To ask for your most ingenious money saving tips

[Toothiehurtie]

my Best one is…

a visit to the card factory for cheap cards and gift bags and then picking up presents from car boot sales or charity shops. I have got some brilliant kids party presents for 50p so with the card and a cheap gift bag I have brought the cost of a present in for a pound before.

looking for any tips at all, obviously you can buy porridge oats in bulk cheaper than buying expensive kids cereal etc but anything clever or that people might not have thought of before.

don’t know how bad the fuel crisis will be but considering charging battery packs to charge phones at work and taking a thermos of boiled water home 😂

[BrutusMcDogface]

@Mushroomlady

I've found a way to get completely free internet and phone bill. Instead of buying broadband I just hotspot from my mobile. 100GB is enough for me to do everything I need, including copious Zoom calls. This costs £10 per month. Then use 'Airtime Rewards' and claim money back from my
train commute (and other purchases). This covers my mobile bill, and therefore all my internet.

Which network are you with please, @Mushroomlady ?

[Meklk]

Join all available groups, sites for freebies. If you will spend few minutes a day, you'll get a lot. For example - this month I received lots of perfume samples, shampoo and lipstick. So you don't need to buy. My skin or hairs are not sensitive, so for me it's a life changing. You just need a time for that.

[LetsGoNorth]

My brother has worked out that 10 minute shower will cost £2.50 on the new rates

No way can this be true if its hot water from a gas boiler, unless the boiler is seriously fucked. £2.50 from Octs raise in rates is the equivalent of it costing £1.39 now.

The past two months, our gas usage has been £25 a month - hot water only. I'm pretty certain that every shower in this house lasts 10 minutes. IF a shower was costing us £1.39 a go, that's not even 18 showers a month in total - we're a family of 5! Albeit we have three water dodging dc but we certainly have a lot more than 18 showers collectively in a month!

[pleasehelpwi3]

If you're returning something to a shop that you've paid for on a cash back credit card, tap your debit card for the refund if the shop assistant isn't paying attention. You get 1% of whatever you're returning for free, and a mini interest free cash advance! And it's sadly very satisfying

[mumda]

How much is a gym membership and how much does getting there cost?

[martinsmoneysaver]

@Newrumpus

Storing the water in the bath would cause damp in the bathroom wouldn’t it?

Well no because you use what you need and take the plug out what's left. So sweep the floor before and then fill the mop bucket, wash the toilet and water the garden garden take the plug out.
There's not much left after anyway.

this thread is for money saving tips people haven't thought of remember

[Scottishskifun]

Vinted! I've stopped buying clothes or items new other than pants!
Eating veggie twice a week minimum
Petrolprices.com for filling up the car
Working dog dry food no vat (helps our dog is a breed which needs a high protein/energy diet)
Takeaway in a Tues if qe get one generally there is a deal

[Redburnett]

I hate waiting in queues so when waiting to pay I often look at the item I was going to buy and decide it isn't needed enough to be worth the wait. Off I go leaving item behind, saving whatever it would have cost.

[coodawoodashooda]

@Meklk

Join all available groups, sites for freebies. If you will spend few minutes a day, you'll get a lot. For example - this month I received lots of perfume samples, shampoo and lipstick. So you don't need to buy. My skin or hairs are not sensitive, so for me it's a life changing. You just need a time for that.

What groups or sights please?

[Mybestyear]

@hangrylady

Who pissed on your chips 🙄

Well that’s one way of saving money on vinegar 🤣🤣🤣

[Justine878]

My work has already sent out emails about energy use (with a side note on personal use). A lot of works are going to be cutting back on electricity.

Best moneysaving tip.

Honestly, I saved money when I ditched points cards (and I do a spreadsheet for expenditure every month - I know I am a nerd!).

I know it might not make sense to some but I was going to boots/h&b/sainsburys etc because of vouchers/points, when I started just going to the cheaper stores then I started saving money. It's less stressful as well.

I can't shop in tesco now though! 😁

Might not work for some!

[HintofVintagePink]

Cut dishwasher tablets in half
Lower your standards a little and wash clothes less frequently and vacuum less often
Shower at the gym
Get smart sockets so all standby devices switch off at a certain hour
Charge power packs at work
Shop for cheaper phone deals. DH and I currently paying 1p a month on Lebara (not a typo!)
Use Quidco
Regift
Don’t send Christmas cards
Pay yourself first, by setting up a standard order for a set amount to save each month.
Stop shopping to keep up appearances. Children do not need that many clothes or shoes
Set up a Giveaway Group on WhatsApp with friends
Agree not to purchase gifts for adult family members

[pawkins]

@martinsmoneysaver

We managed to get put water bill down to a mere £1.00 a month by
▪︎cutting baths out
▪︎very quick showers, whole family jumps in and out with eachother (2 adults plus 4 kids)
▪︎keep the plug in the bath to save shower water to mop floors, water garden, even flush toilet and when I get round to it, clean the bathroom.
I don't need fresh water to wash my toilet.

