Going green can be easy and it doesn’t have to cost a lot. Try these low-cost ways to make your household more sustainable. Then check out Sustainability Made Simple and Green for Free for more ideas to green your world.

Time for a change

If you have a forced-air furnace (the most common heating system in the United States), inspect the filter once a month during the heating season. If it looks dark and clogged, replace it. A clogged filter means the furnace fan has to work harder, which wastes energy. You can buy a basic filter for a few dollars at home improvement stores, but for better indoor air quality, spend a bit more ($10 to $20) for a filter that’s designed to capture microscopic particles and allergens.

Tighten up

Unwanted air leaks in your home can add 20 percent to your heating and cooling bills. Many basic air tightening tasks are easy and inexpensive. These include caulking gaps around windows, putting weather stripping around windows and doors, sealing heating and cooling ducts, and installing door sweeps to keep air from sneaking in under exterior doors.

Lighten up

Efficiency experts have been telling us for decades to replace our conventional light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) because they reduce energy use by 75 percent and last 8 to 10 times longer. Despite all the talk, only about 6 percent of American households use CFLs. Now that the price of CFLs has plunged (with good quality bulbs to be had for less than $2) there’s no excuse not to switch.

Set it and forget it

You may have the best of intentions, but it’s easy to forget to adjust heating and air conditioning systems before you go to work or to bed. Instead of relying on your memory, automate the process by installing a programmable thermostat. It ranges in cost from $40 to $200, but may save you as much as $180 per year.

Be a control freak

Lighting accounts for about 20 percent of a typical American home’s energy use, and much of that goes toward lights that are left on longer than necessary. With lighting control devices, you can avoid much of that waste. A motion sensor can switch off a closet light after you’ve closed the door. A stairway light switch can be wired to a timer that automatically turns off the light a certain number of minutes after you’ve switched it on. If you want a porch light to stay on all night but not burn during the day, you can wire it to a photocell so that it automatically comes on at dusk and goes off at dawn. You can install basic lighting controls yourself, if you’re handy; more sophisticated controls may require an electrician.

Avoid waste whenever possible

Becoming greener is all about avoiding waste. It’s not necessary to go out and purchase all new eco-friendly products to replace old ones. Simply think twice and consider your eco-friendly options when the time comes to make a future household purchase.

Finally, the best thing you can do is become more educated in making eco-friendly choices and realize that everything you do can make a difference!