Standby power is the electricity that computers, televisions, appliances, and other electronic devices use when even when they are turned off or in a standby mode. That power is used by power supplies and battery chargers, the circuits and sensors needed to receive a remote signal, and displays including miscellaneous LED status lights. Some items have circuits that are still energized even when they are turned off.  According to the Department of Energy, standby power accounts for 5 percent to 10 percent of residential energy use, costing the average U.S. household $100 per year.

One easy way to reduce standby power is to unplug devices that you don’t use very often.  Turning devices off rather than letting them hibernate will generally reduce the amount of standby power used even if it doesn’t eliminate it.  If you have a group of devices, such as a computer, printer, and monitor, you can use a power strip with an on/off switch.  If you turn off the power strip when you are not using these devices, they will not use standby power.  

Cardboard is recyclable, but pizza boxes frequently can’t be recycled.  Unless your recycling facility specifically allows pizza boxes, don’t sneak them into the recycling bin.  When paper or cardboard is recycled, it is mixed with water to form a slurry. Grease or oil from the paper or cardboard forms a layer of oil on top of the slurry, which causes the whole batch to be ruined.  The best way to recycle a pizza box is to cut or tear out any portions that are greasy or coated with food and throw them away.  Then you can recycle the clean cardboard without causing problems in the recycling process.

Reduce, reuse, recycle.  From a sustainability viewpoint, while all three are good, they are not equal in reducing our impact on the earth.  Reduce means not using the resource or creating the impact in the first place.  Nothing is used up, nothing is wasted, nothing is polluted.  The makes “reduce” the best sustainability option.  Reuse avoids additional environmental impacts resulting from disposal of the item and manufacturing a new item to replace it.  Recycling does allow re-use of the materials so is significantly better than throwing an item away.  However, energy, water, and other resources are used to reclaim and remanufacture the materials into new items, although the use of resources is frequently less than if new materials are used.

We lived for many years in a house without air conditioning. We learned a lot about keeping the heat out so the house would stay cooler. Now that we have an air conditioner, we still use those techniques to reduce the amount of time the air conditioner operates.

•  Keep curtains and shades closed on the sunny side of the house and in any unoccupied rooms.  If it’s really hot outside, keep all of the shades closed. 
  
• If the temperature in the house is warmer than the air outside, open the windows to bring the cool air into the house.  Using fans when the air is cool outside brings in even more cool air.
• Limit activities that heat the house, such as baking or cooking your favorite homemade spaghetti sauce for half a day. 
  

The EPA estimates that about 5% of all landfill waste is from textiles (fabric, used clothing, etc.). Websites published by the textile recycling industry state that most of these fabrics and clothing can be recycled.  Many of us donate gently used clothing for resale by charities.  However, many charities also sell clean, dry rags (worn, stained, or torn clothing, towels, and bedding) to textile recyclers.  After sorting, the rags can be used to manufacture cleaning rags, blankets, new clothes, paper, upholstery, insulation, and many other items.  Your old torn cotton t-shirt could end up in a $20 bill.  Check with your local charity to see what they will accept.