How do you cut costs around the house?
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How do you cut costs around the house?
| Thu, 11-11-2004 - 6:51pm |
What little things do you do around the house that helps you cut cost?
| Thu, 11-11-2004 - 6:51pm |
What little things do you do around the house that helps you cut cost?
I cut Olay cleansing cloths in half like you do the dryer sheets.
I unscrewed half the lightbulbs in my bathroom vanity.
I think twice about making phone calls, and then I think about the cheapest way to make the call.
I try to shop as much as I can (now) in the discount grocery. The produce costs half as the grocery across the street.
I'll keep thinking up more!
Littlesbigs
In the grocery store:
I have a 2 year old, and I used to give her a full plate of food, and throw out the leftvoers. Now, if she has chicken nuggets for lunch and doesn't finish a few, I save them for the next day. She has no idea they are the same ones.
Also, I used to make a big pot of coffee in the morning and waste it. Now I only make a half pot. I also bring snacks with me and my daughter when we go out instead of buying.\
kel
We don't buy junk or processed foods as much as possible so that helps to trim costs.
We shop at Wal-Mart once/mth for our household/personal care items instead of going everytime something runs out. That has helped a lot to save on those items.
We don't keep lights on unnecessarily. I also use less than the recommended amount of detergent to do laundry/dishes.
I will though start tearing the dryer sheets in half - great idea!
We have one cell phone (prepaid) and dh has a pager for work which both cost less than $25/mth to operate. Our cell phone budget used to be near $60/mth.
This is just some of what we've done to reduce expenses and I evaluate periodically what else can be lowered or cut altogether from the spending plan.
Kassandra
Kassandra
"It is said that life has its peaks and valleys. The challenge is to accept them equally and experience them
One other thing that I do is when I get coffee I get the more expensive kind that you grind at the store but, I turn the dial on the grinder to turkish ground which makes the coffee into a powder. I use one fourth as much coffee grounds this way(and the coffee tastes better since it's a higher quality bean). One of those Millstone bags lasts me about a month and a half to two months, we were going through a can of Folgers every 2-3 weeks. So my morning coffee ends up being about 3.25 a month.
I found out that buying rice & Asian veggies at an Asian market is cheaper then the regular grocery. A 20lb bag of rice is about $13. Granted that's a lot of rice but as long as it stays dry it's OK.
For the winter I put plastic over the windows to save on heat. I also switch the dryer to empty in to the house for thw winter & that both warms & humidifies the place really well. I have a plastic box that I fill with water & attach the dryer tube to the lid of the box – the water catches the lint. Most hardware stores sell something like this.
When I cook I always make extra for the next night. That way I use the stove & oven less and it nips the power bill down a little.
I stock up on anything we use regularly when it's on sale. I try to buy enough for 2 months.
I’ve used vinegar to clean glass for years but I’ve started to explore making my own cleaning solutions for other things.
Oh, and we don’t use paper towels. I went to a thrift shop a couple years ago & bought bath towels that I cut up and we use those for spills & such. The pretty kitchen towels I try to only use for benign things like drying off my hands.
Let's see what else I can add...
Cloth diapers.
I hang clothes to dry in the summer--cheaper, and they get cleaner because the sun bleaches them.
I use grocery bags for trash bags (bought little dealies on sale that allow me to hang them under the sink).
I dump any suitable leftovers (broth, cooked veggies, rice, meat bones, etc.) into a container in the fridge and make "leftover soup" every week or so. Actually quite tasty most of the time.
I stick butter wrappers in the freezer if they have any butter clinging to them and use them to grease pans.
We have smorgasbord night every week or so to use up leftovers not suitable for soup--between this and leftover soup night, that's two "free" meals a week.
Clear broth not used for leftover soup goes in ice cube trays and once frozen into plastic bags for later use. Veggie juice from canned veggies or cooked veggies can be used for this purpose too. Don't pour that vitamin-laden flavorful stuff down the drain! LOL
I shop at a grocery salvage store, peruse ads for sales and buy everything on sale and stock up. When buying in bulk, we divide into meal-sized portions immediately for ease of use, especially frozen foods.
