LBYM Question

[candrew]

Save on laundry by turning underwear inside out and wearing again on day 2.

Reuse dental floss.

[daylatedollarshort]

Some of our money savers -
- Consumer Cellular with AARP discount
- Internet only unless they throw in a TV package at no extra cost
- We have three cable companies in our area and our house is wired for all three. We usually switch off every year to get the new customer rates.
- Ooma instead of a landline
- Amazon warehouse deals when available
- Groupons bought on sale for dining out and event tickets
- Entertainment books and online subscriptions for half off dining out
- LED bulbs
- Low energy / water usage washer, spin dryer and drying racks
- Seat filler memberships
- Museum and garden memberships with reciprocal programs
- Public events at local colleges
- Chest freezer and stockpile loss leaders. Our local retail store had detergent on sale for almost half the Walmart price so I bought a year's supply.
- I make my own cleaning supplies from non-toxic ingredients like vinegar and baking soda.

[CardsFan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by candrew Save on laundry by turning underwear inside out and wearing again on day 2. Reuse dental floss.

TMI

[target2019]

Coffee filters can be reused. They say.
[emoji2]

[gerntz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 6miths Bottled water? Like out of a tap and into the bottle you brought? Most parts of the world that I think people would be traveling, bottled water wouldn't be necessary. Yes if in parts of Africa and South Asia but most other places would think you are good to go.

Potable water in different parts of the world can contain things different than your system is used to. I a) drink Pepto Bismol starting three days before trip & everyday on trip, & b) bottled water is cheap & particularly so compared to the other costs of a trip.

[gerntz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by candrew Save on laundry by turning underwear inside out and wearing again on day 2. Reuse dental floss.

I reuse dental floss not for savings but because I frequently break it on my teeth & so I pull enough & use one end so that if does break, I still have enough left.

I don't wear socks down to about 40 degrees because they are a pain all the way around.

[COcheesehead]

Quote:

Originally Posted by candrew Save on laundry by turning underwear inside out and wearing again on day 2. Reuse dental floss.

Eeeeeeeuuuuuuu

[Fedup]

Maybe we should have a gross everybody out thread or eeuuu thread.

[exnavynuke]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LiveBelowMeans Number one thing you can do is marry someone who agrees with/supports your LBYM ideas. Need to be on the same page. Without this it will be tough to save and retire early. JMHO

Number 0.5 thing you can do is never get married in the first place

I find growing my own food tends to be much cheaper than buying fresh fruits/vegetables every week.

[easysurfer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by candrew Save on laundry by turning underwear inside out and wearing again on day 2. Reuse dental floss.

One day too early for April fools? I hope so

[YVRRocketSurgery]

I think the over-riding factors for the missus and I to LBYM are:

1. Cutting down on discretionary consumer purchases by analyzing if what we're buying is really going to benefit us or make us happy for a period relative to the cost of the item. Trying not to buy stuff that will end up not being used and essentially add clutter in the house. However, we generally don't sweat about a $5 purchase. We'll take advantage of sales but similar criteria applies.

2. We track our spend and analyze where we can become more cost efficient for certain spends.
Food: We try to cook more at home and recreate dishes that we've eaten at restos
Electricity bill: LED light have significantly reduced our bill
Insurance: We've raised the deductible for certain coverage as we're comfortable paying out of pocket for certain issues.
TV: Not ready to cut the cord but have reduced channels after analyzing what we watch.
Car: We went from 2 cars to 1 plus a car sharing program.
Travel: We're generally value travelers. We'll take advantage of seat sales, stay at budget accommodations as we're only there to sleep, take local transit, eat street food, etc.

[Nemo2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by COcheesehead Eeeeeeeuuuuuuu

I guess this is not the time to raise the subject of reused TP?

[Car-Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big_Hitter my lbym is using wilson golf balls and not buying new golf equipment every year

I never consider myself a lbym type (yes, probably an outlier on this forum) but there may be hope for me yet. I absolutely refuse to pay good money for any golf equipment. Think of all the money I've saved by not buying golf balls, golf clubs, bags, carts, clothes, misc equipment, green fees, etc all these years. Maybe I am more of a lbym type than I thought,,,,, or maybe I just don't like golf.

[pacergal]

Every lightbulb is now LED, replaced 15 year old dishwasher, refrigerator, furnace and water heater to the most energy efficient ones available in the past two years. Electric and natural gas bills down significantly. Most recent car is a hybrid, only use one tank of gas every month or so, and we still drive quite a bit. Enjoy cooking at home, but when DH and I go out for meals, usually go at lunch as it is much cheaper and frequently split the main dish. Do enjoy checking local Value village for clothes--only buy those that are new and still have store tags on--usual price $4.99-$10.99 for designer brands. Buy family value packaged US Prime meats and use Food saver to repackage smaller amounts to freeze, or look in the discount section--most meats priced 50% or more off--only because sell by date is soon. Use these meats right away and save $$.

[Car-Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by target2019 Coffee filters can be reused. [emoji2]

They make coffee filters

[RobbieB]

No coffee filters for me. No pods either.

I just fill the hopper of the superautomatic with beans and push the button and the coffee comes out the nozzle.

Simple fast easy and cheap -

[travelover]

PagePlus cell phone, $2.50 a month.

Google Voice with Hangouts to make free unlimited calls anywhere in USA from my PC

OTA television.

[Amethyst]

Saving money is important, but saving time is even more so. They aren't making any more time.

I decided, arbitrarily, that my time is worth $50 per hour (after tax). If jumping through hoops to "save money" ends up costing me more than $50 per hour, or saving me less than $50 per hour, I won't bother.

[travelover]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amethyst ...........I decided, arbitrarily, that my time is worth $50 per hour (after tax)...........

Me, too. I write off my time spent here as a charitable deduction

[Ready]

We live in a nice home, drive nice cars, eat well, and have all of the latest technology gadgets. One might look at us and say we are big spenders. But the key factor to consider in LBYM is the M. Everybody's means are different. If you make $50K/year and you spend all $50K, you are not living below your means.

If you make $300K per year and spend $150K, you could easily argue that you are living below your means.

So when I read all of these comments, I have to remember that everyone is coming from a different base, which must be considered when comparing these posts.