I'm wondering what you guys do to save money on the stuff that you must pay for on a regular basis. Also, where is it a bad idea to go with a cheaper alternative?

Some examples of what my wife and I do:

- Buy store brand groceries, if we don't have a coupon to make the brand-name cheaper.

- Buy long-lasting items in bulk. i.e. - Pasta, rice, canned goods, cereal (if stored correctly), coffee, batteries, etc...

- Change my own oil. Napa filters are high-quality Wix filters. Napa oil is Valvoline brand. I won't use Wal-Mart filters, even though they are good, because I refuse to shop there.

- Pack a lunch whenever possible.

- Limit eating out to once a week.

- My wife cuts my hair.

First, that sounds like an excellent start :)

1. What kind of cable/satelite package do you have?

2. Are you turning your computers off at night? If not, you can cut computer electricity bill in half, maybe more if it's off while you're at work

3. Get a new thermostat if you only have the standard simple one with just a knob and a switch for ac/heat. You can set this to automatically change temperatures during the day. Also, once you've fallen asleep, unless you wake up from slight temperature changes, you can have this set to drop/raise the temperature a few degrees based on the season.

4. Hardware stores sell "blankets" for your water heater. Lots of heat is lost just keeping it warm, so why not wrap it with a "blanket" meant for the water heater? I'm not sure exactly about the flammability issues, so make sure to check with a hardware store.

5. What kind of gas does your car say to use? If it says to use premium, in many cases you'll be fine with a grade lower. Premium in California is more like the Plus in other parts of the country. Their Plus is similar to the Regular in many parts of the country. Why? They have different rules on the octane ratings

6. You may notice that cold air comes in through the electrical outlets on certain sides of the house, just put your fingers up to it and see if you feel any air coming in. If you do, cover these up unless they're in use. While it's a small air flow, it's going on all day.

As I think of more, I'll make sure to post about them. All these small things add up. Many people will consider doing all this being "cheap" but honestly, if you can save more money by making slight changes that aren't even noticeable anywhere except the bill, who wouldn't want to do it?

:)

Let's see...
- buy things on sale
- pay attention to "price per unit" so that if 24 slices of cheese cost less per slice than 16 slices, I buy the 24 slices
- I have no brand loyalty for most items
- eat out once a pay period at the most, and that's not a sit-down restaurant, it's fast food. Sit-down restaurants are only for special occasions really.
- rent movies through netflix and buy microwave popcorn in bulk, rather than going out to the movies. We run about 6 months behind that way (waiting till a movie is released on dvd rather than seeing it when it's in the theater) but we do eventually get to see everything we want and it's a heck of a lot cheaper than going out, esp. factoring in babysitting costs we'd incur by going out
- drive less, when the cost of gas goes up. we already use just regular gas all the time. the only places I *have* to drive to are my son's school and the grocery store, really. I carpool with the school driving, too--I drive one week, a friend does it the next. I can usually either skip going other places, or combine all errands into one or two stores on one trip. And thankfully dh only works about one mile from home.
- pay bills online. no stamps. very small savings, but it does add up.
- tear dryer sheets in half. the box lasts twice as long that way and the clothes are still static-free.
- I use Sam's Club brand dishwasher detergent. Under $4 for a 10-lb bucket. Much cheaper than anything I see at the grocery store and our dishes are perfectly clean.
- get hand-me-down clothes for the kids as often as possible. I only keep things that still look nice and I donate the rest--I do have standards for how my kids look--but if someone's kid has outgrown Old Navy clothes and they're in great shape, poof! New clothes for my kids. I wind up with a lot of that here--lots of people move away and don't want to haul their outgrown stuff with them. I will also buy on clearance for next year, but I try not to overdo that in case the kids don't grow at the rate I expect them to--wouldn't want a closetful of winter stuff when they are in that size in the summer, etc.
- We don't pay utilities here, they're included in our housing, so we don't have the energy/water concerns, but I still try to make sure lights aren't on more than they need to be, so that our lightbulbs last longer.

Things I don't skimp on:
- laundry detergent. I don't buy Tide or anything, but I do stick to a certain group of name brands that I consider "safe" and buy whichever one of those is cheapest. I won't get the absolute cheapest no-name brand. My clothes don't get as clean and I broke out in hives once from dirt-cheap detergent.
- diapers. The ultra cheap ones leak something awful. And even Luvs gives my 1-year-old a rash. It has to be Huggies for her. I buy at Sam's or use coupons during sales at other stores, depending on which is cheaper.

Also, do you travel during rush hours at all? If you do, adjusting the time you leave and come back might not be a bad idea because the less time you spend going to work and back is less gas that is used.

I'm wondering what you guys do to save money on the stuff that you must pay for on a regular basis. Also, where is it a bad idea to go with a cheaper alternative?

Some examples of what my wife and I do:

- Buy store brand groceries, if we don't have a coupon to make the brand-name cheaper.

