Anyone else want to scream 😱 about prices

[Cupcakeicecream]

Anyone else feel like screaming 😱. The smart meter is now the enemy. I'm constantly topping up the meter. Yes it's prepayment they won't change it I've tried and tried. The budget just keeps getting tighter. It's hard to find cheap food no offers things constantly out of stock. You need a bank loan for just to buy toliet roll 🙄 I don't have the heating on constantly I try to just heat one room with a heater. Radiators are barely on an hour here and there to keep away damp. Dryer needs to be used in in emergency since the house is colder so clothes aren't drying properly. I use an airer and it's constantly raining and windy to use the washing line. Food budget is through the roof food is smaller and more expensive and always out of stock honestly what a joke.

@VikingLady Thank goodness for MN laundry gloop recipe! That's a huge saving!

Ooh can you tell me more?

@buckeejit Is that Seagoe MP?
Great user name!

You can shop around using trolley.co.uk to compare prices.

You can also go to shop A one week and shop B (providing it is also reasonably close by) the next and buy 2 weeks' worth at a time, or shop online and rotate round.

There's lots you can do without needing to drive here there and everywhere and even if you do drive a little further, the savings can often be worth it, eg if you're able to get to Aldi or Lidl instead of Tesco or Waitrose. You can easily save £10/20 a week, whereas driving an extra 10 miles, which is loads further than most people would need to go, would cost a couple of pounds at most unless you have a ridiculously thirsty car, in which case, you might want to look at changing that instead

@BooneyBeautiful i noticed that today I usually always buy it but just bought a normal one now , but all asda essentials out of stock

You are not being unreasonable. Since August M&S muffins have gone up from £1.05 to 1.20 to 1.35 and most recently £1.60. I always ask for my receipt now just So I can marvel at it. Food shop is still cheaper than Ireland though and that’s what keeps me zen.

It's travel prices for me. My elderly parents live in different part of UK and ferries are now nearly £400 for a return trip. We had to not go this half term.as we.couldnt afford the ferry or flights.

I'm 68 and what I just can't afford is the dental hygienist. It's £90.00 ! I may use my winter fuel payment to cover it. I can't have rotten teeth. But all of this is insane now.

Alot of squash here is quadruple strength and I can't judge how much to put in. Environmentally better I know but not easy to get used to.

Is it really? How come, is the idea that you can fit more servings in the bottle?

Since having a smart meter put in, I can now see what is costing the most to use. We have an electric shower and that is the most expensive thing, I always thought showers were cheaper and had been encouraging my teenage sons to shower instead of having a bath. So something to bear in mind if people have electric showers. I'm using the device to monitor my usage each day, and we have had the heating on for a few hours at night and have managed to not go over £5 a day. I'm hoping if I do this throughout winter I will get through it.

£5 a day is expensive obviously but works out at £150 a month, I was terrified it would be £200 or even £300 a month in winter.

Also I shop with Amazon Fresh and the prices on there are quite stable, maybe as they have less overheads. I can get 9 toilet rolls for 3.50 and the price hasn't changed. Really nice salmon fillets for less than £4. Fresh minced beef for about £2.50. The meat is good quality I have found. Also I have Amazon prime subscription and so delivery is free if you spend over £40.

Tesco own brand of beans and sausages are 39p ! They have really good cheap stuff in Tesco, much more so than Sains who claim to be price matching Aldi - bt only on things that were 1p cheaper anyway!!

I can remember when having your teeth cleaned was part of the band 1 treatment..
Infact it still states "scale and polish if clinically needed", but never have I had them done in the last 10+ years since my original dentist sold his practice within that price band, always been passed on to the hygienist.
I've just had my check up and was told again I needed the hygienist, made the appointment and was told they weren't really in need.
Less than 15 minutes and £67 down.

I'd have thought if it was clinically needed it would be done by the dentist during your check up.

we stick with certain brands for soap powder, ( cant use cheap soap powder it effects our skin makes us itch like buggery)bread, ok slightly dearer everything else aldi and put washer on at night its cheaper buy only what you need meal prep cut down or out take aways. That said if you work hard you deserve a treat now and again

Re baked beans, the most expensive ingredient isn't actually the beans, it's the sauce. If you try the cheaper brands and don't like the taste then usually it's the sauce that's too watery or not tomato-ey enough. A dollop of ketchup or tomato purée added does improve the taste but obviously that's also jumped up in price...

I've never been to a hygienist and I don't have rotten teeth. I always assumed this was mainly a cosmetic service.

The only two branded things I buy are Marmite (own brand is unpleasant) and Dowe Egberts coffee. I don't drink coffee at all, so I buy what I am told is a good brand, for guests.

What can I replace that with?

Re heating, mine's not on yet, but looking back at my historic use, and working on today's prices, I should be able to heat as I have done in the past (19deg, two to three hours a day) for about £2.50 a day on top of my current bill which is c£3 per day total.

I am on a fix from April so have not had the October price rise.

I've also bought a small air heater which cost about £15 and can heat a room and costs about 10p an hour to run, so when I'm working I have that on a couple of hours currently while there's no heating, it doesn't seem to be pushing my bills up very much.

No it is not a cosmetic procedure - it is a part of dental healthcare to have plaque etc removed.It may be essential for gum health depending on your teeth. eg I have quite a lot of crowns.

I pay 23 pounds a month on a dental plan and get 2 check ups and 3 hygienist visits for that plus insurance on teeth. Works out better for me than paying them individually. This is private.

Sho on central heating is cheaper than electric ones Electric are around 3k do it’s bask a small oven

No, not at all. I have no fillings but the dentist recommends a trip to the hygienist every year to help me stay that way.

I don't have rotten teeth either...
And I'd hope it isn't a cosmetic service which is something I personally wouldn't spend my money on and I'm assuming I'd have to request to be sent to.
It's not a teeth whitening thing just pretty much what my old dentist used to do as a regular check up.
All my dentist seems to do now is count my teeth, proding them with a dentist tool as they go then send me on my way suggesting a hygienist visit is necessary.

Have you tried an electric toothbrush? It helps to keep teeth cleaner, I haven't had the treatment since before covid, it was something the dentist used to include as part of the check up, then I couldn't get appointment during lockdowns/backlog. It's been ok at check up without it and I haven't got round to booking the hygienist appointment yet. Flossing is very important too.

Better than floss are those little brushes to go between your teeth. They can make your gums bleed a bit at first if you're not used to them but they're very good.

I have a weekly food budget (£50 for two) and so far have managed to cope well on it, sometimes coming at £10 under and I've managed to buy a bottle of wine out of it. DH mentioned the other day, he hasn't had a dessert for months (except yogurts) so I've just bought his favourite (lemon meringue pie) which has taken me over budget, half feeling guilty about it now. We've had the heating on the last couple of mornings and DH said the house felt cold when he came in last night, but we didn't put it on - will work out in a couple of weeks how much heating is costing on this basis.

Despite the above, I know we're lucky, we do have three meals a day, I've had three hot drinks and a couple of biscuits today, and we can have the heating on.

My elderly DM keeps telling me she'll cope better than others as she grew up without any heating, her siblings only had a bath once a week sharing bath water and she was literally brought up on bread and jam. Her joints hurt is she gets too cold, so she keeps heating on day and night at 17c, but she's only had it on three times for 20 mins. Luckily she's devised her own mini fitness programme, a bit of dancing, gently moving arms around, trying to lift knees and she does this a few times in the day in winter, so hopefully it'll help with circulation.

M&S butter now £2.00🤔