A new 'tougher' thread... and so it continues

greenbee

Byatt - lots of good ideas here. In addition to the suggestions about libraries etc, you may fnd your local church(es) are doing tea and coffee (in rooms with heating... I know churches don't have a reputation for being warm ) and are often cheaper than anywhere else! The company would be good too, and they may have ideas that could help.

Re. the meter - as others have said, you can probably change it if there is no debt on it, but may be asked to pay a £50 deposit so it isn't an immediate solution. However, landlords don't have the right to keep you on a pre-pay meter as it is financially disadvantageous. And the meter belongs to the energy company not the landlord, and they can change it from a credit meter to pre-pay if there are debt issues to prevent customers from running up unmanageable debt.

Water meters are probably going to be made compulsory. I think at the moment if you have one installed and you are worse off you can go back to unmetered, but check with your water company. I'd be better off with a meter, but sadly as I'm on a shared supply there is nowhere to put one.

When I lived (briefly) in a caravan with no heating I had lots of layers on the bed both underneath and on top, nd slept in thermals, fleece, hat and thick socks. I've just remade my bed and have two under blankets and a mattress topper under the sheet, and have a top sheet and blanket under the duvet. With no heating you do risk your bed getting cold and damp, so try to keep it well aired. Despite the cold, air the house for an hour or so during the day with the bedclothes turned down, and use hot water bottles to warm it. Or iron the sheets on the bed before you get in

fuddle

Some really useful tips for us all to take note of, thank you.

I'm sat here in my padded gilet and scarf. The heating has been on but this house gets very cold very quickly. I have had the email from British Gas to tell me it is now time to take my readings for the month. Really nervous as I know it is going to be more than the direct debit on both gas and electric. I still owe £200 from last winters gas usage so really can't be adding more to it. It was £400 but managed to get it down to £200 over the summer and that was a struggle and before the rises.

Right I'm determined to throw a bit money to it. I'm going to track it in my sig. I really hate owing money. I would really love a pre-pay meter but I know it would end up costing me more in the long run because the tariffs are that much higher. Does anyone know if there's any reason why they really need to charge more for pre-pay or is it just greed on the energy companies part?

Today the children and I are assembling the gingerbread house (B & M buy and a run up to Christmas tradition here) and we're making our christmas day dinner place mats - large white paper snowflakes

editing to add::

well it's not as bad as I thought.

We owe - £155.67 on gas and in credit £29.47 in electric. Really not as bad

Our usage this month is -

gas - £65.80
elec- £56.97

Our direct debits are - £50 per month gas and £30 per month elec.

Not happy at our electricity usage but we have been using the electric fire more, rather than put the heating on. I need to concentrate on getting that electricity usage down but really happy on the gas usage. Last year we were getting bills of over £100 a month in the winter period so to come out with a £65 bill is really rather good and there's the 19% raise in prices to factor in too.

Plan of action then is to make a payment for £20 to cover the £15 over the direct debit amount and cry as my electricity debit has been swallowed up. Must do better on electricity next month.

It goes to show that once you look at the figures and get down to sorting problems out you can feel better. I feel empowered, I still owe and I'm still skint but I know where I am and will try to sort it. Realy could do with not paying that £20 extra but I need to take charge and get on top of this. If they suddenly ask for that £155 we just couldn't pay it.

Hardup_Hester

We've just realised that hubby is owed £200 in expenses, they wiil be in no hurry to pay now he's given his notice in, lol.
So I'm spending as little as possible this week, I spent £25 in the Co-op on Friday on some whoopsies & I have £4.50 left to last til the end of the week.
I have a cooked chicken, a pack of ham scraps, 4 sausages & lots of veg, but no potatoes in the fridge. In the freezer I have half a cottage pie left from last week, some bacon & some chinese ribs.
I'm sure I can manage.

gailey_2

Yay so glad tough thread returned missed the thread and regulars so much.
I took absence came back then within a week was axed so not been on oldstyle as much.

Not much to report in gailey household.

