Save Money
Content
One of my favorite ways to trim money from my spending is to find simple little substitutes for my regular expenses. If I can trim a few bucks from the cost of household supplies, routine purchases, and other things like that, over the long run, that can add up to a lot of money with virtually no change in my life. Her e are twelve of my favorites (not including my infamous homemade laundry detergent ). Laundry Softener -> Vinegar Instead of buying expensive laundry detergent, just use half a cup of white vine gar to the softener cup in your washing machine. It accomplishes the same effect a s softener it makes your clothes really soft plus it breaks down the laundry det ergent, making the clothes much better for people with sensitive skin or allergi es. What about the smell? Once the clothes are dried, you smell nothing at all. You can buy four gallons of vinegar for $6, meaning the cost per load is about $ 0.05, while a load s worth of Downy costs about $0.15. You save a dime per load an d your clothes are less chemical laden. Ziplocs -> Reusable Containers Ziplocs especially the small ones usually wind up in the trash after one use. On the other hand, a reusable container can last for years. Since a typical Ziploc costs about $0.10 and you can get a reusable Rubbermaid container for about $1. 00, you break even on the container after about twelve uses or so (the cost of w ashing the container in the dishwasher is estimated there) and everything therea fter is pure savings. Dishwashing Detergent -> Simple Homebrew Instead of using liquid or powder dishwashing detergent (and paying a stiff prem ium for it), just take an old milk jug, put two teaspoons of liquid dish deterge nt and four teaspoons of baking powder in it, then slowly fill the jug with warm water, sloshing it while you do it (even better, just slowly add the soap as yo u re adding the water). Then put that jug under the sink. Each time you do a load, fill up the cup with the homebrew. It works like a charm. The jug will provide enough for eight to ten loads of dishes for about a penny each, compared to abou t thirteen cents per load for ordinary detergent. Knife Set -> Chef s Knife You re just getting started in the kitchen and you think it s time to get yourself a big ol knife set. Don t. Unless you re doing crazy things in the kitchen, all day ev ery day, you really only need one knife a chef s knife. Head down to your local re tailer and check them out. One good chef s knife will make kitchen work easier tha n an entire block s worth of other knives. It s really all you need I can t even remem ber the last time I used a knife besides that one. Just learn how to properly ho ne it and sharpen it (both are easy check out this YouTube video). Windex -> Vinegar Seriously. Just use vinegar instead of Windex when you clean your windows. It cl eans off almost anything on a window and doesn t streak and, more importantly, doe sn t leave a film behind as Windex often does. Just put some vinegar in a spray bo ttle maybe that Windex one that you didn t buy a replacement for and just wash win dows as normal. You ll be quite happy with the results and you ll save about a penny per squirt. Paper Towels -> Reusable Cotton Cloths Cotton cloths work better, absorb more, and you can get a five pound (!) box for about the same price as a jumbo pack of paper towels. But what about the WASHIN G? It s easy just keep a ton of them in a drawer in the kitchen and use them for s pills and filtering and other purposes until they re dirty, then just toss them in to any load of socks or underwear or towels. Even a big handful take up barely a ny room at all and before you know it, you ve refilled your supply. Better yet, yo u re not buying any more paper towels and you re reducing your garbage.
Drain Cleaner -> Baking Soda and Vinegar Remember those nifty volcanoes that kids tend to make for science fair projects in grade school? The basic mixture that made them bubble up was baking soda and vinegar it expands nicely and pushes itself into everything. Perfect for clearin g a clogged drain, no? Just put in a quarter cup of baking soda, chase it with h alf a cup of vinegar, then cover the drain and wait fifteen minutes. Once that s d one, chase it with a gallon or so of boiling water. This will clean almost any d rain and save you from blowing unnecessary amounts of money on a big bottle of D rano. This also works as a toilet bowl cleaner it ll foam up like crazy at first, but after fifteen minutes, you ll be able to scrub your toilet with a brush with e ase. Television -> Old Computer If you need a new television somewhere, why not just use an old computer instead ? A computer that s five years old with a net connection can easily be a substitute for a television. You can watch tons of programs full screen on Hulu and many c hannels offer a full screen stream, too, plus it s simple to watch DVDs on a compu ter as well. Even better, you can stow the box somewhere out of the way (in a ca binet, perhaps) and just leave the monitor somewhere easy to access. This can be a great solution in a kitchen, where you can watch television on it or use it t o call up YouTube videos to tutor you through a meal prep plus you don t have the cost of buying anything to get it working. Oven Cleaner -> Ammonia If you cook at home, you ll eventually have to clean your oven and it can be a nas ty job. There are lots of products out there that claim to be able to make this process easy, but the easiest way I ve found is far cheaper and far easier. Just p ut a cup of ammonia in a glass bowl in the evening, put that bowl in your oven, and close the door. Let it