Cost cutting during collapse . . .

[Michelle]

We all know how, but sometimes as home-managers we miss something.
What's your favorite cost saving measure?

I like to turn the heat off and my propane heater to vacation setting when I'm
not home (as long as the temps are in the 50's-60's during the day).

I run super-sized loads in the washer, then hang up half to dry and throw the
rest in the dryer.

I like to recycle. My folks gave me an old roofed litter box. I cleaned it up, lined
it with an old robe and it's now a dog house for Buddy, the dawg o' doom   TM.
Boxes from Aldi's currently serve as toy boxes/garages/building blocks etc.
The lads are a bit rough on toys so I recycle lots of odd stuff for their
perusal: cakes tins, yogurt cups, egg cartons, my kids' old toys, etc.

I recently checked car insurance for additional savings . . . none, and satellite tv . . . $15/month.

[mtlouie]

Honestly, and this sounds crazy (maybe even smaralec-y, but I don't mean it to be) the best cost-cutting measure I've found is to just not spend money.

It's amazing how much gets frittered away on this, that, and the other thing.  When I decided to STOP SPENDING it was unbelievable.

I don't buy books, make-up, dye my hair (cut it myself,) candy bars, a quick drive-thru for a soda, the odd shirt or skirt at the thrift store, et al.

It's amazing how much we spend when we think, "Oh, it's only $2.00."   Or $5 or $7.   

That's my cost-cutting tip.

[Chesyre]

cook from scratch
reduce/reuse/recycle
temp 65 ish
never turn on the AC
wash and line dry everything weather permitting
use the dishwasher /fuck it
power strips on everything
shut off the fridge at night
drive less than 5000 miles year between two cars
1000 square foot apartment for four people
container garden during growing season IE if i can't grow it, we don't need it . i still pick up odds and ends because ,fuck it tropical fruits in colorado ain't going to be availble forever.


still according to some of those carbon footprint calculators , would take between 2 and 4 earths for everyone to live like this . depending on the calculator

yes i have dogs and they are not going away , i dont care how many useless eaters starve to death because of my dogs either

solution ? die off to a sustainable level for everyone to live like this  sounds good to me

[Max und Moritz]

LOL, what is a "saving measure" in some places is the rule here - nobody has A/C in their home or a clothes dryer, most don´t have a dishwasher or toaster or coffee-maker or microwave oven or a grinder - we have the manual kind because they´re cheapest and because they last forever (try breaking an iron corn grinder!). For distances of 10 miles and under, everyone uses a bycicle or rollskates. Everybody pulls the connectors out of the power plugs at night and only uses a lamp in the room where they´re working at that moment. Water is expensive so we all collect rainwater for washing and watering, and put a brick in every toilet cistern. We dry fruit slices the granny way - inside plastic-topped boxes out in the sun, or just hanging from the rafters.

Many people here heat their homes with traditional ceramic tile ovens, and most of those are built with an iron oven and cooking plate in it, so when you´re heating anyway you just put your casserole or bread tray on the plate or in the oven, voilà!

Oh, and as everybody cans their garden greens, a pressure cooker is indispensable!

[Sammi]

For mid-week milk runs, don't take the car. Not only do you save on the gas, but when you realize that you have to drag it all home, it curbs the impulsive spending.

[Michelle]

Honestly, and this sounds crazy (maybe even smaralec-y, but I don't mean it to be) the best cost-cutting measure I've found is to just not spend money.

It's amazing how much gets frittered away on this, that, and the other thing.  When I decided to STOP SPENDING it was unbelievable.

I don't buy books, make-up, dye my hair (cut it myself,) candy bars, a quick drive-thru for a soda, the odd shirt or skirt at the thrift store, et al.

It's amazing how much we spend when we think, "Oh, it's only $2.00."   Or $5 or $7.   

That's my cost-cutting tip.

That reminds me of another favorite, take water/coffee/snacks with me from home. Then, i don't spend out.

[MEA]

Honestly, I think not using coupons is a great way to save money. After 30 something years of shopping, I think I've only found 4 or 5 that were for something I used and couldn't find cheaper.

[risenshine]

cook from scratch
reduce/reuse/recycle
never turn on the AC
wash and line dry everything weather permitting
use the dishwasher /fuck it
power strips on everything
shut off the fridge at night
drive less than 5000 miles year between two cars
1000 square foot apartment for four people
container garden during growing season IE if i can't grow it, we don't need it . i still pick up odds and ends because ,fuck it tropical fruits in colorado ain't going to be availble forever.


still according to some of those carbon footprint calculators , would take between 2 and 4 earths for everyone to live like this . depending on the calculator

yes i have dogs and they are not going away , i dont care how many useless eaters starve to death because of my dogs either

solution ? die off to a sustainable level for everyone to live like this  sounds good to me

Chesyre do you have milk in that frig?  I have never heard of turning the frig off at night.  Good idea if it works

