SO you recycle religiously; you’ve switched to CFLs; you keep your tires inflated; you turned down the thermostat all winter; you’ve weatherstripped and insulated; you use only ecologically responsible cleaning products; and you sleep in sustainably harvested bamboo sheets. Now what? v If you want to take environmental-friendly living to the next level, say lifelong environmentalists, start by rethinking every decision you make from the time you wake up until the time you go to sleep.

That means taking shorter showers, making your coffee at home instead of pulling up to the drive-up window—or at least having your own travel mug refilled at the counter. It means switching from disposable water bottles to washable water bottles, using cloth instead of paper napkins. It means packing your lunch in reusable plastic containers instead of disposable sandwich bags, skipping prepacked lunch foods, and, when possible, telecommuting, taking public transportation or carpooling.

“What I think people ought to be doing is...take a step back and think of the bigger areas of their lives and how that fits with going green,” says Seth Bauer, editorial director of Green Guide, a quarterly magazine launched in March by National Geographic.

“For example, when we go into a store to buy something, we all use criteria in making those choices: It might be design, price, packaging [or] the quality of the product,” he says. “It’s time to rethink that checklist.”

When we buy based on convenience, products usually cost more, create more waste and don’t taste as good, he says. (Think frozen dinners vs. cooking from scratch.)

Everything we buy requires energy to produce, package and transport, and making it creates waste. To be more Earth-friendly, choose items that create less waste, he suggests. Buy in bulk or in larger quantities—one big box of crackers vs. individual-serving packets, or a big tub of yogurt rather than individual cups.

“If you really stop and think about what you throw out and whether there are alternatives, you can cut your trash in half. There’s almost nothing greener than cutting down on your trash.”

Going a deeper shade of green need not be seen as a negative, says environmentalist Judi Friedman, chairman of People’s Action for Clean Energy, a nonprofit, all-volunteer public health organization.

“I think if one really enthusiastically grabs that idea, there’s an emotional component that is very positive,” she says. “There have been studies that show that when people give, they’re happier. If you’re giving to the planet and helping to heal it, that can become a very strong positive feeling and can actually improve your feeling of satisfaction

“The other component is economic. In this tanking economy, until we make the transition to clean energy, we are going to suffer a great deal,” she says.

Embracing a green lifestyle helps the economy by creating jobs and saves consumers money. For example, she says, think about consuming less and using only what we need to get the job done—everything from toothpaste to toilet paper, shampoo to shaving cream.

Coastal Living’s March issue features planters made from rice, bamboo and straw, but a greener option would be to buy used pots from tag sales, junk shops, flea markets or antiques stores.

Here’s a sampling of ideas for going greener at home, culled from veteran conservationists, Country Living, Readers Digest, Coastal Living and other magazines and web sites:

Household

§          Save trees and reduce air pollution by paying bills electronically, and have bank statements, bills and quarterly investment reports e-mailed.

§          Cut junk mail. The average person receives 41 pounds of junk mail per year, estimates 41pounds.org. Reduce junk mail at no charge by logging on to to the Direct Marketing Association’s “mail-preference service” and registering. For a one-time fee, 41pounds.org says it will reduce junk mail by 80 percent to 95 percent within four months.

§          Earth-friendly food choices. Buy locally and cook from scratch. Eating fruits and vegetables in season is not only cheaper, it also saves energy consumed when produce is transported. Try to avoid red meat, because feeding cattle and transporting meat consumes far more energy than the energy used to produce a vegetarian or beef-free diet.

§          Use the dishwasher. It will save your hands and water and energy. A fully loaded dishwasher uses less than a third of the water needed to wash the same amount of dishes by hand, Readers Digest reports in its April issue. It’s OK to scrape off food, but there’s no need to rinse.

§          Green cleaning. Baking soda and white vinegar are all you need for most household cleaning. For natural cleaning recipes and tips, try the time-tested tips of the Queen of Clean, Linda Cobb, (QueenofClean.com). Be wary of “greenwashing,” where companies market something as environmental friendly when it really isn’t.

§          Grow cleaner indoor air. A Nasa study found that houseplants improve indoor air quality by absorbing common household gases like ammonia, formaldehyde, carbon monoxide and benzene.

§          To reduce indoor air pollution, use low- or zero-VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) paints.

§          Switch to beeswax or soy candles or candles scented with natural oils. Conventional candles made with petroleum pollute the air, according to the American Lung Association.

Water savings

§          A leak of one drop per second can waste five gallons of water a day and up to 2,400 gallons of water a year.

§          Cut your household’s water consumption by switching to low-flow faucets and showerheads, and toilets that use 1.6 gallons or less per flush. Today’s water-saving showerheads provide a better stream than their forefathers. Add a brick or a plastic container filled with water to a conventional toilet tank to reduce water usage. Toilets bearing the EPA’s WaterSense label are 20 percent more water-efficient than standard models, reports Country Living.

§          Collect rainwater in a rain barrel to water your garden and houseplants. Your plants prefer rain water, and this also reduces runoff into streams.

Energy savings

§          Set the temperature on your water heater at 120 degrees.

