Top Ten Ways to Be Green

Tip #3: Switch to Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs

Don't even try to front: You've been avoiding fluorescent bulbs because you fear flashbacks to the industrial pallor and buzzing tubes of your grade school. But fluorescent bulbs have come a long way, baby.

Watch for ones with higher lumens (not watts) for brighter light; read carefully for a color rendering index (CRI) over 80, or cues like "warmer light," to get closer to incandescence while saving $30 in energy costs over the life of each bulb.

Not to mention the benefit to the planet: EnergyStar has dozens of similes to tell you how much less pollution you generate by simply replacing your feverish incandescent bulbs with chill fluorescent ones, but they all add up to a huge benefit for the earth.