Will half as much do....?

[lessisbest]

The old saying about watching your pennies and the dollars will take care of them themselves was bantered about the other day when I was with friends, and since I'm an tightwad, I could give any number of examples. Have you ever considered this concept, and do you have any examples to share?

--The first and most obvious thing, if you use twice as much of anything that you use than you actually need, cutting use by 50% will make it last twice as long. Do you use more toothpaste than you really need for the job? Try using half as much. There is even a method called "Dry Brushing" for teeth that has been shown to do a better job than toothpaste, so that could potentially be a 100% savings.

--When baking and cooking, do you actually measure ingredients, or do you just guesstimate.... Is that really a teaspoon of vanilla, or was it much more than that? We had a home economics teacher who said a homemaker wasted more by the tablespoon than a farmer wasted by the shovelful. (Can you tell I live in a rural area? ;))

--If you melt butter and apply it with a pastry brush to toast, you won't use as much as when you spread it with a knife.

--Try using shredded cheese on a grilled/toasted sandwich instead of a pre-packaged cheese slice. You can cut the amount of cheese by 50-75%, especially if you weigh it on a kitchen scale.

--We hang our laundry to dry in an unfinished room in the basement, but previously hung them outside. By moving the job indoors we have extended the life of our clothing by at least double. Colors don't fade, and the sun also damages fabrics and elastic. The wind whipping and snapping fabrics breaks the fibers and decreases the life of them. We were amazed how much longer our clothing lasted.

[catherine]

I never "rinse and repeat" with shampoo (I do rinse/don't repeat). One lathering is fine.

[Blackdog Lin]

I use half the recommended amount of laundry detergent, with excellent results.

I also only bathe half the "American recommended" amount of the time. :) Unless I've been doing heavy outside chores, I don't see a need for an everyday bath/shower. Every other day is plenty.

[awakenedsoul]

Great thread lessisbest! I fill the bathtub halfway. It's a small tub in an older house. I bail out the water to use on my plants. (We are only allowed to water two days a week now, because of the drought.)
I started drinking half as much coffee. I make a pot in my stovetop espresso maker. I fill the mug a quarter full of coffee, and the rest of the way with soy milk and regular milk. I keep the leftover coffee in a recycles glass molasses jar in the fridge. I reheat it the next morning. Now I spend half as much money on coffee, milk and soy milk.
I added half a cup of barley to my lamb broth yesterday. It was just enough to make the soup interesting and healthy. I also cut up the last of my tomatoes from the co op.
When I make a salad, I eat half of it for lunch, and the other half for dinner. That way I only have to go to the work of spinning the lettuce and chopping the vegetables once. I also don't have to wash the dishes and salad bowl twice.
My parents and I went out for lunch last week. I ordered a cheeseburger and fries. I cut the burger in half, and had that for dinner. My parents did the same with their sandwiches. We didn't have to cook dinner, and we saved money!

[Molly]

I rarely use the recommended amount. You are right. Using less is a good way to save money. I do this with toothpaste, shampoo, washer detergent, etc...

[lessisbest]

I'm sure we are known as the "cheapskate splitters" at several restaurants in town.... Before going gluten-free we would occasionally purchase a $5 foot-long deli sandwich and have it cut into 4 pieces - 2 for our first meal and 2 for lunch the next day. Schlotzsky's - we usually get ONE $3.99 1/2-sandwich and cup of soup. I eat the soup and hubby eats the sandwich. Occasionally we get the pick-2 ($7.99 I think, but not sure) and I get the Chicken Cesar Salad and hubby gets the 1/2 pizza. We have enough left from that for the next day. Overeating anything is wasted food and money.

It's amazing how far a small piece of meat will go if you chop, grind, or shred it.

As far as detergent, I started using Charlie's Soap in 2007 and I only use 1 T. of detergent per load. Back then it came in a 5-gallon pail - 1,280 loads - and it took us 3-years to use that amount. One plastic bucket in three years instead of who knows how many plastic containers of store-brand detergent, and we're still using the bucket. They recommend NOT using softener with this detergent, which I don't, so there is additional savings.

[kib]

My "use half" is more like "use twice". I see no reason to wash a tee shirt I've been sitting around in for one day unless it's stained or smelly. I don't really understand the point of washing a towel unless it's gotten musty from being damp too long, you've just finished scrubbing all the dirt OFF your body, so why would the bath towel get dirty? Ok, maybe once every two weeks for skin flakes. If I'm microwaving something in a bowl, say broccoli, I set one of the dinner plates over it instead of plastic wrap, and this way I have both a warmed plate and nothing to buy or throw out. I will occasionally set a plate over a plate when I have leftovers and then just pop that in the microwave for lunch (if I'm pushing the envelope I might even take DH's used dinner plate and set it over my plate with the leftovers on it. Half the dishes to wash, hard to argue with that.)

