You’ve switched to compact fluorescent bulbs, put your TV on a power strip, and checked your windows for leaky seals. The next echelon of saving energy at home, however, often seems to mean one of two things: purchasing appliances with top-notch Energy Star ratings or implementing ambitious but impractical strategies—like converting washing machines to bicycle power and grinding flour with your fists.

The truth is we don’t all have ever-expanding pocketbooks or the living space, free time, and gumption required to go off grid. What we do have is a keen interest in doing what we can. Here, then, courtesy of the Utne Reader library, are a host of practical, low-tech, “next stage” solutions that will facilitate a more ecofriendly lifestyle at home.

An easy place to start is that energy-abusing conventional stove. For dishes you’d simmer over the burner or hand off to a Crock-Pot, a hot-box cooker is a simple, low-energy alternative. ReNew (July-Sept. 2008) suggests using a large wicker basket stuffed with old blankets. Heat your cuisine fossil-fuel style until it’s evenly hot, then transfer the tightly lidded pot to the box and pack in the blankets so heat can’t escape. Over the next six to eight hours, your meal will cook and remain insulated until you’re ready to eat. For type-A eco-chefs, a pressure cooker cuts time by about 70 percent, reports Clean Slate (Spring 2008). Utne Reader’s sister publication Natural Home (Sept.-Oct. 2008) named it a kitchen essential, and if there’s another way to cook delicious potatoes in just four minutes, we haven’t tasted it.

Alternatives to electric lighting are numerous, but not all are ecofriendly options. Most candles, for example, emit scores of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), warns the Ecologist (Feb. 2008). VOCs are those nasty carcinogenic buggers that also seep from traditional wall paint. BackHome (Sept.-Oct. 2008) suggests lighting lamps and candles made from renewable fuels such as vegetable oils and beeswax—they release a minuscule amount of pollutants, but ample ambience.