After dinner, dh goes ahead and makes his lunch for the next day out of dinner's leftovers, so in the morning he can grab and go.
I get my shopping fix at yard sales.
We reuse aluminum foil and zip-lock bags (only if they've not had meat in them *and* if they're not greasy or dirty in a way that is hard to clean).
I buy overripe tomatoes by the box at the farmer's market in summer and make our own stewed tomatoes, which I freeze.
I bake homemade bread, and buy sandwich bread at the discount store for 69 cents.
To add to a tip from another poster, we've discovered that coffee made in an infuser-style maker tastes much better than a drip-style, doesn't require the purchase of filters, and uses less grounds.
We use our library, public parks, and other free community resources.
We always look for creative *free* solutions to problems instead of running to the hardware/grocery/etc. store for "just the right thing." Case in point--a brace missing from a bookcase after our move would have required a trip to Lowe's and a small purchase, except that I discovered a Lego that would do the trick handily. Problem solved, cost zero. DS has not discovered the missing Lego. LOL
I search the newspaper classifieds daily for good deals on items we're looking for; I know what is a phenomenal deal, and I can pounce on it before anyone else has a chance. We have funds set aside for this purpose so we're always ready to take advantage of the "unbeatable deal." Retail stores almost never have sales that equal what I can find in the classifieds.
Speaking of which, it's sunday morning and I haven't even looked at the classifieds yet--eek!! Better go. LOL
Blessings and thanks for the thread.
Heather
we don't have a clothes washer/dryer in our apartment, and it costs $3.50 to do a full load in our building, so we do a lot of hand washing with my clothes, and we hang to dry almost everything.
right now, we only eat ground pork (meat-wise) because we bought a huge package of it on sale and bagged it into ziplocs.
we don't buy cheese.
we walk or bike whenever possible, so as to save on gas.
i bake cookies, muffins, and biscuits, rather than buying them. this is healthier, too, because i make them small, so we actually eat less junk food. (Fi counts based on number of cookies, not how big they are.)
i can't think of anything else right now, and should probably go to bed now anyways.
*I shop w/coupons & grocery store savings memberships - I know that people think it's too much hassle, but I save an average of $50 a week on groceries.
*I reuse the envelopes that come in all of the credit card offer junk mail - great for sending in lunch money, permission slips, etc
*I pay as many bills online as I can - saves on stamps & checks
*Speaking of checks, I don't use duplicate checks - why pay more so that I can be lazy about recording the info in the register?
*Like others, I menu plan each week and only shop from that menu (which is based, of course, on what's on sale)
*I bought an Entertainment Book this year - lots of great coupons in there! I need to go through & mark the ones that I will likely use & then keep the book in the car
Looking forward to reading more ideas!
Katy
At the grocery store, I always, always compare unit prices between brands AND sizes. (The unit price is on the little shelf sticker under the product, and shows price by weight, length, or count, depending on what kind of product it is). The biggest package/sale item/store brand is NOT always the best price! I only cut out coupons if they are for something I already use, or will get me an item nearly free.
Since I garden as a hobby anyway, I grow my own herbs (I have limited space, so most veggies are not practical, although I do also grow beans). The herbs are are pretty, easy to grow, don't need pesticides, taste better than dried, and cost way less than buying fresh at the grocery store (not even an option for me at $2-$3+ for a small bunch!). I don't bother growing anything we can't eat :-D
I try not to buy clothes that need to be dry cleaned, but when something ends up in my closet that can't be machine washed, I use the dry-cleaning sheets that go in the dryer (I found a product called 'Dry Cleaner's Secret' which is much cheaper than Dryel and doesn't require a 'starter kit'/bag).
I check the stamp machine at the PO and take the 1-cent stamps that others leave behind (I ship a lot for my business and those 1-cent stamps really add up!) How cheap is that, LOL?!? They are also handy when the stamp rates go up.
I try to collect our bottles and cans for the return deposits before DH can throw them out. At the grocery store there is a bottle machine that spits out the return as a coupon you can use at the register.
I am an antiques dealer and pick up lots of things for my own home at garage sales, flea markets, and thrift shops.
That's all I can think of for now!!!