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 😂

[AYearOfCushions]

I like your idea @martinsmoneysaver

My water bill is astronomical so I'm going to try reusing water where I can. Maybe not to the extent you do but I'm making some changes.

I've already started collecting the cold water I run while waiting for the water to heat up. I've been using it to water plants, put in the kettle or for cooking, for the steam mop and iron, cats water bowls and some goes in the fridge for drinking water.

I have more water than I need so it's very clear how much we waste.

[Adversity]

When you make mash cut the spuds in to tiny cubes, bring to the boil for a minute then leave the lid on with the power off. Cook themselves after a while.

[martinsmoneysaver]

i wash them in the shower obviously 🤪

t's true and I'm proud that I can save the water and my family the money with the only effort being going up and down the stairs a few times with the mop bucket (which I used to fill in the ath anyway as it doesn't fit in the sink down stairs, neither does the watering can actually for that matter)
I take the dirty water up the the loo to empty too.

Wash dishes by hand, no dish washer and clothes in a machine. I don't know how you can cut down on those?

And the flashing of the toilet isn't every time, only after the shower.

It's saved us the money and the effort is minimal. Of course if you work full time then it would be silly to suggest you do all of those chores before work.
The 1 a month is with credit from the water we haven't used last year. when the credit runs put we should be looking at a £10 bill which is still a quarter of our normal bill.

Wasn't everyone up in arms about the reservoirs being low? We should be saving water where we can anyway and grey water is great for cleaning and Gardens. I bet you could clean the car with bath water.

[NewYorkLassie]

@tillytoodles1

Using works electricity to charge phones or boiling water to take home just to avoid paying for it yourself is stealing. Someone is paying for it, just not you.

The lower the company profits, the lower the staff bonuses, so…

[OnTheBrinkOfChange]

@Adversity

When you make mash cut the spuds in to tiny cubes, bring to the boil for a minute then leave the lid on with the power off. Cook themselves after a while.

I'm not sure whether it was on here but I heard the other day that if you have a pan of pasta and pour boiling water over it and just leave it for 10 minutes then it will cook just the same as if you simmered it.

[martinsmoneysaver]

@AYearOfCushions

I like your idea @martinsmoneysaver

My water bill is astronomical so I'm going to try reusing water where I can. Maybe not to the extent you do but I'm making some changes.

I've already started collecting the cold water I run while waiting for the water to heat up. I've been using it to water plants, put in the kettle or for cooking, for the steam mop and iron, cats water bowls and some goes in the fridge for drinking water.

I have more water than I need so it's very clear how much we waste.

I'm glad, let me know how it goes if you save any money.
Good idea with the saving the water for the kettle and the like. I'll have to do that.

-feeling like a freak there but it's cool. I've always been the eco nut

[Asvan]

My suggestion- do a family secret santa at xmas, so each person only has to buy for 1 adult and/or 1 child. It's much less stressful for everyone this way and you can spend a bit more on a quality gift for the person you need to buy for.

[Discovereads]

Heat just one room, usually living room, spend all waking time there.
Turn off radiators everywhere else.
Sleep at least two to a bed (heat off at night) or get an electric blanket.
Stop using hob and oven- ie Cold tinned soup is cheap and nutritious. If you eat from the tin, only a spoon to wash.
No showers or baths- use kettle to heat water for flannel baths/hair washing
No electric lights at night, candles are cheaper and add warmth to the room
In winter, turn off fridge and store food outside in a cool box
Get a solar charger for phone/pads
Cancel broadband- Use free wifi at library or in hotel lobbies or in churches (wherever is in walking/wheeling distance). Free heat sometimes free food there too.
Don’t use a TV/radio
Talk to co-op manager and find out when they throw out the food that’s on its sell by date, go and beg for a rummage before the food goes in the bin. (If you’re able bodied, you can just dumpster dive).

[CuppaTeaAndSammich]

I know not everyone has this but if you have shower facilities at work you could use them to save on energy bills at home - my brother does this as he lives alone.

• Heating off at night and when out the house.
• Wear thicker clothing indoors to have heating lower.
• Hang washing out to dry as much as weather allows, avoid tumble dryer
• Let hair dry naturally, only blow dry if in a rush
• Any thing that heats up/cools down is costly
• Buy second hand clothes and items, only buy new in a sale
• Find groups on social media or forums of people giving away their unwanted coupons/voucher codes
• Shower, don't bath
• Turn off at the wall, not left on standby
• Batch cook cheap one pot meals that can be frozen to save energy
• Don't leave phones etc charging over night, unplug when full in the day
• Grow your own fruit and veg (if you have a garden)

[martinsmoneysaver]

@OnTheBrinkOfChange

I'm not sure whether it was on here but I heard the other day that if you have a pan of pasta and pour boiling water over it and just leave it for 10 minutes then it will cook just the same as if you simmered it.

My sister always made cous cous, super noodles and things like that in the bowl rather than a pan on the hob. I suppose it's like pot noodles?

[blueshoes]

On the saving water theme, we handwash our dishes (just habit) and hardly use the dishwasher. It is hardest to clean stubborn crusted or oily dishes. I get the worst off using kitchen towels. You don't have to use a lot, just a small square but wipe hard. Then I have a kettle of hot water by my side as I am washing up and pour it on for the first rinse. That gets the worst off. The rest can come off using a small stream of cold water. If I need to use a wire wool, I scrub without having the water on. Only when I am done scrubbing do I rinse off. If it is still residual oil, I use more kitchen towel (small square) to wipe the final bits. Put away.

I must use almost no water when washing up dishes. None of that hot water splashing at high pressure and my washing up is pretty clean.

