Lots more Sneaky Ways to save the pennies

Siebrie

It's not the hub / router, it's an amplifier (strengthener?) to continue the signal to the bottom of the garden. Our router/hub is on 24/7; I am not fiddling with it.

NorthernMonkey1

GreyQueen wrote: »

A little research online seems to indicate an annual electricty use in the £6-£10 range for your router. Mine's on 24/7/365 as recommended by my ISP as on/ off can slow your line speeds.


My electricity consumption for the previous 12 months works out at 1.6 kWH per 24 hrs, which is 55p a day on my tariff, with half of that being standing charge.


On balance of my personal lifestyle, I would think that running 1-2 fewer washloads per month, or opening the fridge and freezer doors less frequently and for shorter periods of time, might well be more MSE than fiddling around with the router. But we all have different lifestyles and your mileage may vary, as the Americans say.

I'd not worry too much about switching it off and on once the line speed is stable after the first few weeks.

Do you use wifi or wired? you can disable the wifi which uses a fair chunk of the power from the router.

PS 1.6kwh/day is amazing. I thought I was doing well by getting mine to 5 from 9

PipneyJane

My tip-du-jour is that I use permanent marker to write the date on the bottle/package whenever I start new makeup or toiletries. When I open the next bottle, I also mark on it how long the previous one lasted. That way, I'll know when I'm running short and need to buy a replacement.

For writing how long the previous one lasted, I use the following notation:

xx/52 = xx weeks

xx/12 = xx months

I'll then circle it, so that it is distinguishable from the date.

Not only does this mean that I'm not spending money when I don't need to, but If I'm stockpiling because of a BOGOF, then at least I'll have a vague idea of how long it'll take to use up and whether I really should be buying them.

- Pip

NJ200

I'm still working my way through all the posts in this forum, which is taking way longer than I expected!!... I decided to skip ahead and share some of my ideas, so here they are:

1. If you cat is as fussy as mine, and insists on licking the sauce off her dinner and then complaining that its too dry to eat, a spray bottle with some water is perfect for refreshing it without having to open a new pouch

2. When changing the cats water, I use the old stuff for watering plants before refilling

3. Take cuttings from friends and families gardens if you like their plants, rather than buying the same from the garden centre

4. I keep a little bottle of water in my handbag for when I get thirsty, instead of buying one from the shop each time

5. LED bulbs have really reduced my electricity bill, quite a few of mine were halogen bulbs which are ridiculously expensive to run!... I always thought LEDs were expensive so was planning to switch over as and when they needed changing but I managed to change the whole house over for £10.66 from CPC UK, they have paid for themselves already!

6. Check if your local library has an app for borrowing ebooks and audio books... saves a fortune on audiobook subscriptions but also saves petrol and parking going to the library to borrow a physical book.

7. Lazy garlic and ginger... so these are more expensive than buying fresh but as there is no waste because they keep for ages in the fridge, its actually saved on the food bill overall.

8. I keep old (but clean) pillows and duvets for toy stuff

9. I delayed buying a hair dye bowl and application brush for ages but these have saved me a fortune in hair dye as I now only use 1/3 of a bottle to do just my roots. I mix just the required amount in the bowl as it can be dangerous to store anything that's mixed.... I've also started using £1 dye from Wilkos or HB and both have done the job well

7. I use an epilator or electric shaver to save on razors

8. I've put some motion sensored night lights in the hall and landing to avoid having to use the lights when just passing through, I also have on in the kitchen which is plenty for the time you are just topping up a glass of water.

I'm not sure if I read it on here or elsewhere but someone wrote that every time you throw something away you are essentially throwing money away.... I now use hankerchiefs instead of tissues, a flannel for make-up removal instead of baby wipes, a spoon and cloth for scraping/cleaning pet bowls instead of kitchen roll, linen napkins, veg trays/yoghurt pots/loo roll tubes to start seeds off, old envelopes instead of notepads.... it might not work for everyone but that certainly made me think of ways to reduce what I throw away or try reuse it in some way

Gem-gem

Last Christmas BIL gave us vegetable seeds as our Christmas present along with a couple of treats. We are reaping the rewards of the present now, food bill is very low as we have been eating the produce since the beginning of June. Much nicer than receiving stuff that will just clutter the house.
Swapping some excess vegetables and fruit with family members.

NJ200

Gem-gem wrote: »

Last Christmas BIL gave us vegetable seeds as our Christmas present along with a couple of treats. We are reaping the rewards of the present now, food bill is very low as we have been eating the produce since the beginning of June. Much nicer than receiving stuff that will just clutter the house.
Swapping some excess vegetables and fruit with family members.

That's a fab idea!... I now have 1 present idea sorted ready for Xmas!!

London_Town

tboo wrote: »

Oh forgot.
When I empty the dehumidifier - as you apparently can't use it for plants (some web site say you can but I'd rather not risk it) which is a waste - so I either use it for the car or pour it down the loo.

I once made the mistake of boiling some in the kettle. It made the most gut wrenching cup of tea I've ever tasted!

I pour it into the buckets in the shower now and it goes towards flushing the toilet.

Aril

I use the dehumidifier water instead of distilled water in my iron.
Arilx

Gem-gem

For several years my Dad bought hubby and I a joint National Trust yearly pass. We visited around 40 places in two years. Saved us a lot when we were holidaying in the uk. We are now working our way round the English Heritage places.

[Deleted User]

National Trust Scotland is half the price of the UK National trust yet you can use your card in any National Trust place in the UK

NTS costs £48.00 per year ,or £4.00 per month good value for days out , I use mine when I holiday in Scotland although I live in Kent, but I have also used it in England as well and its great for a nice day out. You also get a couple of parking permits per year as well for your car