March Frugals

[rosarugosa]

DH had a brake light out on his vehicle. We checked Youtube, and it looked pretty easy, so he got the bulb from AutoZone and replaced it for a cost of less than $10. I know this was a pretty simple repair, but it's something we usually would have had our mechanic do, so it was noteworthy for us. I suspect it saved us about $100.
DH was also able to cook a meal in our kitchen for the first time since 2/4, so we should be spending a lot less on meals going forward. Groceries may be expensive, but take-out and dining out are a lot more expensive!

[Tybee]

DH had a brake light out on his vehicle. We checked Youtube, and it looked pretty easy, so he got the bulb from AutoZone and replaced it for a cost of less than $10. I know this was a pretty simple repair, but it's something we usually would have had our mechanic do, so it was noteworthy for us. I suspect it saved us about $100.
DH was also able to cook a meal in our kitchen for the first time since 2/4, so we should be spending a lot less on meals going forward. Groceries may be expensive, but take-out and dining out are a lot more expensive!

I love Auto Zone for things like that. We had an old Subaru that we bought that was missing fuses and the lights weren't working and we went through and figured it out and got it all working. It feels so good.

[ToomuchStuff]

When I wrenched, that was one of those things that we normally just tossed in for the cost of the bulb if we were doing other things to the car. Regulars might also swing down and we would pop bulbs in if we weren't on a big job (normally while waiting on parts). Dealerships, however, get you for everything, IMHE.
But yes, changing your own bulbs is like checking your fluid levels, filling your own gas, and checking your tires, real simple basic maintenance.

[Tybee]

When I wrenched, that was one of those things that we normally just tossed in for the cost of the bulb if we were doing other things to the car. Regulars might also swing down and we would pop bulbs in if we weren't on a big job (normally while waiting on parts). Dealerships, however, get you for everything, IMHE.
But yes, changing your own bulbs is like checking your fluid levels, filling your own gas, and checking your tires, real simple basic maintenance.

That is so nice that you did that. I am always really grateful when people do things like that. When I was driving alone back from my son's, the tire warning light kept going on and had to go to a tire place in Ohio and the guy was so kind, and really alleviated my fears and I got home to Maine on what he did. He wouldn't take any money. I was so freaked out by being so far from home and looking at a car problem.

[Tybee]

When I wrenched, that was one of those things that we normally just tossed in for the cost of the bulb if we were doing other things to the car. Regulars might also swing down and we would pop bulbs in if we weren't on a big job (normally while waiting on parts). Dealerships, however, get you for everything, IMHE.
But yes, changing your own bulbs is like checking your fluid levels, filling your own gas, and checking your tires, real simple basic maintenance.

That is so nice that you did that. I am always really grateful when people do things like that. When I was driving alone back from my son's, the tire warning light kept going on and had to go to a tire place in Ohio and the guy was so kind, and really alleviated my fears and I got home to Maine on what he did. He wouldn't take any money. I was so freaked out by being so far from home and looking at a car problem.

[early morning]

Around here, most chain car-parts retailers will check /replace a battery, change windscreen wipers, replace bulbs and fuses, and read/reset warning light codes, etc, if they aren't really busy. Many advertise as such. Mostly DH just does it, but we've used their services on occasion. And our mechanic will do those also with no labor charge (he does charge a bit more for parts if he has to get them - which is fair). But being able to do things yourself is good!

[jp1]

My Washington post subscription comes due at the ends of the month. Like last year I clicked cancel and it immediately made a counter offer of $29 for the year. Down from $120.

I used $42 of that savings to bring my car into the 21st century. I bought a backup camera on Amazon. It works surprisingly well. SO was like ‘a new car would come with one…’ and I responded ‘yes, and a new car would be 1000x more expensive!’

[pinkytoe]

Now that gardening season is starting up, I am going to cancel the NYT, WaPo and WSJ ($2 ea per month) subscriptions that keep me "informed" during the cold, winter months.

[iris lilies]

My Washington post subscription comes due at the ends of the month. Like last year I clicked cancel and it immediately made a counter offer of $29 for the year. Down from $120.

I used $42 of that savings to bring my car into the 21st century. I bought a backup camera on Amazon. It works surprisingly well. SO was like ‘a new car would come with one…’ and I responded ‘yes, and a new car would be 1000x more expensive!’

back up cameras are the ONLY thing I like in new automobile technology. They are a game changer.

[SiouzQ.]

I just did the same with WaPo - I cancelled it 3 days before the subscription was due and they immediately lured me back with the $29 per year.