The onslaught of messages about being "green" has wearied a portion of the American public at a time when the movement can't afford to bog down, says one national expert.

Demands on the bottom line are getting businesses on board, but what the bandwagon badly needs is a simpler consumer message, said Suzanne Shelton, chief executive officer and founder of the Shelton Group, a Tennessee marketing firm whose clients make energy-efficient and sustainable-development products.

Ms. Shelton is in Pittsburgh today to address green-building conferees at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. Her topic -- what "green" really means to decision makers who build budgets -- speaks as dramatically to household managers as to CEOs. The squeeze on the average family is tighter than it has been for decades.

"It is an economic issue for everyone," she said. "A lot of people are at work on this because costs are going to get higher fast."

But people resist changing their behaviors.

Ms. Shelton's agency, in conducting surveys for clients, has seen "significant backlash among consumers, eye-rolling stuff" over the past few months, she said.

"As soon as we throw out a tagline with 'green' in it, people say, 'Oh, I'm so tired of hearing about 'green.' People are tired of the guilt. And when they think they have to choose between being comfortable and saving the planet, they think, 'I work hard. I want to be comfortable.' If that means turning the thermostat up, they will."

She advises that people not think about saving the planet but about using and wasting less. The sheer expense of everything from gasoline to milk will force more people to do that.

"A whole chunk of people out there do not know what they are going to do if gas goes up much more -- and it will," she said.

Janice Donatell, co-owner of the green-building materials store, Artemis, in Lawrenceville, recommends borrowing from lifestyles of the old days.

"Go back and remember how our grandparents used to live and run their homes. Back to basics. Open windows for cross ventilation" when it's hot outside and "let the sun warm the house" when it's cold.

For house cleaning, she said, "use white vinegar and baking soda instead of pretty bottled things" that cost much more and contain chemicals.

A homeowner can save by turning off and unplugging electric items that don't need to run.

He can insulate his attic and save 20 percent to 30 percent of his heating bill, said Ms. Shelton.

Many people don't even realize how much power they consume in their homes, she said. When in surveys they are asked to compare their use of electricity over time, most people say "about the same," even though their "plug load" has escalated with additional computers, electronic games and larger TVs.

Coal-fired power plants, whose product is electricity, are responsible for one-third of all greenhouse gasses, she said.

"Life is full of choices," said Gary Saulson, who has worked on making his a greener home. He installed recycled recyclable carpet, flooring certified that for every tree sacrificed another was planted, a plumbing system that uses less water and drought-resistant landscaping. At work, he oversees PNC's corporate real estate department.

"The first step is that you have to want to do it," he said. "People should do as much as they feel comfortable doing. There are lots of shades of green. Aspire to one of them."

Over the past 10 years, PNC has aspired to bright green, starting with the planning of Firstside Center, Downtown, in 1998.

"It was the largest certified green building in the world" when it was built in 2000, he said.

PNC boasts 43 buildings certified by the U.S. Green Building Council under the council's LEED standards, more than any company in the world. (LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Development.)

"Our day-to-day costs are less, our costs of maintenance are less, our energy consumption is less and it's a better environment for employees," he said of the company's green buildings.

PNC trains its builders to get maximum recycling and minimal waste out of their labors, he said. Nationwide, many builders are adopting green practices and materials, even if they are not going for LEED certification.

Conservation Consultants Inc., a nonprofit on the South Side, offers energy audits to homeowners.

Ann Gerace, the executive director of CCI, said those audits, at $125 each, include measuring the energy your appliances are using. An old refrigerator might be costing $40 a month while the efficient Energy Star appliance costs $5 a month to keep plugged in, she said.

Another audit is conducted by depressurizing the house, using a nylon parachute-like device over the door with a fan and computer hook-up to find air leaks. This audit costs $250. (To schedule an audit, call 1-877-376-2783.)

In survey after survey, consumers say they want to contribute to a better environment, but too often "paper or plastic?" sounds like a trick question.

The solution to that -- the canvas tote -- is gaining popularity at more grocery check-out counters.

What about ethanol? Touted as a green biofuel, it comes from corn, which robs the soil of nutrients.

Fluorescent light bulbs save as much as $60 over the life of the bulb, but they contain mercury. Is this a green product after all? (The ones that contain 1 microgram of mercury are safe to dispose of inside a plastic bag, said Ms. Gerace. Conservation Consultants also will recycle them.)

As best practices and policies get sorted out, the little guy can take comfort in knowing that he can be green by not doing things.

"The best light bulb," said Mr. Saulson, "is the one you don't have to turn on."