sit overnight. The next morning, get rid of the ammon ia and you ll find scrubbing down the inside of your oven is suddenly quite easy. The burnt-on drippings from spilled dishes will come right up with no problems. Plus, a jug of ammonia is far cheaper than some spray-on solution. Soft Scrub -> Baking Soda and Dish Soap Soft Scrub does a great job of cleaning up serious stains all around the house, but you don t need to drop four bucks on a small bottle of it. Just put half a cup of baking soda (cost: about a quarter) and then add a little bit of liquid dish soap and stir. Add a bit more liquid soap and keep stirring until you have a pa ste that s about the consistency of frosting and you re ready to go. It costs about forty cents to make more than enough to clean anything you want to clean far che aper than Soft Scrub and with the same results. Air Freshener -> Baking Soda I actually don t like most air fresheners they usually make a room smell like chem istry. Fortunately, there s a much easier solution just put out a saucer with some baking soda sprinkled in it near where the odor is and it ll go away. Got a baby diaper pail? Just put some baking soda in it. Baking soda just eats odors. Carpet Cleaner -> Baking Soda and Peroxide (or Club Soda) Got a nasty spot on your carpet? (I could tell you a horrible story about a bloo d stain on a couch, but I ll spare you the details.) You don t need carpet cleaner t o get rid of it. Just dump a few spoonfuls of baking soda on it, rub it in, then put some hydrogen peroxide (a capful) or club soda (as much as you want) on the soda and rub it in as it bubbles. This gets rid of almost any carpet or upholst ery stain you ll face it literally saved some microfiber for us that seemed to hav e a permanent stain on it. Plus, it s cheap baking soda is really inexpensive and even club soda is something inexpensive you might have in the cupboard.
Drain Cleaner -> Baking Soda and Vinegar Remember those nifty volcanoes that kids tend to make for science fair projects in grade school? The basic mixture that made them bubble up was baking soda and vinegar it expands nicely and pushes itself into everything. Perfect for clearin g a clogged drain, no? Just put in a quarter cup of baking soda, chase it with h alf a cup of vinegar, then cover the drain and wait fifteen minutes. Once that s d one, chase it with a gallon or so of boiling water. This will clean almost any d rain and save you from blowing unnecessary amounts of money on a big bottle of D rano. This also works as a toilet bowl cleaner it ll foam up like crazy at first, but after fifteen minutes, you ll be able to scrub your toilet with a brush with e ase. Television -> Old Computer If you need a new television somewhere, why not just use an old computer instead ? A computer that s five years old with a net connection can easily be a substitute for a television. You can watch tons of programs full screen on Hulu and many c hannels offer a full screen stream, too, plus it s simple to watch DVDs on a compu ter as well. Even better, you can stow the box somewhere out of the way (in a ca binet, perhaps) and just leave the monitor somewhere easy to access. This can be a great solution in a kitchen, where you can watch television on it or use it t o call up YouTube videos to tutor you through a meal prep plus you don t have the cost of buying anything to get it working. Oven Cleaner -> Ammonia If you cook at home, you ll eventually have to clean your oven and it can be a nas ty job. There are lots of products out there that claim to be able to make this process easy, but the easiest way I ve found is far cheaper and far easier. Just p ut a cup of ammonia in a glass bowl in the evening, put that bowl in your oven, and close the door. Let it sit overnight. The next morning, get rid of the ammon ia and you ll find scrubbing down the inside of your oven is suddenly quite easy. The burnt-on drippings from spilled dishes will come right up with no problems. Plus, a jug of ammonia is far cheaper than some spray-on solution. Soft Scrub -> Baking Soda and Dish Soap Soft Scrub does a great job of cleaning up serious stains all around the house, but you don t need to drop four bucks on a small bottle of it. Just put half a cup of baking soda (cost: about a quarter) and then add a little bit of liquid dish soap and stir. Add a bit more liquid soap and keep stirring until you have a pa ste that s about the consistency of frosting and you re ready to go. It costs about forty cents to make more than enough to clean anything you want to clean far che aper than Soft Scrub and with the same results. Air Freshener -> Baking Soda I actually don t like most air fresheners they usually make a room smell like chem istry. Fortunately, there s a much easier solution just put out a saucer with some baking soda sprinkled in it near where the odor is and it ll go away. Got a baby diaper pail? Just put some baking soda in it. Baking soda just eats odors. Carpet Cleaner -> Baking Soda and Peroxide (or Club Soda) Got a nasty spot on your carpet? (I could tell you a horrible story about a bloo d stain on a couch, but I ll spare you the details.) You don t need carpet cleaner t o get rid of it. Just dump a few spoonfuls of baking soda on it, rub it in, then put some hydrogen peroxide (a capful) or club soda (as much as you want) on the soda and rub it in as it bubbles. This gets rid of almost any carpet or upholst ery stain you ll face it literally saved some microfiber for us that seemed to hav e a permanent stain on it. Plus, it s cheap baking soda is really inexpensive and even club soda is something inexpensive you might have in the cupboard.