Visually it helps to see just how much water things use. It cam be a pain carrying the water in the watering can outside at first but its saving me my whole water bill. (it's so low because we were in so much credit. I'm expecting a £10 another bill next year down from 40)

This came for us just as prices were increasing, the original reason was an ethical one. I hated the idea of wasting water, but I didn't think we would get our usage down so low we would have a year of virtually no bills for minimal effort really.
I only mop once a week, so it's not that big of a task.

I know it seems overkill but its easy enough and the benefits outweigh the minor chores.
Plus I can easily carry 10 litres of water with one arm now so double win!

This sounds nuts to put it bluntly.

Tag each other every time you shower. Pouring cups of water down the toilet instead of using the flush button. Traipsing up and down the stairs filling a watering can from the bath.

It reminds me of someone I know who used drive ten miles to buy one item in a shop because it was one pound less than in her local shop.

[Luredbyapomegranate]

@martinsmoneysaver

Don't you tag team showers with kids? pretty normal.
Same as sharing a bath, one in one out?

@martinsmoneysaver

I don’t understand how this works? Why is is cheaper to tag team? (I presume you aren’t all under it at once?!)

[martinsmoneysaver]

Ah I see.
Well I'm a sahm so I can shower and mop and water the garden whenever I choose. Lucky me I suppose.

[Discovereads]

@LetsGoNorth

My brother has worked out that 10 minute shower will cost £2.50 on the new rates

No way can this be true if its hot water from a gas boiler, unless the boiler is seriously fucked. £2.50 from Octs raise in rates is the equivalent of it costing £1.39 now.

The past two months, our gas usage has been £25 a month - hot water only. I'm pretty certain that every shower in this house lasts 10 minutes. IF a shower was costing us £1.39 a go, that's not even 18 showers a month in total - we're a family of 5! Albeit we have three water dodging dc but we certainly have a lot more than 18 showers collectively in a month!

Agree, only possible if an electric shower, those things use tons of energy!

[SausagePourHomme]

Check your bank account for things that shouldn't be there..old insurances, incorrect charges. Get rid of unnecessary subscriptions. Be brutal Check receipts in shops and restaurants to make sure they are accurate. I reckon i find a mistake about 10% of the time. Don't wash trousers jeans and skirts after every wear. Packed lunches, don't buy drinks out if you can help it.

Don't buy books or audiobooks, libraries are amazing.

[Ladyof2022]

If you don't use much milk in a week you can save money by doing what I do: buy a 6 pint flask of milk and decant it into 500ml bottles and freeze them.

This of course depends on you having a steady supply of 500ml bottles, which I have because I like drinking fizzy water and diet colas.

[minipie]

Agree not to purchase gifts for adult family members

Came on to say this. Now is a good time to raise this suggestion, before most people have started their Christmas shopping.

We haven’t done adult gifts for years in my family and it saves so much in time and wasted stuff, as well as money.

[Butterflytown]

I started doing this, we have 2 tv’s, sky boxes and consoles. The only thing which stays on now is the sky box so it can record. On current prices (I’m on standard rate, no fix) it saves me almost a pound a day according to my smart meter, do £360 ish a year. Which will be more like £2 a day when unit prices for electricity go up to 50p pkwh in October. I don’t turn off anything else at the plug except chargers when not in use- I leave washing machine, microwave, dishwasher etc on, think tv’s/ consoles are the main culprits and it’s only 2 switches to turn off as everything is on one extension lead. A lot of the tips save pennies though, which is a drop in the ocean when it’s going to be £5.60 an hour to have the heating this winter based on an average sized 28kwh boiler…😞

[blueshoes]

Seeing that the mortgage is often one of the biggest expenses, be on top of remortgaging once the discount period ends. Make sure you enter the date into your calendar and give youself at least 4 months lead time to do the paperwork. Do not go over by even one month as that can costs hundreds of pounds in itself.

[OnTheBrinkOfChange]

@Mushroomlady

I've found a way to get completely free internet and phone bill. Instead of buying broadband I just hotspot from my mobile. 100GB is enough for me to do everything I need, including copious Zoom calls. This costs £10 per month. Then use 'Airtime Rewards' and claim money back from my
train commute (and other purchases). This covers my mobile bill, and therefore all my internet.

But what about your TV?

[blueshoes]

I only give Christmas presents to children. Saves me the trouble and expense of buying for adults.