Penny wise pound foolish thread

[Texas Proud]

Our Honda and Genesis have/had oil minders... they were going off around 7500 miles...

Our Lexus is just a pure mileage indicator that scrolls when it shows the actual mileage when you start the car... it is 10,000 miles... but, being PHEV I do not think I will come close to 5,000 miles normally... this year we did a 5 to 6K road trip so I know we did pass that... but we have gotten 1600 miles on a tank of gas...

 

[pb4uski]

We have a furnace/AC service contract that costs $199 a year. They come in spring and fall to clean and inspect. They'll replace the filter if needed, but I keep an eye on that and keep an extra on hand. But the real reason its that it gets you priority position on a service call if the AC breaks down on a hot day. Otherwise the wait is a couple of weeks. Oh, and 15% off parts. Another insurance plan, I guess.

Have you seen the new home service plan Lowe's is advertising? $99 for at least the first year. They'll visit twice and do any of the seven services you request. This might be good for someone living alone with no one to do little stuff, but it does include lubing the garage door and cleaning the dryer vent (but only on an electric dryer) and flushing an (electric only) water heater. We're not at this stage yet, thank goodness.

Just yesterday I was talking with a peer who bought all new kitchen appliances from Lowes, also bought the extended warranty plan, had trouble with their refrigerator and Lowes was useless. They did eventually get a replacement refrigerator from the manufacturer but we're on their own on installing it.

 

[athena53]

We have a furnace/AC service contract that costs $199 a year. They come in spring and fall to clean and inspect. They'll replace the filter if needed, but I keep an eye on that and keep an extra on hand. But the real reason its that it gets you priority position on a service call if the AC breaks down on a hot day. Otherwise the wait is a couple of weeks. Oh, and 15% off parts. Another insurance plan, I guess.

I have something similar, mainly for the priority in an emergency. It was a real blessing when my furnace cut out on one of the coldest days of the year and the inside temperature was 49 degrees before they got it back on. I figure it will also be a good selling point when I list the house as proof that the HVAC has been maintained regularly.

 

[pb4uski]

I have a dear friend who rented a storage unit in 2020 to clear out his spare BR so he had a home office during COVID. He had to return to the office about a year ago and recently lost that job but he still has the storage unit. He never uses any of the stuff he has stored in it. ...

When DD first starting dating DSIL he had moved home from a shared apartment and he put a bunch of "stuff" in a storage unit about a year earlier. When they visited the storage unit it was apparent that the combined value of everything in the storage unit was less than a year of rent of the storage unit.

 

[Lorenzo]

The adage penny wise, pound foolish applies to DW and me when we plan meals around cheap leftover bits for which we then buy expensive ingredients to make another meal out of. Saving leftover boiled potatoes in the fridge--wise. Turn them into potato salad and use it as an excuse to splurge on steaks--foolish.

 

[pb4uski]

I have something similar, mainly for the priority in an emergency. It was a real blessing when my furnace cut out on one of the coldest days of the year and the inside temperature was 49 degrees before they got it back on. I figure it will also be a good selling point when I list the house as proof that the HVAC has been maintained regularly.

We have something similar with our plumber for our heating system that costs $35/month but the annual maintenance of our heating system is about $250 and the $35/mo includes not only the annual maintenance but I also get priority if we need them which is particularly valuable for me as a snowbird.

A few years ago, while away for the winter, I noticed that the temperature at the summer home was declining below what it was set at through my Wi-Fi thermostat. I called these guys, gave them the code to get in, and they went in found that a part had failed which caused the heat not to be working. They replaced the part and got the heat back working again. I recall getting a call while I was out on the golf course to authorize the replacement part. Life is good, but the peace of mind of having qualified help available a phone call away is priceless.

 

[Jerry1]

We have a furnace/AC service contract that costs $199 a year. They come in spring and fall to clean and inspect. They'll replace the filter if needed, but I keep an eye on that and keep an extra on hand. But the real reason its that it gets you priority position on a service call if the AC breaks down on a hot day. Otherwise the wait is a couple of weeks. Oh, and 15% off parts. Another insurance plan, I guess.

I have something similar, mainly for the priority in an emergency. It was a real blessing when my furnace cut out on one of the coldest days of the year and the inside temperature was 49 degrees before they got it back on. I figure it will also be a good selling point when I list the house as proof that the HVAC has been maintained regularly.

Thanks for the heads up. I’m going to look into a service plan. I just moved into our condo and the furnace is original, so 30 years old. The AC compressor was replaced in 2023, before we moved here, but who knows how long the furnace will last. We had it looked at and the technician said it was running fine. He change out the heat sensor and cleaned the pilot and it has worked all winter just fine. Given the age, I think it would be prudent to get it looked at regularly and to have the benefit of priority status if it goes bad. As we all know, they go bad on the hottest day in summer or the coldest day of winter. I’ll check into it before I fire up the AC for summer.