Doing well with food budgeting done last 3shops mr m, lidls and farmfoods.

leaving xmas meat shopping until xmas even in hope find some reductions.
Have backup chicken in freezer and pheasent.
Got the pheasent in lids 4.99 whats it like, how best to cook? hubby jokes we must be poor to be eating a sparrow:rotfl:

Money tight until payday next week when we get tree
got some shopping left and things to make
got reduced cards, wrap and tree decorations including bauble packs for 20p so my sale scrum in jan was worth it!
Used some free vouchers to get few basics in marks yesterday.
Foraging and garden been dissapointing this year

My little monkey refuising the homemade baby food.
yesterday gave him finger foods to which hubby every 3mins hes choking quick hes got food in his mouth well thats kind of the idea!

want mini blender and new casserole dish for xmas think even mam thinks im too sensible!

Had more trouble with cars.
on balance won xmas fair raffle. Maybe my lucks changing.

Hubby braved the loft and got some old toys down so kids having fun they easily pleased.

weather been so bad not been out much,
been busy with nativity, xmas fairs and school stuff.

so cold been taking hot water bottle to bed, trying to to used heater too much and getting my semi nudist kids to put some clothes on.

Hope everyones ok and keeping warm.

gailey_2

Fuddle- your bill seems high

we with scottish power
3bed house
2adults/3kids
im sahm mum so in most days
apart from boiler which is gas everything else is electric have smaller heater in lounge.
we have 2tvs
drier
electric shower

we pay dd to scottish power of £100 a month was paying £120 but that was too much and we got refund of overpayments. im still curious how much we use know you can get devices that tell you how much you using which seem good,

Im always telling eldest off for putting fire on and upping heating some days im melting then realise shes turned it up to 30 and hubby tells me off think we just so much more aware.

Would love to do gingerbread house but no b and m here.
want to try twinks again but always end up solid.

I have boots that need reheeling. buy quite a few in carboots in summer as seem to ware shoes out so quick as walk everywhere.

Greyqeen you sound busy as usual.
mad someone lives with leccy.
my freinds went without hot water for 4months as they couldent afford new boiler.
Noticed lidls prices do change quite a bit passatas gone down to 26p from 45p right now.
You reminded me by bathrooms in desperate need of scrub as mums over later and shes a neat freak.

fed up of freinds moaning how skint they are.
they still spending skint to us means sofa diving so can buy milk!

fuddle

My bill is high gailey. The house we rent has very large ceilings and large rooms with no insulation. The landlord has said no to loft insulation as it means they will have to pull up the boarding out work he did and he still stores some of his junk up there. I have applied to British Gas to try to get survey for their free cavity wall insulation offer. Not sure if LL will give permission but I'm trying.

We have radiator thermostats and not a room thermo. That means when each room decides it's cold it kicks the boiler into work mode so basically as one room is warmed another room will click it on because thats cooled down. We have had a quote for a wireless room thermostat at £150. We haven't got it to spare just now and Landlord isn't prepared to put money towards it as the heating system is adequate. I can't argue with that as the heating system is decent it's just we need to keep our bills down.

DH was upset last year as he was still in the mentality of 'constant warmth is my human right' so we tried keeping the heating ticking over all the time and that is why we owed, we were using too much gas in doing so. So it's frugality all the way now. He's accepting that constant warmth means his hard earned money going straight to the energy company and instead of being upset he now gets annoyed - and annoyed means the defiant attitude, just what a frugaler likes huh?!

katieowl_2

Good morning everyone.

Foul day here on the edge of the world, but I intend to be productive.
I have 5lb of whoopsied peaches and nectarines, that I want to make some 'mango' chutney out of. I tried this before and was very happy with the result, so that's first on the agenda.

I want to get some Xmas decs up in the dining room, where we will spend quite a bit of time over Xmas. I'm also waiting for OH to 'do' a job in there...there is hideous patterned glass in the cupboard doors each side of the fireplace, cupboards and fireplace are the original victorian fixtures, some daft person stuck bamboo patterned frosted glass in, and replacing it has been on the list since we moved in, as all my nice china is in those cupboards, and you can't see it. I got some glass cut very cheaply at a picture framers earlier in the year and I've been waiting months for him to actually DO the job! I made him promise to do it before Xmas, then reminded him this was his last chance weekend (hehehehe) He has to pick DD up from the station in Aber next weekend, as she's back from Uni for Xmas.

I'd also like to make another Xmas cake...but that would necessitate a trip to the Supermarket, and I must make at least one Xmas Pud!
I think I have all I need for that if I mix and match! LOL! Last year I made OH's mums pudding, which I've been making for 20 years with all the different fruits and stuff replaced with the same weight in total of Mr T's Value mixed fruit, and it was exactly the same. No difference in quality IMHO.