- Buy long-lasting items in bulk. i.e. - Pasta, rice, canned goods, cereal (if stored correctly), coffee, batteries, etc...

- Change my own oil. Napa filters are high-quality Wix filters. Napa oil is Valvoline brand. I won't use Wal-Mart filters, even though they are good, because I refuse to shop there.

- Pack a lunch whenever possible.

- Limit eating out to once a week.

- My wife cuts my hair.

Why do you refuse to shop at Walmart? Just curious.

Also, do you travel during rush hours at all? If you do, adjusting the time you leave and come back might not be a bad idea because the less time you spend going to work and back is less gas that is used.

man I wish I could avoid rush hour.. the only way is to move out to an apartment near work... and... work doesn't pay me enough to do that comfortably :(

Why do you refuse to shop at Walmart? Just curious.

It takes me more than twice the time to shop there than anywhere else, for one.. Second, their business model is unethical, IMO. Third, I have never had a helpful employee in any of their stores.

It takes me more than twice the time to shop there than anywhere else, for one.. Second, their business model is unethical, IMO. Third, I have never had a helpful employee in any of their stores.

What's their business model and why is it unethical? I agree on the employee issue though. I can be standing right next to someone and say "Wow, I can't seem to find it anywhere. Maybe they just don't have any...I guess I'll have to check Target," and the employee will just stand there and not say a word. If I ask them if they have any more, they just indicate that whatever is on the shelves is what they have. And that assumes I can find an employee to start with.

But they do have nice low prices, which fits well with my nice low budget, LOL.

Well, when they open, they plan on losing money. They operate with prices that are lower than anyone else, which brings in customers. Their goal is to grab up the customer base, and either hurt or drive out of business other local competitors. Then, after a year or two, they start raising prices to allow them to make a profit. At this point, you are saving maybe 2% on all of your items, rather than the 5-7% that you are used to. Many customers have stopped price shopping by this point, so they are unaware that the time that they would save by going to Target or the local grocery store is now worth more than the amount of time that you spend in Wal-Mart.

Well, when they open, they plan on losing money. They operate with prices that are lower than anyone else, which brings in customers. Their goal is to grab up the customer base, and either hurt or drive out of business other local competitors. Then, after a year or two, they start raising prices to allow them to make a profit. At this point, you are saving maybe 2% on all of your items, rather than the 5-7% that you are used to. Many customers have stopped price shopping by this point, so they are unaware that the time that they would save by going to Target or the local grocery store is now worth more than the amount of time that you spend in Wal-Mart.

but shouldn't we as 'deal hunter' not care about all those things and just grab whatever we need at whichever place has the lowest price? the way you describe it is exactly how Newegg does it in the electronic online market (and most likely everybody else?). they came out with a super low price, most likely taking a loss. whatever it was that you are looking for you can be certain that Newegg will have it the lowest. and it's not like that anymore, i find now that CDW and MWave have things at a better price than Newegg, if only one or two bucks.

so i'm sorry but i just don't get it. i heard a lot about Walmart being 'evil', but can't seem to understand why people are so upset. if the price is lower, just buy it there, if it's higher, then buy somewhere else. i'm pretty sure there's more than just that though, so that's why i am asking.

A big reason for me is how much time I have to spend in there. I can go to Target and pay $26 for what I would pay $24.88 at WalMart. However, it takes me 10 minutes total at Target, but 30 minutes at WalMart. That 20 minutes is more valuable to me than $1.22 in cash.

A big reason for me is how much time I have to spend in there. I can go to Target and pay $26 for what I would pay $24.88 at WalMart. However, it takes me 10 minutes total at Target, but 30 minutes at WalMart. That 20 minutes is more valuable to me than $1.22 in cash.

that i can understand completely. we're lucky here that we are about 10 minutes from everything.

don't forget to use citi dividend to get cash backc 5% on supermarket drugstore and gas.

pay your credit card full.

don't forget to use citi dividend to get cash backc 5% on supermarket drugstore and gas.

pay your credit card full.
Those are two excellent suggestions.

1) We have earned hundreds of dollars in rebates using our CitiBank cc (http://www.ncsreporting.com/LinkTrack/Redirect.asp?LinkID=CDP10724) at local supermarket, drugstore and gas stations. Let's assume your family spends $300 a month on gas station and supermarket purchases. If you use this credit card you will earn a rebate of $15, that's fairly significant. In one year that's $180!

Click here to apply for the CitiBank Dividend Platinum Select credit card (http://www.ncsreporting.com/LinkTrack/Redirect.asp?LinkID=CDP10724)

2) Always pay your credit card in full every month to avoid interest charges or late fees.

Well WalMart has lot of unethical business practices but to be honest. What is ethical in business is proves to be a very fine line to walk on. Personally, I think WalMart is an ingenious company technologically and strategically. I never ask employees at B&M stores for advice since most of them have no idea what they are talking about and before I buy I always research products extensivley. Target is ok for everything but electronics/movies/dvd's IMO.

How do I save money... not by buying lunch everyday at work.