 

[OK EE]

I change the oil on our daily driver using the 7500 mile oil reminder. It's a 4 cylinder turbo and we run 87 octane in it. It does get changed AT 7500 or before, with Mobil1 and a Delco OEM oil filter. We live on a dirt road in the Midwest. 160K miles so far and the engine will still be running when the body of the car rots off from rust. I could probably be better about oil changes.

Septic systems I do pump regularly though. The cost to pump vs replacement is so insignificant that the peace of mind is worth it. Every 3-5 years. It's just DW and I so probably overkill, but I'm not looking to spend 15K to replace it when pumping costs $300.

 

[Gumby]

Yes, I have the Ken Onion knife sharpening system. Only takes a few minutes and they are good as new.

I have used a Chefs Choice model 312 on the kitchen knives for years - for exactly the same reason. Although, I do sharpen my straight razors by hand.

The adage penny wise, pound foolish applies to DW and me when we plan meals around cheap leftover bits for which we then buy expensive ingredients to make another meal out of. Saving leftover boiled potatoes in the fridge--wise. Turn them into potato salad and use it as an excuse to splurge on steaks--foolish.

We always scan the fridge before we cook to use up leftovers and things that might go bad soon. We don't do it to save money, we do it because wasting food is wrong.

 

[Aerides]

I came here for some good "pound foolish" stories and this thread disappoints.

 

[Koolau]

I came here for some good "pound foolish" stories and this thread disappoints.

'69 Corvette after getting my "forever" j*b.

Many pounds foolish.

 

[ArmchairMillionaire]

I have used a Chefs Choice model 312 on the kitchen knives for years - for exactly the same reason. Although, I do sharpen my straight razors by hand.

I'm not sure which model knife sharpener I have...

Works great!

 

[newuser]

I have a pound foolish story from when I didn't know better. After the markets plunged in 2008 I decided instead of dumping more money into that sinkhole I'd buy a fun car. Yes, the car was fun for a while, but didn't use it much. And the value plunged. And now I know better. (I've known for quite a while now)

 

[lakehawk]

Forgot to mention, I have a coworker who hasn't had their septic pumped in almost 30 years. I can't even imagine what that looks like. He keeps saying he should have that done. He's so cheap though. He will go to almost any length to save a buck.

We had our septic pumped the other day. It has been at least 10 years since it was last pumped. Bought home 8 years ago. I did test it and it was around 15% full of solids. Total cost was $330.

The guy that did it said it's not the worst idea to have it pumped every 3 years. He said think of it as $110/year in maintenance cost. He also noted that if leach fields go south, a sand mound septic will run $30k. He doesn't do sand mounds. I really don't think he was trying to sell his services. I figured in 30 years, I would have sub $5k in pump outs vs the massive cost of new septic.

Im going to add that on other maintenance things to do around the property.

Any other routine things you swear by to keep/extend the life of products? Regular oil changes and tire rotation are also something else I do.

From: Wyoming Barnyards and Backyards Septics

 

[meleana]

Forgot to mention, I have a coworker who hasn't had their septic pumped in almost 30 years. I can't even imagine what that looks like. He keeps saying he should have that done. He's so cheap though. He will go to almost any length to save a buck.

That was us! 32 years and when we were selling it our atty said to have it done.

It wasn’t because we were cheap. It was just we didn’t ever have a problem with it and we knew we had great leech fields. Anyway, it was a few hundred bucks and the guys really had to work it hard, but got it clean.

 

[Nightcap]

I live in a condo, so a lot of the scheduled maintenance is managed by the Association. Septics are pumped every two years and inspected every two years on the off years. Dryer exhaust lines are cleaned every two years. Decks are treated every few years - not sure of the schedule there. On my side, I have the mini-spits serviced annually, and I have my car serviced every six months, I see my dentist twice a year, ditto ophthalmologist, cardiologist, et cetera.

 

[B-Guy]

Here we have septic tank sizing for a single dwelling. We have a two-bedroom house with an office that could be a 3rd bedroom. If we put in a septic system in for our “3 bedroom” house we would need to put in a septic system at a minimum of 1000 gallon tank size. However, we could never list additional bedrooms in the basement because we didn’t put in a septic for the 3 more bedrooms. We put in a 1750 gallon septic system so we could sell this place as a 6 bedroom house by doing so.

As an added benefit of putting in a larger septic system, we don’t need to pump our septic tank as often.