To those who are making gingerbread houses, it's pretty easy to do without a kit, if you look online there will be printable templates and recipe somewhere? I've done one before, they are great fun to make!
You can decorate with your favorite sweeties then :cool:

Kate

Caseymoo

Hi everyone,not sure if this is the right place to post but im not doing any shopping til the 22nd as we have a house full of food especially my cupboards! so today im using up some leeks, potatoes and carrots and was wondering if any of you have a soup recipe so I can use my new food processor my nanna bought me.

Have loads of cupboard stuff in to help bulk it out so any ideas will be great!

Im looking after my friends little boy for her today as she is working so going to be doing some baking too!

greenbee

Fuddle - prepay is more expensive because of the technology and infrastructure. The bl**dy things are always going wrong and needing fixing which doesn't help. Doing monthly meter readings should help you to get control, and hopefully you'll get the debt down and costs under control. Have your energy supplier given you an energy monitor? And have you checked your tariff etc?

Obviously cutting down usage is the best way to give them less money, and a monitor can help. Simple things like batch cooking/slow cooking and using the microwave to reheat can make a huge difference. I had an ancient chest freezer which used far too much electricity last winter, so have got rid of it (I have two efficient uprights anyway). Make sure your fridge isn't too full and your freezer is packed... Fill any gaps with bottles of water!

And turning off (or on to frost setting) radiators in rooms you aren't using. Wall thermostats and radiator thermostats fight each other, so don't waste your money on a wireless one. Make sure your radiators are balanced and bled, that there is no sludge or anything, and then set each room to the required temp. I think generally 1=16, 2=18, 3=20 assuming they are correctly sized for the rooms. I heat the hall, living room, kitchen and bathroom, and my study when I'm working. Bedrooms are unheated, as is the utility room. In winter I have my room stat set to max and control the temperature via the radiators. When it's very cold I have it on constantly and set the room stat to 10 at night, and last year heard the heating kick in briefly occasionally. Remember, the boiler only uses what it needs to keep the radiators at the temperature you've set them to, so if it's kicking in a lot then the rooms are getting cold.

Have a look on the gas and elec boards for ideas on getting costs down (or identifying what's costing you money).

VJsmum

I changed one! Me! By myself! With no-one elses help! :T

Dad was saying that his loo kept overflowing and he'd need to get in a plumber, so i took a look and told him he needed a new ballcock, so off i goes to Jewsons and got one and changed it in 5 minutes flat. He was well impressed and it saved him about £50!!


Whilst I was on the 3 hour drive home from dad's (don't drive that much any more - it's really boring, isn't it?) OH did the shopping. Good grief! :eek: I haven't seen that much ready made tat in my fridge for months if not years. Breaded fish, breaded chicken, a chinese ready meal (last nights dinner - yuk), some mattesons kentucky fried [STRIKE]dog food[/STRIKE] chicken mini bites for kids lunches, ready made bolognaise sauce and fresh pasta (has he not seen how much pasta is in the cupboard?:rotfl:) He meant well but i dread to think how much he spent.

Putting up the tree today :j I love getting out my decorations, many have been bought on holidays (cheap, light souvenirs) and remind me of where I've been - new ones this year are a reindeer from Denmark, an angel i knitted, and a postcard to santa from Accessorise sale (OK they aren't all from holidays ). I have delivered more than half the pressies now and so mainly have my own kids stuff to deal with. THeir stash from other people has been greatly reduced this year so i want to make sure they have a few things to open - dad gave me a cheque so i will get them somehting from him. Although as they get older I want the volume to go down a little (after all, i will get about 3 or 4 if i'm lucky!) and to get them into the notion that it isn't all about pressies. We have visitors this year over the festive season and i have organised a bit of a lucky dip / treasure hunt / random present giving thing to happen at intervals over the 3 days they are here. I have had great fun buying things for £1 or less to give at these times - it is amazing what you can get in home bargains, wilko's etc.

My DS (aged 12) has been on a kind of "boys night out" and is due home soon. He went to some racing car event in Milton Keynes yesterday with one of our friends and his son and they all spent the night at my BIL with curry and i wouldn't be suprised if DS had his first beer. I think he might come back with a new line in swear words and a few choice jokes :eek:

Ach well, this won't get the baby a new bonnett - have a good day all.

BTW - in line with the thread - what effect will David Cameron's move on Thursday actually have on us? ANyone know?