“Greening” your home office isn’t just good for the environment; it’s also good for your bottom line. Many simple things can be done to conserve office supplies like paper and oil-based inks, which means significant savings on home office expenses. Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• Make your printer environmentally-friendly. Change your printer settings to make double-sided pages. Even printers that won’t automatically print double-sided can be set to do so manually without much effort.
• Use small point-sizes when possible and choose the "fast draft" option included in most word processors after you select the "print" option. "Fast draft" uses less ink, leading to fewer cartridges.
• Pay your bills via e-billing programs when possible. Though there are still some paper records, these programs generate less than traditional paper correspondence.
• Consider using a digital camera. They create less waste for disposal than traditional cameras because disks can be reused and undesirable pictures can be deleted. You’ll also avoid photo development costs.
• Instead of printing hard copies of documents needed for work, save them to a disk or e-mail them to your own Web e-mail account.
• Use paperclips instead of staples when possible.
• Keep plenty of scrap paper handy. Use the back side of old documents for low priority prints like driving directions or movie times.
• Purchase recycled paper and keep a recycle bin handy.
• Reuse envelopes that have metal clasps.
• Reuse file folders by sticking a new label over the old one, or folding the file in the reverse direction.
• Purchase refillable tape dispensers.
• Erase and reformat computer disks rather than purchasing new ones or disposing of old ones.
• Use a customized rubber stamp for envelopes instead of disposable labels.