If you are boiling water say for pasta or hard boiled eggs, before draining the water, make sure the sink is full of your oilest dishes so that the hot water will flush that off. Never let a good hot water go to waste.

[Essie274]

@Luredbyapomegranate

@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?!)

We do similar. We shower in the evening. I go first while DH gets DS (toddler) undressed, then DS joins me in there while I finish up. I jump out and DH jumps in with baby if needed (toddler still showering/playing at his feet), once I'm dry I come back for the baby, then DH washes and gets out with toddler. Works for us on a practical level, but does also save money/water/energy. We don't use the water for anything after, but now I'm thinking we should!

[Penguintears]

@OnTheBrinkOfChange

I'm not sure whether it was on here but I heard the other day that if you have a pan of pasta and pour boiling water over it and just leave it for 10 minutes then it will cook just the same as if you simmered it.

I would love this to be true! Would also cut down on steam/damp in the kitchen. Has anyone tried it?

[StickywithSuncream]

@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.

Would you mind sharing which groups are good for skincare, shampoo etc, please?

[NeverDropYourMooncup]

@mumda

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

In our case, up to a fiver a week and free to get there because we walk. Free aircon all summer, heating in winter, hot water and the longer term advantages of being healthier and happier.


It's cheaper than the cost of doing the GP 'free' referral membership to the local authority/private company gym for one person, as they still charge for activities and travel costs to get there - Saves on prescription charges as well as DP hasn't needed any betablockers since starting and I haven't had to pay to take time off work and travel for physio sessions for autoimmune and connective tissue diseases, either.

[Penguintears]

@blueshoes

On the saving water theme, we handwash our dishes (just habit) and hardly use the dishwasher. It is hardest to clean stubborn crusted or oily dishes. I get the worst off using kitchen towels. You don't have to use a lot, just a small square but wipe hard. Then I have a kettle of hot water by my side as I am washing up and pour it on for the first rinse. That gets the worst off. The rest can come off using a small stream of cold water. If I need to use a wire wool, I scrub without having the water on. Only when I am done scrubbing do I rinse off. If it is still residual oil, I use more kitchen towel (small square) to wipe the final bits. Put away.

I must use almost no water when washing up dishes. None of that hot water splashing at high pressure and my washing up is pretty clean.

If you are boiling water say for pasta or hard boiled eggs, before draining the water, make sure the sink is full of your oilest dishes so that the hot water will flush that off. Never let a good hot water go to waste.

Do you not use soap when washing up? Just water?

[blueshoes]

Still on hot water, I keep the dregs of shampoo, shower gels etc near the kitchen sink. Otherwise they litter the bathroom as the dcs would have moved on to a full bottle and abandoned the almost empty bottle. When I have some spare hot water (e.g. excess water left over after a boil), I put it into the bottle, shake it and use the bubbly liquid to clean the sink with a brush. Takes less than a minute. I get a sparkling sink and a clean shampoo bottle which I recycle.

This must only save me pennies but it feels good.

[NeverDropYourMooncup]

@Penguintears

I would love this to be true! Would also cut down on steam/damp in the kitchen. Has anyone tried it?

Yup. Boil the kettle, put water in pan and bring back to rolling boil. Add pasta, stir, bring back to boil, put lid on, turn off and return ten minutes later.

Perfect pasta.

[blueshoes]

@Penguintears

Do you not use soap when washing up? Just water?

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I use a little fairy liquid as well.

[Discovereads]

@blueshoes

Still on hot water, I keep the dregs of shampoo, shower gels etc near the kitchen sink. Otherwise they litter the bathroom as the dcs would have moved on to a full bottle and abandoned the almost empty bottle. When I have some spare hot water (e.g. excess water left over after a boil), I put it into the bottle, shake it and use the bubbly liquid to clean the sink with a brush. Takes less than a minute. I get a sparkling sink and a clean shampoo bottle which I recycle.

This must only save me pennies but it feels good.

I always put old shampoo bottle opened and upside down on new bottle opened and let the dregs drain into the new bottle? Bar soap is also cheaper than body wash.

I also cut off the top of my toothpaste as even when you can’t squeeze anymore out, you can cut it open and usually have another weeks worth of toothpaste.

[Essie274]

@OnTheBrinkOfChange

But what about your TV?

We do this too. We don't have a TV - just use streaming services/youtube on our laptop/ipad if we want to watch something. We didn't get rid of the TV because of this - we got rid of it to help reduce our screen time anyway - but this helped.

[Womencanlift]

I will definitely be going into the office to work more over the winter as my travel costs are low so will be cheaper than being at home (heating and electricity for laptop). If I wanted to go that extra step I could shower at work too as they have them available for people cycling in but anyone can use them

But when I am working from home I now no longer have the power in from first thing in the morning. I leave it unplugged until the battery is low and then plug it in. I can usually get to about 2.30 in the afternoon before I need to charge it and then it’s fully charged by 5. Previously I would have it plugged into charge from 9am

[blueshoes]

I always put old shampoo bottle opened and upside down on new bottle opened and let the dregs drain into the new bottle? Bar soap is also cheaper than body wash.

I do that with fairy liquid because the mouth of the bottles are the exact same size and fairy liquid is runny. Even after you have drained the old bottle, you can still do the hot water trick and get extra final bubbles out of it.

[echt]

I don't know if this is the case everywhere, but contactless costs 0.5% of at Aldi (Australia). It registers as a credit card. I saw a warning about this at a currency exchange in Melbourne, so guess it is general.

Always insert the card and use your pin.

Apologies if this is so elementary.