Five spring greening tips:

1. Debunk the junk: We all hate junk mail, but how many of us are doing something about it? The average American received about 41 pounds of junk mail each year, so why recycle it when you can eliminate it all together? Remove yourself from direct-mail mailing lists. Here are a couple sites to help you: GreenDimes.com has a free option and 41pounds.org has a fee-based option.

2. Efficient water heating:

• Insulate your water heater and water piping. If your water heater is not insulated, wrap an insulating blanket around it. If your water heater is gas, and not insulated, be sure to leave room for the air vent. Do not cover any venting pipes with a blanket.
• Reduce your water heater thermostat to 120 degrees.
• Replace your water heater with a tankless water heater --- you get instantaneous hot water, no waste while hot water slowly cools in the tank.

3. Earth-lovin' laundry:

• Use a front-load washing machine, which use at least 40 percent less water and up to 65 percent less electricity than a top loader.
• Rather than tumble drying, air dry on a line. (Your clothes will smell better and last longer.) If it's raining or snowing, use clothes airing racks.
• Buy powered detergents and make sure your detergent is phosphate free.

4. Don't hesitate to insulate:

• Upgrading your insulation to a higher R-value can lower energy costs dramatically. Start with insulating the attic and unheated crawl spaces.
• Sealing ducts, caulking and weather stripping reduce energy loss even more.
• Double up on windows. Replacing old single-pane windows with double pane-windows helps reduce heat loss in winter and heat gain in the summer.

5. Watch your water:

• Install inexpensive water-saving showerheads or restrictors, which automatically pauses a running shower once it gets warm.
• All household faucets should be fit with aerators. This great home water conservation method is also cheap (a few bucks at the hardware store).
• Low-flow faucets reduce water consumption and the cost of heating water by as much as 50 percent.