sugary drinks prevent plants from absorbing water. The only type of leftover fizzy stuff that is good for plants is zero-sugar drinks like club soda or carbonated water because they are full of nutrients like oxygen, hydrogen and carbon that plants love.

DONATE FLY MILES

Even if you rarely fly, it’s worth the effort to set up a free frequent-flyer account. While you may not earn enough miles for a free ticket, you can still donate your small amounts of miles to support good causes like UNICEF and the Red Cross. Almost every major airline has a charitable component to its frequent-flyer program that lets you donate mileage to charities. And often, the airline will match those donations mile-for-mile for the charity that you choose.

DIVERT TRASH

Did you know the average person generates about 6 pounds of trash every single day, and that the majority of it goes to landfills? One way to help curtail the amount of trash that’s created in your home is to have one central trash can and recycling bin. Tossing garbage in the trash shouldn’t be easy; it should almost literally be a chore to add something to the garbage bin. Make the recycling bin the focal point, where members of the family have an incentive to divert trash that can be recycled. This little tip can help reduce the 30-plus pounds of trash a family produces per week.

FABRIC DYES

While it may be fashionable for a moment, deep, rich colors or bright, vibrant hues in clothing can also indicate that the materials have been dyed with very harsh chemicals. Textiles have to be treated with myriad chemicals to produce colors in fashionable psychedelic shades. According to Greenpeace, almost 20% of industrial water waste is from textile dyes and treatment. To avoid this, think neutral. The less colorful, the fewer (if any) dyes are used. Always look for organic fabrics, or even better, try to shop secondhand.