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Energy

Dishwashing to-do

Doing dishes by hand? Save water by making sure you regularly turn off the faucet. According to Scientific American, “A typical session that includes turning the water on and off will go through about 20 gallons” of water. But when dishwashers simply let the water run, they use twice as much. One best practice: Use two sinks, one for washing, another for rinsing, and avoid running the faucet altogether.

Space

More offbeat ideas

The June issue of magazine includes a feature in which nine expert clutter-busters share their smartest organizing strategies.

Here are some of the magazine’s go-to organizing ideas from its website:

Use jewelry gift boxes as drawer organizers.

Baby jars are ideal for nails and screws, and don’t even have to take up shelf space. Here’s how: “Nail or superglue the lids to the underside of a surface (or shelf) near where you store your tools, then twist the jars into place. Put like-size nuts and bolts in one jar, wood screws in another, nails in another. Also attach an empty jar so that when you’re working on a project, you can gather the necessary hardware and stow it there.”

Use an empty tissue box to store old grocery bags. Then, just grab a bag from the box the same way you’d grab a fresh tissue.

Use a paper towel holder to stack rolls of wrapping paper or crafting ribbon.

Money

Avoid roofing scams

(angieslist.com), the home- improvement referral website, recently teamed up with local roofers Eric Brown and Chris Tulp of Premier Roofing to remind consumers about “renegade roofers,” also known as “out-of-town storm chasers” or “roofing gypsies.” These scammers watch national weather reports for storm and hail events, then travel around the country, passing out leaflets and going door-to-door in affected neighborhoods where they anticipate homeowners will be making roofing insurance claims.

Mind the following tips to avoid getting involved with a fraudulent roofer:

The best way to avoid being swindled is to do your own research. Ask to see proof of insurance and check the roofer’s license status with your local building department or licensing agency.

Visit the roofer’s office. If the company only lists a post office box, it’s a major red flag.

Ask for a list of previous customers in your area. Visit those work sites to make sure the references are legit.

Avoid making a down payment on a roof. “If you absolutely have to make a down payment and you trust the guy, put it on a credit card so you can reverse the charges if you need to,” says Premier Roofing’s Brown.

Elana Ashanti Jefferson, The Denver Post