§          According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 40 percent of all electricity used to power electronics in the average home is consumed while the products are turned off. Unplug faxes, printers, DVD players, TVs and stereo systems or plug them into power strips you can shut off while sleeping or out of the house. Don’t forget to unplug toasters, coffee makers, hairdryers and cell-phone chargers when not in use.

§          Microsoft estimates it costs $55 to $70 per year for one computer to sit idle.

§          When shopping for a new computer, consider a laptop. Laptop computers use half the energy; Energy Star-rated laptops save even more.

Baby

§          Cloth diapers vs. disposables? Environmentally-minded parents have struggled with this choice for decades. While we’re not going to resolve this issue, parents can avoid adding to the problem when their children are in the potty-training stage by using cloth-training pants instead of disposable, diaper-like “underpants.”

§          Homemade baby food creates less waste, is preservative-free and saves money. (See Feed Me, I’m Yours by Vicki Lansky for everything you need to know.)

§          Use a washcloth and liquid baby soap rather than disposable wipes. For homemade wipes on the go, wet paper towels, squirt baby soap on them and seal in a zippered plastic bag.

§          Shop consignment stores and tag sales for baby’s and children’s clothing, books, toys, bedroom accessories, portable cribs and strollers.

Kids

§          Donate outgrown clothing to charity; pass on to friends; or consign. Purchase clothing at consignment shops or accept hand-me-downs from friends and family members.

§          Carpool with neighbors to get kids to and from practice, and encourage your kids to ride their bike to a friend’s house and walk to the bus stop.

§          Let your kids take the school bus or ride their bikes, rather than driving them to school.

§          Teach kids to shut off the lights when they leave a room.

Laundry

§          The dryer is one of the home’s biggest energy guzzlers, costing about $75 a year to operate. Dry clothes and sheets on the line in spring, summer and fall and, in the winter, on clothes racks indoors near the wood stove or furnace or in the tub. The clothes last longer, and those dried outdoors smell great. When buying any appliance, look for the Energy Star label.

§          Use white vinegar instead of fabric softener for fresh-smelling laundry. Try lemon juice or hydrogen peroxide-based bleach instead of chlorine bleach. Chlorine bleach is harsh on clothing and harmful to the environment.

§          Choose environment-friendly laundry detergents made from natural, biodegradable ingredients.

§          Add a tablespoon of Borax with the laundry soap as an Earth-friendly laundry booster.

§          Use cold water for all but the toughest stains, and you’ll save 85 percent of the energy and money used for a hot-water load.

§          Front-loading washing machines use up to 36 percent less water and 60 percent less energy than top-loaders. Wash full loads whenever possible to get the most out of the water, energy and detergent you’re using.

§          Skip the dryer sheets. Some contain toxic chemicals such as benzyl acetate, benzyl alcohol and chloroform. Make your own by putting one or two drops of essential oils on a washcloth or cloth napkin.

Garden

§          Tune up the lawnmower annually. Regular maintenance can cut fuel consumption by 30 percent and emissions by 50 percent, according to John Deere Mobile Service.

§          For a greener choice, use an engine-free push mower that operates on human power and produces zero air pollution.

§          Shrink your lawn by planting gardens, native perennials, shrubs, fruit bushes or trees and groundcover.

§          Grow flowers and vegetables from seed, reducing waste from plastic pots and energy used to transport plants.

§          Compost food scraps to reduce trash; use nutrient-rich composted soil in the garden.

§          Aerate your yard to allow rainwater to seep in the ground instead of running off, suggests Eric Hammerling, executive director of the Farmington River Watershed Association. You can rent an aerating machine or walk on your lawn with spiked shoes.

§          Plant evergreens on the north side of the house to provide wind protection in winter and shade in summer; plant deciduous trees on southern and western sides of the house to provide cooling in summer.

§          Avoid chemical fertilizers and pesticides, which are harmful to people and the environment. The number of organic gardening products is growing, but know what you’re buying. For example, avoid products containing Milorganite, which comes from Milwaukee sewer sludge, says Friedman.

Clothing and household items

§          Donate or sell used clothing.

§          Drop off unwanted but usable items at the “take-it-or-leave-it” center at your local transfer station, or have a tag sale.

Shopping/consuming

§          Use reusable shopping bags.

§          Use reusable containers.

§          Use travel mugs and refillable water bottles. Each year, more than 4 million pounds of plastic bottles end up in landfills or as roadside litter, according to Corporate Accountability International. Making plastic bottles required 17 million barrels of oil last year, enough to fuel more than 1 million US cars for a year and generating more than 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide. For more information, go to thinkoutsidethebottle.org.

§          Drink filtered tap water instead of bottled water or soda.

§          Buy used furniture, linens and accessories.

§          Buy an existing home rather than building new.

Steps to take around the house to shrink your carbon footprint

SO you recycle religiously; you’ve switched to CFLs; you keep your tires inflated; you turned down the thermostat all winter; you’ve weatherstripped and insulated; you use only ecologically responsible cleaning products; and you sleep in sustainably harvested bamboo sheets.

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