What should we include in MSE's new Cost of Living survival guide?

Working_mum_4

If you do use a tumble dryer on wet days and it’s a condenser that collects the water, use the water in your steam iron or for your house plants or tip the excess into a water butt or watering can outside. The water saving will offset at least a little of the energy cost from tumble drying.

MSE_Laura_F

Thanks everyone for your comments. The guide is now live:

Cost of living crisis survival guide
90 ways to save from MSE and MoneySavers

[Deleted User]

Ive invested in a new dryer, my old one was 8 years old and the belt on the drum was slipping, it wasnt cost effective to repair. My old condenser dryer took a good hour and a half to dry towels, my new dryer takes 40-50 mins.

judaken

I live alone now and rarely turn on the hot tap at my kitchen sink. There is a long pipe run between the boiler and the 
kitchen sink and I resent the wasted cold water running down the drain and leaving hot water to go cold in the pipe. Instead I boil a kettle for almost every task - washing up, floor cleaning etc. 
And always snip the closed end off any apparently empty plastic tube of face cream, toothpaste and the like. There is always plenty left. Close it with a paper clip or plastic bag clip 

ratfig

otb666 said:

@kimwp i take my cucumber out of film wrapper and it lasts longer.  Cleaning oven/DW/Toaster/Kettle/Washing Machine and Fridge Freezer defrosting regularly so they work at optimum.

I hate defrosting my freezers, so it was long overdue. I did the small chest freezer in the shed on Sunday, and the undercounter one in my kitchen on Monday.
Using 25p/day less on the electricity, £7.50 a month. 
I always take cucumbers out of their condoms, and wrap them in foil. Slicing from the non stalky end helps too.

joedenise

judaken said:

I live alone now and rarely turn on the hot tap at my kitchen sink. There is a long pipe run between the boiler and the 
kitchen sink and I resent the wasted cold water running down the drain and leaving hot water to go cold in the pipe. Instead I boil a kettle for almost every task - washing up, floor cleaning etc. 
And always snip the closed end off any apparently empty plastic tube of face cream, toothpaste and the like. There is always plenty left. Close it with a paper clip or plastic bag clip 

There are 2 of us but we have the same problem with the long water run to the kitchen sink so heat some water in the kettle for washing up etc.

We have a water softener as well which also uses water but seems to run less without using the hot water in the kitchen.  The softer water also means we use less soap, shampoo, washing up liquid, washing liquid etc compared to the amount we were using before it was fitted.

thriftwizard

The guide is excellent! But I'd have liked some mention of grow-your-own, even at the level of window-sill gardening like sprouting seeds, which can be done in an old jam-jar with a piece of suitable rag (or j-cloth) & a rubber band. You don't have to buy special seeds, a pack of mung beans from a health food shop or stall will do for many refills. For pennies you can add some serious nutrition to your diet, in a simple sandwich, salad or stir-fry.

Blue_Babe

As well as Social Tariffs for broadband, phone etc, also contact your water provider to ask about discounted tariffs.

Welsh Water have cheaper options for 2 categories. 1 is for people on low (household) incomes (so the incomes of adult children living at home are counted too). The 2nd is for people with certain medical conditions, who use more water because of the condition. 

These tariffs aren't easy to find on Welsh Water's website, so do ring them to ask. I would expect other water companies to have similar, so ring & ask.

After all, if you don't qualify, what's the worst that can happen? They could say no & you've wasted the price of a phone call.

dansmif

My top tip would be "a stitch in time saves 9".  If you've got any little repairs or maintenance that needs done, don't put it off, otherwise it could end up costing you much more in the long run to sort it out.

For example, the silicone sealant in my shower tray needed redone, and I stupidly ignored it.  It ended up costing me £100's as the wooden plinth it was on began to rot, and the tiles had to be redone as the moisture caused the grout to loosen.  If only I'd spent a fiver on a tube of sealant, I could have saved a ton of money and a load of hassle!

Tustastic

I save by not having a home printer and needing expensive ink. Instead I email the document to myself then log on at my local library and print it out there for a small charge. HTH some.