I saved £10k / annum during lockdown. What are your best saving lessons?

elsien

@mrs_motivated said:

Another one whose main saving has been fuel for the car and also the doggy day car bills, no eating out etc.  Biggest saving was money back from two cancelled holidays but I don’t count that as used it to have new windows fitted.

I dropped dog in kennels while I went away for the weekend. The owner is considering shutting up shop if business doesn't start to pick up soon, particularly if a second wave means more people continuing to work from home. I am worried that there won't be a doggy day care to go back to -  been using this chap for years as other places are bull terrier averse - so might book the dog in sometimes when not strictly needed. If enough people do this it will help ensure that the doesn't just pack up. 

Toonie

Blackbeard_of_Perranporth said:

I gravelled my yard. Just checked that gousto website and I can get a weeks shop at A1D! For less than four dinners!

I had to look up gousto as whilst I had heard of it I had no idea what the costs were. And boy were my eyes opened. The two person 4 meal box at £35 is how much I spend every 7-10 days! That price really shocked me as I wouldn't even be able to eat for half the time I normally would.

mrs_motivated

elsien said:

@mrs_motivated said:

Another one whose main saving has been fuel for the car and also the doggy day car bills, no eating out etc.  Biggest saving was money back from two cancelled holidays but I don’t count that as used it to have new windows fitted.

I dropped dog in kennels while I went away for the weekend. The owner is considering shutting up shop if business doesn't start to pick up soon, particularly if a second wave means more people continuing to work from home. I am worried that there won't be a doggy day care to go back to -  been using this chap for years as other places are bull terrier averse - so might book the dog in sometimes when not strictly needed. If enough people do this it will help ensure that the doesn't just pack up. 

Wise advice  but to late for me, our day care was also our dog groomer and he has closed up and had a career change.  Fortunately due to personal circumstances they only went 2 days a week and I should be able to work from home going forward for a couple of days a week.  After trying home grooming In lockdown with I have to admit not very good clippers, my priority was to get a new Dog groomer and to be fair he recommended someone who we tried last week and was really pleased with the job he did.

Sadly, I imagine many more jobs and businesses will go over the next year or so.

Newnoel

Mickey666 said:

Newnoel said:

5) We have a very large, but flat garden that costs about £200 / month to get someone in to cut from Feb to Oct. Bought an automower (cost about £2k) that cuts the grass automatically every morning and mulches the cutting. The lawn is immaculate, and it will be largely paid off in the first month

Nonsense.  You're saving £200/month so it will take at least 10 months to recoup the £2000spent on the mower.

Perhaps you meant it would be largely paid off in the first year?

Yup - meant to say first year. I will edit. Thanks for pointing it out

Newnoel

kazwookie said:

£200per month on grass cutting, what size lawn area do you have, you would have been better off fencing it and renting it out to a local farmer or similar to graze sheep on.

Around here is it £10 to £15 fortnightly cut for about 4  - 6 months of the year, I think you are being ripped off in the first place.

The total garden is just under 3 acres, but the formal garden is about 1 acre. We did look at sheep coming in, but the ground is a bit too wet for sheep grazing unfortunately.

I also wouldnt fancy picking up all the sheep poo!

Newnoel

PipneyJane said:

bouicca21 said:

It’s a windup isn’t it? £200 for a bread maker and £2000 for a lawn mower?  As my mother would have said, wants his bumps feeling.

I did save money, no eating out, no theatre, no concerts, no cleaners and no gym.  But some of those savings went on groceries as I had deliveries from places that were way more expensive than Aldi or Lidl.

I agree with you.  Has to be a wind up.   £200 bread machine?  Is it gold plated?  (As far as I can check, nobody sells a £200 domestic bread machine in the UK.)

My most notable saving has been on diesel for the car.  I filled up a couple of weeks ago, the first time since mid-March.  Just topped the tank up with 25 litres and paid £1.10/litre.  I normally set aside £120/month for diesel so the savings have gone straight to the Car Account.  Otherwise, I've just carried on living MSE Old Style as normal, so no additional epic savings here.  (As a long time MSE-er, virtually all my money gets quarantined into dedicated savings accounts:  haircuts, holidays, crafts, clothes, Fun Fund, etc.  Once it's in quarantine, it's not "mine". )

When I got my haircut last week, I gave my hairdresser a large tip.  It was the best way I could think of to say, "Thank you for reopening.  Welcome back after Lockdown.".  Even though I know things must be really tight for her, she hadn't put her prices up. 

- Pip

You can get a bog standard bread maker for £60, but a decent one is well over £200.

This is the one we have:

https://www.onbuy.com/gb/bread-maker-panasonic-sd-zb2512kxe-550w-silver~c13847~p18713759

It's really great as it makes jam too. I went blackberrying with the kids at the weekend, and we collected 1.8kg, more than enough virtually free jam to see us out for the rest of 2020.

Good point on the hairdressers. I used to pay £12 a month at my local Turkish barbers, however I got my self a decent hairclipper for £40, so that is another investment that has more than paid for itself already!

Newnoel

My employer, an American tech company, has also announced that all staff will work from home until next Summer at the earliest. My annual train ticket cost is just under £9k in First, so that is more savings.

Add to that the cost avoided in dry cleaning suits which could be £30 - 40 per month, and regular collections for some juniors leaving present, and the savings really start to mount up!

Dizzy_Ditzy

I dunno, this thread is screaming "look at me"! There are a lot of folks on this site who are here because they are buried in debt and you are boasting about "it costs £200 a month to cut my lawns"

I work for the NHS. My savings during lockdown have been negligible. I used to walk to work but i have been driving and parking (which has been free) so I have spent more on fuel. I have spent more on food because I couldnt/cant get out and do  my normal type of shopping. I'm not spending so much on random trips to the shop because I fancy some sweets or chocolate

Rosa_Damascena

Dizzy_Ditzy said:

I dunno, this thread is screaming "look at me"! There are a lot of folks on this site who are here because they are buried in debt and you are boasting about "it costs £200 a month to cut my lawns"

I work for the NHS. My savings during lockdown have been negligible. I used to walk to work but i have been driving and parking (which has been free) so I have spent more on fuel. I have spent more on food because I couldnt/cant get out and do  my normal type of shopping. I'm not spending so much on random trips to the shop because I fancy some sweets or chocolate

We work like dogs for the NHS because we are public-spirited. Its certainly not for the cash reward, or benefits package and that is why so many of us neglect our own health and burn out so quickly - too high a price IMO so cutting back hours is the way we manage our lives.

If you're interested in looking out for No 1 and your family, the private sector is the way to go.

-taff

You don't need to be poor to money save. Granted, there's probably a lot more the OP could do to save money but as far as they are concerned, they ARE saving money.