 

[B-Guy]

... oh on another note, I replace the anode rod on our water heater every 4-5 years. I believe we installed the current hot water heater in 2006. Not bad to extend the life of our water heater for $20-25 every 5-ish years.

 

[Sorcerer]

... oh on another note, I replace the anode rod on our water heater every 4-5 years. I believe we installed the current hot water heater in 2006. Not bad to extend the life of our water heater for $20-25 every 5-ish years.

I need to install a new anode rod and flush the tank this summer. I just purchased a new impact gun so I may as well put it to use.

 

[disneysteve]

We have a furnace/AC service contract that costs $199 a year. They come in spring and fall to clean and inspect. They'll replace the filter if needed, but I keep an eye on that and keep an extra on hand. But the real reason its that it gets you priority position on a service call if the AC breaks down on a hot day. Otherwise the wait is a couple of weeks. Oh, and 15% off parts. Another insurance plan, I guess.

We do the same. Several times they have discovered a problem before too much harm was done so spending hundreds saved us thousands.

Changing the filter monthly is on the maintenance list. It costs next to nothing but keeps your system running efficiently,
Improves the air quality in the house, and reduces dust.

 

[68bucks]

We pump our septic every 3 years. I don't want to deal with the expense of a destroyed leech field. I do oil changes every 5000 miles or at least once a year though it's rare to make it that long. I also make sure the many other recommended maintenance gets done on schedule too. I change all my small engine oil seasonally. Unless it's a break in change or something. Mower and tractor get greased at the same time. Boat motors are annual changes along with lower unit oil. I will usually repack wheel bearings on the trailer every few years unless I'm making a long trip even though I have bearing buddies on them. Tankless water heater gets an annual flush. We're on a well so that's a good idea. Furnace gets serviced EOY but I put in 2 new ones last summer so I may wait 3 years. Filters are every 6 months. I open the PC every couple years and blow out the dust to prevent over heating. The fins on the refrigerator get vacuumed once a year typically. There is lots of other PM stuff to do too, I'm a firm believer of PM having been a maintenance mechanic and then an engineer for a long time. Typically maintenance is cheap, repairs are not.

 

[Joylush]

Yes, I have the Ken Onion knife sharpening system. Only takes a few minutes and they are good as new.

What model do you have and is it easy to use?

 

[ychuck46]

On another note, our car is 5 years old and we were recently preparing for a road trip that included going over Raton Pass, NM. I asked DH to replace the battery before the trip vs our usual practice of waiting until it dies and then getting a new one. Sometimes from the side of the road. Only took me a few decades to figure this one out.

Cheaper to just put a jumper pack in the car to take care of any battery breakdown. It will allow you to get going again and get a better deal on a new battery in the near future on your own rather than a roadside assistance one.

For what it is worth, the battery in my F-150 is four years old and was driven about 25K miles during that time. Just had the truck fully looked over since it is 14 years old with 160K total miles. Thought for sure I would be replacing the battery but when they tested it the thing still cranked at 810 versus the original 850. I'll keep this one as well as my jumper pack which I have in both our vehicles.

 

[I am He]

Where I used to live, the septic tank's biology seemed to keep the tank in check, plus I was a travelling on-the-road guy who was rarely home, so 10 years was no problem for that tank. But in 2010 or so, Wisconsin passed a law requiring mandatory pumpings at least every three years, but that was when we sold the place so it became someone else's problem.

As far as oil changes go, on our new (2024) vehicle, due to the wet timing and oil pump belts, I will be switching to two oil changes per year, once in the fall before we store it for the winter, after 2,500 - 3,000 miles of summer road-trip driving and again in the spring, even though it will typically only have <100 miles on it since the fall oil change. After 7 months of storage, the oil life monitor typically shows the oil life to be at around 40 - 42% remaining.

On our daily-driven vehicles, I change the oil around twice a year as well. Those two get oil changes when they hit 3,000 miles. On our winter 4X4, I try to change the oil every two or three years. I think I only have about 600 miles on it since the last oil change a few years back, but I'll change it again this year.

On DWs MGB roadster, I usually change the oil every other year, but that one usually only gets 100-200 miles put on during the summer if there are enough nice weather days. My El Camino used to get driven about 400 miles annually, but since I discovered Elcofest in Indiana last year, I'm putting more miles on it so maybe I'll end up changing that oil every year going forward.

FWIW, I believe the rule is an inspection every 3 years. Some opt to do the pumping at that time. The cottage hadn't had it done in 30 years and still didn't require it so we're usually doing the inspection only.

 

[Kings over Queens]

What model do you have and is it easy to use?

Worksharp. Super easy to use.