March 18th, 2010
Frugal Living: What Are Your Secrets?
Everybody In- Last Online: Nov 06 2009
Frugal Living: What Are Your Secrets?
In a time when we all need to reexamine our spending habits, what are some of your secrets for frugal living? What have you learned to live without? How do you get something for nothing? Share your tips!
Jackie Carlin
GB Staff- Last Online: Mar 18 2010
Conis- Last Online: Sep 07 2009
It got me thinking: man, we do waste a lot of things these days. That letter has really stuck with me and I've been making a much more concerted effort to not waste food. I buy groceries more often so that produce doesn't go to waste. And when I do make my more frequent trips to the store, I'm riding my bike there! And I really feel like it's already making a difference in my wallet.
Secrets? Or common sense?
This is a throw away society. If something breaks, why fix it or pay to have it fixed when its faster (but not cheaper) to go to Wally and replace it? I am and always have been a DIYer with a modicum of mechanical aptitude and good tools. I throw away nothing unless I am convivinced it is beyond repair. Consider: Anything that has ever been built, can often be repaired because whatever is broken, is often something obvious and "simple". There are things I am not good at working with... In those cases I will barter with someone that is. If something cannot be repaired, I look around for a USED replacement.
Yard sales are often gold mines of good-used household items. I am not too proud to buy a $2 toaster, take it home, clean it up and maybe replace the cord. By best lawnmower is at least 25 years old... and runs like a swiss watch. Keep the oil changed and a small engine will purr for years.
Learn to scout for bargains. Ebay, Craigslist, Free.com. If I need a replacement part for something, those are places I look first. From a source I found on Ebay, I purchased a replacement furnace ignitor for $17 that was $55 locally. A savings of over $30 for 5 minutes of effort. It came in 2 days. I didn't have to drive to town to get one. I installed it myself and saved a $150 service charge for a 10 minute job. One screwdriver required.
So some would call me a scavenger or pack rat? Whatever. A shrewd bargain hunter is a good fit. One mans junk is another mans gold?
The list of things that can be done to conserve energy around the home (lower utility bills) is usually cost effective. It's a long list however implementing some of the changes doesn't require an engineering background. I have cut my electric bills by 65%. I replaced my propane furnace and water heater with a wood pellet stove set up. Another 70% home heating savings.
I am somewhere between retired and "in between jobs". On a fixed income but still a couple years shy of SSI. With that said, I no longer have the luxury of simply throwing dollars at a perpetual cost or just replacing broken things ... or hiring kobs done that I can now take the time to deal with, myself. I have had to adjust my priorities and way of approaching things,
A dollar can be stretched a long way if you consider value over convenience.