Saving $$$$$

[sitzlejd 0]

Anybody have any tips/tricks they employ to save money these days? Figured we could all share some of the things we do to stretch the ol' paycheck.

[RadioGaGa 162]

Anybody have any tips/tricks they employ to save money these days? Figured we could all share some of the things we do to stretch the ol' paycheck.

Go to the browser window where you have MSH open....click the X. That should be a good start *L*

[reyno2ac 0]

Ride your bike wherever you can.

Open the windows instead of turning on the AC.

And one thing I do that some people make fun of me is that in my living room the surround sound, cable box, wireless router, flat screen, xbox 360 and so on are all plugged into a surge protector that I flip off every night when I go to bed. It is supposed to eliminate "vampire power" as I've hear/been told.

Good luck

P.S. I'm a poor college student on a tight budget so I'm doing everything I can to save money.

[dumbpolak9 1]

dont buy stupid things.

instead of going out to eat and spending 50 or some what bucks on steak grab a 99 cent bag of ramin noodles lol

Mooch? off of ppl? << not a fan

when leaving room turn off light tv comp.

instead of ac do the window thing.

dont drive if you need to.

[RadioGaGa 162]

Seriously though...I am in the process of buying a house...so I will be keeping a close eye on this thread as well.

[ndlancer95 0]

I'm home alone all summer, so instead of using fans and AC, I have my backdoor open and only put on my PS3 or my computer, only 1 at a time.

[Chadd 916]

Plan your meals and buy the ingredients for the meal, not whatever sounds good. Clip coupons, and buy non-perishable staples when they are on sale. Plan ahead when you're out running errands, one trip with no doubling back. If you go out drinking, go to bars with cheap beer or buy it by the case and stay home.

[pat19 0]

Open the windows instead of turning on the AC.

Mythbusters proved that windows down and AC both waste about the same amount of gas. Better start rollin' those windows up and dealing with the heat.

[sitzlejd 0]

Open the windows instead of turning on the AC.

Mythbusters proved that windows down and AC both waste about the same amount of gas. Better start rollin' those windows up and dealing with the heat.

I thought he meant in the house. I personally roll windows down in the car whenever possible just cuz i like it better.

As far as tips I'm using to save:

Combine trips - I'll chill at the rink, which is by my work, for a couple hours instead of going home and coming back (I work by the rink and live about 25 mins away).

Eating at home - I used to be the king of carry out but not anymore. Healthier too.

Bring lunch to work - It sucks b/c I have to get up earlier to make it, but it saves about 30 bucks a week.

Kool Aid - self explanatory and it's soooo good.

[shotty 7]

the surround sound, cable box, wireless router, flat screen, xbox 360

P.S. I'm a poor college student.

quoted for irony.

Open the windows instead of turning on the AC.

Mythbusters proved that windows down and AC both waste about the same amount of gas. Better start rollin' those windows up and dealing with the heat.

I thought he meant in the house. I personally roll windows down in the car whenever possible just cuz i like it better.

i thought the result was that with speeds above 60km/h its better to roll the windows up and turn on AC, anything slower and windows down is better.

as for contributing to the thread... i'd say the best thing to do is buy groceries and eat at home as much as possible.

when my gf and i first met, we were going out for three meals a day and spending thousands of dollars per month, when we decided to try for a baby, succeeded and finally had him, we'd stopped going out all the time, the amount of excess money was astonishing.

[K9 Unit 1]

don't leave the sun roof open on the highway too...creates a lot of drag

[NYR1982 0]

Seriously though...I am in the process of buying a house...so I will be keeping a close eye on this thread as well.

I'm in the same boat. Actually on my second purchase after the first fell through due because they refused to take money off the purchase price due to the insane amount of black mold in the house. I just had the inspection done and am waiting to review the contract so saving some coin is definitely a priority.

I saved some money by cutting back on going out to eat (down to about once or twice a month), started a change fund to be redeemed once the container is full (maybe a few hundred once full), and just buy whatever I can either on sale, with a coupon, or in bulk. I pay for nearly everything in cash to avoid any interest payments on credit cards.

Also, since my company stopped matching me on my 401K, I gave myself a bit of a raise by reducing my contribution to the fund and putting the additional funds into my savings. Since I'm still relatively young, my 401K isn't a huge priority right now. It's not much but every little bit helps.

[Jason Harris 31]

Whenever possible, we buy items on the clearance rack.

For instance, I was in Sam's Club today and noticed a table with clothing that was being discounted. I bought an embroidered Avs shirt for the Big D at $5, a sweater for her at $5 and two velour pants at $6 each. I also found three long-sleeve, Nike wicking shirts at $5 each which I'll use for hockey.

Now, do we need any of these items this moment? Considering I now have about eight or nine shirts for hockey, maybe not, but I figure they each will last longer because I'm not overusing one particular shirt and constantly throwing it into the wash. Further, almost all of them had been purchased on the clearance rack, so even if I put a couple aside until needed, I know that I purchased at a much better price than retail.

[Brian Harte 1]

I only spend about $3 on food/drink during my 9-5 now.

No more combo meals anywhere. None of that crap.

Water everyday. No sodas.

$2 salad instead of a hamburger and fries.

Save money AND get healthy.

[Jason Harris 31]

Seriously though...I am in the process of buying a house...so I will be keeping a close eye on this thread as well.

