Reader Melissa writes in to tell us that using tips from Consumerist and other sites, she cut her (admittedly outrageous) electric bill down to size. Melissa writes: I cut my electric bill nearly in half.
savings
Farecast Deals Searches For Cheap Airline Tickets Using 'Science'
By 3.14.07
How are our deals different than thousands of other travel sites? They’re different because our deals are based on science, not marketing. We apply science to airfare deals in two ways, 1) why it’s a deal and 2) why you should buy now.
These are the questions we find ourselves asking, and now we don’t have to. Very cool. —MEGHANN MARCO
Bringing Back the Crock-Pot
By 3.9.07
If your mom cooked everything in a crock-pot and as a result the idea of slow cooked food gives you nightmares, you’re excused from this post. Go make something on your George Foreman grill.
Potentially Insane Ways To Increase Your Fuel Efficiency
By 3.6.07
Wayne doesn’t get high mpg marks by tinkering with engines or using funky fuels or even, most days, by driving a hybrid. He gets them by driving consciously – hyperconsciously….
Once Again, We Beseech You To Haggle With Comcast
By 2.28.07
• Know what the competitors charge. Print out competing packages to have at the ready. Also make sure to compare apples to apples. For example, basic cable is significantly cheaper than digital cable.
Save $988 A Year By Packing Your Lunch
By 2.27.07
Lifehacker points us to Clever Dude, where example menus have been given (by a registered dietitian) and numbers have been crunched. The result? Pack your lunch, save $988 a year. The bad news? Includes peanut butter sandwiches twice a week, and we personally hate peanut butter with a passion. In fact, we don’t really care for cold sandwiches at all. That being said, if you do like sandwiches, this can be an excellent way for you to save a little money and avoid the dreaded pit of fast food…or the Whole Foods hot bar. It calls to you…resist.—MEGHANN MARCO
Leaving Your Job? Don't Forget To Take Your 401k
By 2.25.07
401k’s are critical long-term investments too often forgotten by job-switchers. They are vastly more important than the staplers and pens most people remember to box up.
Consider: Some 7.5 million Americans took about $440 billion in distributions from their 401k plans in 2004, according to Brightworks Partners research. Of the 7.5 million, 6.25 million were job changers and 1.25 million retired. Of the 7.5 million, 55% had 401k balances greater than $5,000.
Thanks to a law enacted in 2005, people leaving their jobs with less than $5,000 in their 401k automatically have their plan rolled into an IRA.
Comparison Shopping Actually Saves
By 2.25.07
We intrinsically know comparison shopping saves money, but according to the Chicago Tribune, we don’t compare enough. Though we all think we compare prices, “research shows consumers, time and again, are most likely to buy from the first merchant they visit.”
“Prices for identical goods vary, and unless you actually do some comparison shopping, you’re not going to know that,” Lichtenstein said. “Consumers say, `Well, I may be paying a little bit more, but I don’t have time to shop around.’ But if they knew the degree to which prices may vary, they would find it’s well worth it.”
Our grandmother knows the price of grapes in every supermarket in at least five states. The Trib has helpful reminders to become more like her.
- Don’t overvalue your time: small savings add up over time to make a big difference.
- Take advantage of the internet: if you know what you’re looking for, plug it into “Froogle, MySimon, Shopzilla, DealTime and Shopping.com.”
- Take a test: search for the last few expensive items you bought and see if you could have saved more.
If that doesn’t help, remember that comparison shopping is the bedrock of our wonderful capitalist economy. If you won’t compare for yourself, compare for your country. — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
GE: We're Totally About To Invent A Better Incandescent Light Bulb In, Like, Several Years
By 2.23.07
Ultimately the high efficiency lamp (HEI) technology is expected to be about four times as efficient as current incandescent bulbs and comparable to CFL bulbs.
Like, by when? The apocalypse? —MEGHANN MARCO
How Much Does It Cost To Leave Your Computer On?
By 2.20.07
Lifehacker points us to a post on Coding Horror that details how to determine the cost of leaving your computer on all the time. Unsurprisingly, it involves the use of the Kill-a-Watt (power meter), but the post also gives some tips that anyone can use to cut the costs involved in keeping that computer running. —MEGHANN MARCO
Easy Cheap DIY Home Cleaning Formulas
By 2.13.07
Another alternative is microfiber cloths which lift off dirt, grease and dust without the need for cleaning chemicals, because they are formulated to penetrate and trap dirt. There are a number of different brands. A good quality cloth can last for several years.
And there are tons more like this. We really had no idea you could use mayonnaise to remove a water ring on wood. Share your tricks with us in the comments.—MEGHANN MARCO
Chase Deactivates Your Savings Account If You Don't Use It For 60 Days
By 2.13.07
If you don’t use your Chase online savings count for 60 days, it becomes deactivated. Which could be a big problem if you were counting on making a transfer to cover checks that you just wrote. What’s worse is that they don’t send you any notification that they froze your account. At least that’s how it goes according to reader Thomas’ complaint:
Your Doctor Might Want To Save You Some Money
By 2.9.07
As a physician, I want to offer my perspective on the “sticker shock” problem in the pharmacy. I am very conscious of the fact that my patients may not be able to afford medications I prescribe.
Fidelity MyPlan Retirement Calculator
By 2.8.07
If you want to get a ballpark estimate of how much you need to save monthly to meet your retirement goals, and want a friendly painless internetty wayt to do it, Fidelity has the myPlan snapshot. It’s very Fisher-Price basic, but might be good for people who are terrified of the topic. —MEGHANN MARCO
Curse of The Money Saving Gadget
By 2.7.07
Get Rich Slowly has a post talking about “money-saving gadgets,” the expensive cappuccino machine you buy to keep yourself from going to Starbucks, the neat-o voice recorder you think you’ll use constantly and the video camera that sits on the shelf after you’ve grown bored with it:
Save Big Money On Paint: If You Don't Care About The Color
By 2.6.07
The other great place to look is your local sanitation department. Most cities have specific divisions that deal with paints, since you can’t just toss them in a landfill. In Alameda, CA, it’s a garage full of five-gallon buckets of paint, wall to wall. They’ll just let you take what you want in most cases. They have to dispose of it somehow anyway!
Little whats-his-name will be so happy you saved money, he won’t even notice that his room is tow-zone yellow. —MEGHANN MARCO
