Saving $$$$$

[Brian Harte 1]

I unplugged my Wii. (which I use maybe once every couple months now)

No need for it to be on.

[ndlancer95 0]

Got a quick quest. My cousin said that you will not save energy by turning off a PS3, compared to having it on standby. Is he right, or should I turn it off completely?

[shotty 7]

Got a quick quest. My cousin said that you will not save energy by turning off a PS3, compared to having it on standby. Is he right, or should I turn it off completely?

as soon as you plug something in, there's power running to it.

standby is a fancy way of saying "on, but not functioning".

[ndlancer95 0]

ok, thanks. goin to turn it off right now

[lampliter87 8]

Completely unplug it.

[ndlancer95 0]

Completely unplug it.

Thnks. Will do that. This thread has helped me cut back so much on my energy. Thank you, fellow MSHers

[Darkbyte 0]

Apparently your microwave is the biggest "not in use" power offender.

[ndlancer95 0]

What does my microwave have to do with this?

[fatwabbit 93]

I stopped drinking cola a few years ago. Much better for your health and wallet.

I agree! stopped drinking cola, cut back on sugar intake (sugary sports drinks, 1/2 amount in tea) and dropped 5kgs. Wife was so upset, saying my ass isnt as flabby anymore.

[kovalchuk71 212]

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.

Those "C9" shirts make up a large portion of my summer wardrobe. I have a dozen or so of them and they're perfect for my trips to the islands.

Put your debit card away and learn to live on a fixed budget. Figure out how much you need for gas, food, etc..and keep that in your wallet. When you see the money leaving your wallet it's easier to keep track and have the sense of +/-.

Use your bike for small trips to the store if needed. Exercise+save gas.

Totally agreed. I have "lost" my wallet in my house, and am trying not to use it. :) All I carry is my DL and cash.

[Darkbyte 0]

What does my microwave have to do with this?

When people are talking about turning gaming consoles off inorder to reduce their power consumption (and therefore the bill), one may want to consider turning off the microwave as well (especially if its an appliance rarely used)

[Chadd 916]

The only problem with turning off some of these appliances is that you will have to reset the clocks every time you turn them on or they will blink at you constantly. Plus my cable box takes at least half an hour to populate the program guide once it is plugged in and I don't buy a TV guide.

[Darkbyte 0]

^^ very true

I guess it depends how obsessive you want to be. I grew up with a vcr that flashed at me because mum turned it off every night.

My microwave stays on, its a pain to turn off, not to mention its my kitchen clock and timer :P (TBH I use the timer feature more than the heating feature.. lol)

[fatwabbit 93]

You can use your mobile phone for the timing feature, its already on and doesnt consume much extra energy (dont think so anyways)... it works for me, especially when baking (skates not cookies).

[Ahriman 1]

The only problem with turning off some of these appliances is that you will have to reset the clocks every time you turn them on or they will blink at you constantly. Plus my cable box takes at least half an hour to populate the program guide once it is plugged in and I don't buy a TV guide.

The internet has tv listings for your area. No one said you *have* to turn it off though, a cable box restarting is possibly the most annoying electronic equipment to turn back on; you can alway make up for that power elsewhere. Turn the water heater down a notch, replace lightbulbs with 1 wattage step lower than the original bulb.

[ndlancer95 0]

Yeah, for me, the microwave is a no can do. it is on top of our refridgerator and the cord snakes into the crawlspace, at least thats what my parents told me. The cable box is hell to turn back on, and all of the tv's in my house take 2-3 hours to scan for channels when i only unplug the power.

[Jarick 5]

Well for me I'm spending $400-500 a month on groceries, diapers, and formula. Girlfriend isn't working right now, so I've got to be stingy. Trying to get it back to $250 or so.

I swap out salads for a sandwich with lean meats and 100% whole wheat bread for lunch. I needed to add carbs back into my diet and the bread and deli meat is cheaper than spinach/lettuce with veggies and chicken breast. I still eat a big salad at dinner though.

I always eat 100% whole wheat pasta, it's cheap and nutritious. Especially on game days. Add a little light salad dressing and leftover meats and you have a meal.

Another thing I've tried doing is drinking a lot of milk later at night when I get hungry, instead of snacking. Healthier and save money that way.

Protein shakes in the morning, with a piece of toast, get the giant whey protein at Walmart which lasts for months.