That brings up another idea. Learn how to do minor repairs around the house. Changing out an electrical outlet will cost about $.87. Hiring an electrician would probably be $25 to $50.

There are a lot of instances like that.

[Chadd 916]

Seriously though...I am in the process of buying a house...so I will be keeping a close eye on this thread as well.

That brings up another idea. Learn how to do minor repairs around the house. Changing out an electrical outlet will cost about $.87. Hiring an electrician would probably be $25 to $50.

There are a lot of instances like that.

FYI: With electrical, step one is always turning off the breaker. ;)

[dumbpolak9 1]

ah another big one dont be a gear whore. instead of underamour go for the nike dryfit stuff. or dont get high end equipment unless you really need it for playing at a high level

[Chadd 916]

ah another big one dont be a gear whore. instead of underamour go for the nike dryfit stuff.

Or buy something on closeout. The Itech stuff was on closeout forever and it's actually pretty good.

[sitzlejd 0]

Kroger cereals instead of name brand. They taste exactly the same. Just polished off a bowl of Honey Nut Cluster (Honey Bunches of Oats) ;)

[bheidepr 0]

And one thing I do that some people make fun of me is that in my living room the surround sound, cable box, wireless router, flat screen, xbox 360 and so on are all plugged into a surge protector that I flip off every night when I go to bed. It is supposed to eliminate "vampire power" as I've hear/been told.

There is more to that than you know...supposedly game consoles are huge drains...I saw a device that helps eliminate this on Engadget the other day...

http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/08/tv-tric...-game-consoles/

[AnthonyJTa 0]

I only spend about $3 on food/drink during my 9-5 now.

No more combo meals anywhere. None of that crap.

Water everyday. No sodas.

$2 salad instead of a hamburger and fries.

Save money AND get healthy.

I'd have to agree with you on that one... cheap salads, and combing the supermarket flyers for Lean Cuisines, Healthy Choice and Smart Ones on sale. I've saved a ton bringing one of those for lunch instead of buying out. It's also attributed to losing 60 pounds! Snacking on fruits instead of junk is a lot cheaper/healthier too. I've also been clipping coupons, and walking to the train station instead of getting a ride from the wife.

I've been doing little things like drinking the free office coffee... meh, it's nothing spectacular, but it's a cup 'o joe.

I think I'm finally *over* compulsively buying gear... considering I've got about 7 sticks, and seem finally content with my equipment.

ah another big one dont be a gear whore. instead of underamour go for the nike dryfit stuff.

Or buy something on closeout. The Itech stuff was on closeout forever and it's actually pretty good.

...I actually bought a few Champion 'Under Armour-esque' undershirts from Target..... just as nice, great to run/workout/skate in, and ended up $11 less per shirt than UA stuff.

[dumbpolak9 1]

what about getting a water filter for the faucet instead of buying the 24 pack.

heres another one. go for the water thats on sale instead of the water that pleases your taste buds

[RecLeagueHero 0]

Instead of playing beer league hockey, just go to drop-in games or rent the ice and have a private game with friends. Cut back on beer, or other booze, it's pretty expensive. Cut down cable TV programming. I got rid of Show Time and HBO, saves a lot of money and I really wasn't watching either that much. Drop options from your cell phone that you don't need.

[Big Glove Save 0]

We use cloth rags and towels instead of paper towels.

Plastic containers instead of zip lock, sealable plastic bags. If you do use resealable bags, rinse them out and use them again. Think about it. But I do think some Tupperware or any good set of various size plastic containers is so much better than bags you're gonna use once and throw away. And it is always best not to reheat the food while in the plastic containers.

Drive as close to 55 as you can. You guys have heard that very often but once you shed your need to compete for speed on the roads and just relax behind the wheel and not worry about what speed the other cars are driving or what they may think of you going under the speed limit, you will get better gas mileage and save a few bucks. And drive less. You will get less speeding tickets as well.

Chicken breasts and thighs with the bones in is often less expensive than boneless packaged cuts. Grill some tomorrow night. Chickenz iz gooood. Lots of pennies can be saved at the grocery store but be aware that some less expensive stuff has more chemicals than natural ingredients if good health is an issue for you.

Pentax digital slr camera give you more bang for your buck. Go buy one tomorrow night.

Libraries have a lot of good stuff to check out these days, Music, movies, books. Free!

Used compact disc or vinyl records. Come on people. Some body charges you a dollar a song for uploading transient digital nomads when you can easily get an entire used album for that price and three dollars more gets you the whole compact disc filled with music. Now I think there is one site that gets you unlimited monthly downloads for $15. If there are no other commitments, they seems like a fair deal. Still, thrift stores, record shops, garage sales, Craigslist, Amazon, your uncle that always smells like rotten eggs; all good places to look for used cd or vinyl records so you can get 12 songs for the price of one digital download and you have some nice liner notes to read and 12X12 artwork to admire.

Make your own waffles and pancakes. Make a big batch and freeze them and reheat them later.

Toaster ovens. Really great. Cooks things much quicker than a full size oven 'cause you do not have to preheat them. I often use ours for pizza, waffles and even chickenz cuz chickenz iz goood. Sometimes I will use the microwave to heat some food and then crisp it up in the toaster oven.

Man I could go on for a very long time but I think most of you have drifted off to sleep or left the thread already, so... Next.

[dumbpolak9 1]

chickenz iz goood

AHMEN!!!!