[Chesyre]

cook from scratch
reduce/reuse/recycle
never turn on the AC
wash and line dry everything weather permitting
use the dishwasher /fuck it
power strips on everything
shut off the fridge at night
drive less than 5000 miles year between two cars
1000 square foot apartment for four people
container garden during growing season IE if i can't grow it, we don't need it . i still pick up odds and ends because ,fuck it tropical fruits in colorado ain't going to be availble forever.


still according to some of those carbon footprint calculators , would take between 2 and 4 earths for everyone to live like this . depending on the calculator

yes i have dogs and they are not going away , i dont care how many useless eaters starve to death because of my dogs either

solution ? die off to a sustainable level for everyone to live like this  sounds good to me

Chesyre do you have milk in that frig?  I have never heard of turning the frig off at night.  Good idea if it works

a frig will stay cold for a long time if you dont open and close it on the hour every hour

[ashmeadskernel]

Well, we cut costs by buying a new fridge.  Turns out the old clunker wasn't all that energy efficient, whereas the new one, well, saved quite a bit on the energy bills...

The other way to cut costs is to identify those things which should be purchased new and of good quality instead of cheap and replaced much more often.  And don't put off the maintanence on things which need time and energy to be maintained.

But... then there are all of those other things, that should be gotten for free instead of paying $100 for.  Google "gleaning".  Or do it yourself home maintenance.

And, there are the things that you just plain can do without, like your $4 a day coffee.

In the end, it's about identifying needs versus wants, and prioritizing.

[Megadoom]

I thought for a moment this thread was about the new recommendation that women over 40 don't need a annual mammogram. 

[golddust]

I just make a budget every month, put the money aside I need and what's left over is savings. If I want to spend money on paint or decoration for the house and extra stuff that's fine, but it goes in the budget. Everything goes in. If I need savings for anything, something went wrong. I'm also realistic. If I go crazy on being super strict, I'll just overspend later because I feel deprived. It's the same rule with dieting. If I want a bite of chocolate, just eat it. Or next week your friends will be digging you out from under a pile of Hershey's wrappers. And that's arguably worse.

It's a big psychological game for me and budgeting wasn't ever a strength of mine. It is not for either of us so we have to work three times as hard as most people do.

We implement a 24 hour rule on bigger purchases not budgeted for. And most of the time, we don't want it anymore.

I buy used books and get my clothes on deep discount from outlet stores and discount racks. I order the free catalog for my favorite places because they send coupons every month. I buy lots of stuff at Costco. I usually spend $300 but I get 8 months worth of dishwasher detergent, etc. My discount and bargain shopping is such a habit, I don't even think about it anymore.

That said, I still screw up even if just a little every month.

[swampman]

Most of our cost saving comes in the form of just not spending.  We bake our own bread, can our own food and generally try to do without.

Ditto to line drying the clothes, saves a bundle

Can't save much in the way of electricity since I run a internet business out of my home and I have to leave the computer's running 24/7.

Replaced all lights with florescent and will replace those with LEDs once the price comes down.

No drive-through for sodas.  In fact we don't drink soda and don't have it in the house.

Heat our house with a wood stove and have to open the windows because it gets so hot. (78 inside last night).

I am looking into putting a timer on the hot water heater so that it is off at 10:00pm and turns on again at 6:00am in time for our showers.

[Capella]

Buy local organic, if you have the chance. I know you will find the prices way to high in the beginning, but actually, if you manage to really shop for your food exclusively in an organic food store and/or on a farmers market, you will find that you start saving in the long run. The reasons are simple:

- you buy more fresh food you have to cook yourself and less processed food, you will also find that you don't need all those little crutches and helpers like sauce powder, ready-mixes etc. if you use fresh tasty veggies, milk products and (occasionally) meat. The cooking skills you acquire that way will also be the ones you need for a post-peak world anyway.
- you buy only what you need and plan to eat in the next few days. I know this is counter the whole preparedness idea of keeping a stuffed larder at all times, but it really helps you to get an overview of how much you actually need for a certain amount of time. Less leftovers, less food going to waste
- you will start to see chocolate, coffee, candy, softdrinks and other goodies as real treats again and not as part of your neccessary everyday diet
- but the most important point is: you won't see all the super saving offers, buy one get one free and what not in the supermarkets and will not be seduced into buying more than you wanted.

Buy only what is in season where you live. If that means mostly spinach for a month, then mostly spinach it is. A healthy diet does not neccessarily have to include five different exotic fruits every day (and yes, unless you live in Latin America or Africa, bananas still count as exotic fruits ...)
Whenever you go out to buy something, write a shopping list beforehand and only buy what is on that list.
Throw all advertisment leaflets, newspaper ads etc. out without looking at them.
Do you still own a TV? Get rid of it. You can watch most of the stuff that interests you legally online by now. Not having the TV running will seriously protect you from commercials. And even if you think you are not influenced by them, I promise you, you are.

Oh, and drink water from the tab, unless you have profound reason to believe it is unsafe in the area where you live. Actually, most bottled water is just relabled tab-water anyway.

[Michelle]

Letting folks know you'd love to be the recipient of their old/about to
be discarded stuff can help the budget.