By eating fast food / frozen food once a week, I mean when I'm on baby duty and need to eat but don't have time to make a full on meal. So I usually get a Kashi pizza or something low in fat and high in fiber/protein. Same with the fast food, it's usually a Chipotle type deal, hold the rice and sour cream, heavy on lettuce and salsa. As healthy as possible.

Also temporarily quit drinking, not so much to save money but to get more rest and have a clearer head, but it's still $10-20 a week right there.

[shotty 7]

Well for me I'm spending $400-500 a month on groceries, diapers, and formula. Girlfriend isn't working right now, so I've got to be stingy. Trying to get it back to $250 or so.

I swap out salads for a sandwich with lean meats and 100% whole wheat bread for lunch. I needed to add carbs back into my diet and the bread and deli meat is cheaper than spinach/lettuce with veggies and chicken breast. I still eat a big salad at dinner though.

I always eat 100% whole wheat pasta, it's cheap and nutritious. Especially on game days. Add a little light salad dressing and leftover meats and you have a meal.

Another thing I've tried doing is drinking a lot of milk later at night when I get hungry, instead of snacking. Healthier and save money that way.

Protein shakes in the morning, with a piece of toast, get the giant whey protein at Walmart which lasts for months.

By eating fast food / frozen food once a week, I mean when I'm on baby duty and need to eat but don't have time to make a full on meal. So I usually get a Kashi pizza or something low in fat and high in fiber/protein. Same with the fast food, it's usually a Chipotle type deal, hold the rice and sour cream, heavy on lettuce and salsa. As healthy as possible.

Also temporarily quit drinking, not so much to save money but to get more rest and have a clearer head, but it's still $10-20 a week right there.

costco for diapers and formula. anywhere from 135 to 186 depending on size for $46. the formula is some of the best available (tested best for lack of preservatives and melamine levels) iron enriched is 2 for $17.99. even if it was 17.99 each, it'd still kick the competition's ass!

we started our son off on huggies and some brand name formula. the huggies gave him a rash and the formula was great ($35 a can), but a newspaper article gave us the run down on health comparison and kirkland was rated #1 by far... and half the price. its 75% cheaper in the US! now he's drinking whole milk, which is $5 a litre, and he drinks 500ml a day/

[Jarick 5]

Which brand diapers are they?

Target is $7 for 56 I believe (he's still size 1). And these ones don't really leak or have issues. We had some cheap diapers given to us that didn't stretch and then leaked. The Up & Up aren't quite as nice as Pampers or Huggies, but they do the job. That Kirkland formula does look a lot cheaper, but he needs the whey formula. And I don't have a Costco membership...

[stickfixchaska 0]

We've tried the cheaper store brand diapers, but we kept going back to Huggies. The seem to hold the loads a lot better.

Baby Formula on the other hand. It is 100% regulated by the FDA and they are basically all the same. Both of my children were fed Target/Homebest (SuperValu) formula as babies. The pediatricians have told us that as long as the child doesn't need a special type, the store brands are great for them.

[epstud74 24]

Target brand baby formula is the way to go..About half the cost of a can of Similac or any other comparable brand name product. Target diapers are a good value along with Luv's if you need a brand name diaper. Luv's worked well for our son.

As for $250 a month on food, impossible :D

I'm guessing I spend at least $150 a week on groceries etc...Our son is now 2 and drinks a lot of milk and of course he's growing fast, so we have to get new clothes on occasion, along with size 6 or 7 diapers. He's being potty trained right now though..so I'm hoping it happens soon.

[Jarick 5]

And to think I used to spend $30 a week on food in college (including a case of diet Dew)!

[chippa13 1844]

Diet soda is never the answer for folks. The body does a better job processing real sugar than the sugar substitutes and the substitutes tend to be worse for you and some of them actually contribute to a worse body than sugar would have.

[Hooah4 12]

Diet soda is never the answer for folks. The body does a better job processing real sugar than the sugar substitutes and the substitutes tend to be worse for you and some of them actually contribute to a worse body than sugar would have.

I remember in biochem class where the professor was showing the chemical reaction to aspartame and how it essentially blocked the body's ability to break down fat.

[epstud74 24]

I'd just skip the soda and drink iced tea or lemonade. I have a friend of mine from HS, who was a pretty fair FB player and swimmer. He's about 6-7 and he weighed about 285lbs at the time, now after drinking a couple 2 liter bottles of soda (pop) every day, he's up to 520lbs and has type 2 diabetes.