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Do you use the vinegar and baking soda in lieu of dish detergent? Can it be use in the dishwasher as well?

Hmmm... Well, for one, if i run a toaster oven, microwave and fridge off one power strip it blows a fuse every time, so watch out that that pissing you off frequently.

Vinegar really makes me gag, whats an alternative?

Also, I don't have a washer and dryer in my house, and having a bunch of nasty towels around is.. well nasty. Just don't waste more than you have to. Paper towels are really usefull for drying large amounts of produce, and for shoving in a bag of lettuces to keep them dry. Also, wash and resuse your foil! it works really well.

A lemon and kosher salt scrubbing around on your wood cutting board will take the garlic (or whatever) out of it.. so you dont ruin a nice cantalope, like i frequently do.

@juliebugsmama - once the vinegar dries the smell completely dissipates. I often add a tiny bit of orange blossom oil to my vinegar bottle to help with the scent. Lavender or what have you will work too. But it only lasts about 10 min so it's not bad at all.

After a while you'll associate vinegar with clean just as much as bleach anyhow, and if you ever go back to a conventional cleaner, like Comet or something, you'll be shocked at how irritating it will seem. It took me about a month to get to that stage, and now regular cleaners seem extremely harsh, something I never noticed before.

As far as tip #2, since few of my pots go into the dishwasher, that's what I use instead of a tub for the rest of the hand-washables. If there are several pots, I just pour the soapy water from one to the other. I never end up with things that need to soak in water, so mostly it's just about having a reservoir of soapy water to use when I'm washing the knives and delicate things, and then the things that don't fit in the dishwasher.

Wow, seriously? Put more stuff in your oven to save energy? This is, as the kids say, science fail. You should familiarize yourself with the difference between temperature and heat.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_mass

Luther:
Don't know how often you use an oven, but mine cycles on to maintain the temperature far less frequently the fuller the oven is. For the same reason I leave my pizza stone in the oven whether I'm actively using it or not; once it has reached the temperature to which I'm heating the oven, the stone takes a lot longer to cool down than the surrounding air, thus maintaining a steadier temperature with less energy input.

What Luther said about stuffing the oven, plus you then have to refrigerate all that warm food. Using a toaster over or micro-convection oven is a better way to save energy.

Vinegar is the best cleaner in the world and it costs a couple bucks a gallon.

I'm dubious as to whether dishwashers save that much water. Anyway, how much water, energy, carbon, steel, plastics and other natural resources were expended in manufacturing and shipping the thing?

@Seikel- I used to clean with vinegar quite a lot, but I got tired of the house smelling like I was dying Easter eggs so I have moved on to isopropyl alcohol mixed 50/50 with water. The smell dissipates quicker than vinegar and it is brilliant on windows mirrors since the alcohol evaporates so quickly.

I also use it on my vinyl and laminate floors- spray it on, mop it off with a Swiffer-type mop. I am currently fostering a litter of kittens, so I mop daily.

@ Everyone worried about vinegar fumes - you really can't smell it once it dries. It's the bleach and other things that really make me gag now. Adding essential oils like tatianak said is also really nice.

@ simon - The internet is ripe with make your own cleaning product recipes. Here's one made with borax (another cheap and envio-friendly cleaning product). I'd try it if I had a dishwasher.

@ Luther - I'm no scientist but I understand your point. What about the fact that you would have to heat your oven to 400 a second time if you then wanted to cook that sweet potato tomorrow? To me, that seems like you are saving energy AND time.

Thanks for everyone for chiming in with your own tips and tricks!

We use a product called Hydrosol to clean. It is the water left after distilling lavender oil (many lavender farms around the islands). I buy it by the gallon and keep it in spray bottles around the house. I know women who clean for a living who've developed terrible allergies and eye problems that require the wearing of special goggles while working; this product doesn't seem to irritate and the slight lavender fragrance quickly dissipates.

Oh, yeah, jenh718 is so right: that stove rocks! Want it, want it. I'd trade my new Wolf for it.

@ Lower Yeast Side - Try bags made of alternatives to cotton like these or these

My gas/electric bill was $230 +/- this time last year. This month it was $95. The difference, we replaced the old fridge that came with the house with a new LG french door. We also added a dishwasher.
We reached a new level of recycling this week also. Toad, my near-toothless black cat, has taken a bag full of bags (those plastic grocery bags) as his bed. Think I'll let him keep them.

I also use salt to clean some things. If it's not dissolved it's a mild abrasive, so it's great for cleaning the interior of vases, etc.

another tip: BUY IN BULK!!!!
but not costco bulk that gives you individually wrapped items with more plastic on it. Try to find stores where they let you buy dry goods, herbs, soaps, etc in your own containers. I live in the Twin Cities where we have a plethora of co-ops and health foods stores where this saves you real money!

Love these tips, many of them indoctinated in me by my grandmother, who had it figured out from living through two wars in Europe. And she never even heard the term 'carbon footprint'.
Hey, Cooks Illustrated did one of their science experiments to see how to best clean fruits and vegetables. They tried antibacterial soap (yuk), water, and a 1/3 vinegar with 2/3 water mixture. The vinegar/water mixture killed the most bacteria. So I keep it around in a spray bottle under the sink. When I wash grapes in a bowl of water I also add a splash of vinegar to that too. Works great.
I keep a linen towel for drying dishes and a terry cloth towel for hands and counters in my kitchen. The paper towels are stored out of the way and last me about 6 months per roll, just used for things like cat throw-up. I have a collection of linen towels from my travels. A nice keepsake and very practical. Excellent gifts for your friends too if you are a traveler.