[domestic goddess]

I use half the amount, or even less, for a lot of things: laundry detergent (I don't get my clothes real dirty most days), salt, when cooking or baking, most cleaning supplies, including the ones I make at home. There are some things that may not be effective used in smaller amounts: contraception, antibiotics, other medications such as blood pressure meds, food for your baby (don't laugh; I have seen people dilute formula so their baby doesn't get "fat"). When you dilute the calories, you also dilute the other nutrients. Shampoo and conditioner,toothpaste; there are lots of places where you can cut back. When my hair was waist length, I used less shampoo than my son-in-law, who had much shorter hair.

[domestic goddess]

Thanks, kib, I had forgotten about the bath towel thing. Since I have just wiped clean water off a clean body, I can get plenty of uses off one towel. I keep a dedicated part of it for drying the "naughty bits", to channel Monty Python, so I'm not drying my face with the same portion I use for "down under". This is pretty remarkable in a household that only uses a towel once. I honestly never thought of putting a plate over food to be microwaved; I'm going to try that. But I doubt that I'll use a used plate, unless it is my own, and a dirty dish really shouldn't be sitting around here that long. Maybe I can actually get my son-in-law to cover his food in the microwave, and I won't have to clean it so often-lol! Except for my uniforms, I can wear my clothing several times before laundering, as I don't really get all that dirty or sweaty anymore.

[kib]

Just to be clear, I'm particular about the used plate thing, it's only DH and me and I wouldn't do it with an icky plate full of sauce or grease, but for something like pizza, most definitely. My flying saucer leftover pods go directly into the fridge and get eaten the next day for lunch. A fine line.

I do "the undercarriage" wash and dry (no hotwax, though ;)) with a separate washcloth that does go right into the personal pail - I use cloth, not toilet paper, so I have a little can just for that.

ETA: The microwave covering has become second nature, my dishes are corelle and fit nicely over one another or I can offset them slightly to let out steam. Plate will get either spattered or steamy and might require a 2 second rinse and wipe, but I hate plastic wrap (and I really, REALLY hate cleaning the microwave), this is much better IMHO.

[Selah]

I try to use half as much paper by taking old printout sheets of 8.5 x 11 bond, cutting them into fourths, and using the other blank sides for scratch pads. Hard to imagine people actually buy pre-printed shopping and to-do lists! I also only wash my hair two or three times a week, and only lather/rinse once. I stopped using conditioner in the shower because I found a leave-in conditioner that does the job and prepares my hair for blow-drying, so I stopped that redundancy. And I refused to go along with DH's love of shower gel and instead opted for bar soap, which I'm (unscientifcally) positive costs less and uses less to do the work.

The real challenge for us will be for using half of the major items that make up our budget, like living in a space half the average size, driving half as much as the average driver, spending half as much on discretionary items like eating out and unnecessary items, and so on.

[domestic goddess]

Oh, kib, I totally understand. There are 6 people in our household, so using other's dishes may not be the best idea for us. Our dishes are Corelle, too, so they should fit well. I didn't mean anything by my comment, but with the little ones constantly (it seems) throwing dirty dishes in the sink, it isn't always going to work for us. But I like the idea of using the plate you are going to eat off of, and then having a warm plate for your food. I can't believe I never thought of it. It is obvious that I don't always think outside the box. Selah, I also use printer paper used on only one side, as well as envelopes, ads that have a blank side, etc. We don't get paper notices from the girls' schools, as our district has gone paper free in that respect, but I use the backs or bottoms of any sheet I can find. I don't eat out more than 3 or 4 times a year, so I don't feel a need to cut back much there. But where I really have to rein in my spending is in the area of craft supplies. I can really get carried away with those.

[kib]

Oh no offense taken, I realized after I wrote it that it probably sounded totally gross. I guess the more practical thing I was getting at is that I try to be mindful; in our household a lot of the dishes don't actually need Washing, they've held peanuts or slices of celery or crackers or a separated egg, a quick rinse is really enough, or occasionally even a re-use. But I totally get it, in a family of many people including children, that's not practical, I guess you should be excited that the dishes make it to the sink at all. Woo hoo. ;)

Be careful with the microwave plates, they get hot.

[rodeosweetheart]

When we go to Culvers, we split a tuna melt basket or a fish dinner--definitely enough for two adults.

[lessisbest]

We save the cold water that comes out of the faucet before it gets hot when we take a shower and use it for doing dishes, or we use it in our 1-gallon water distiller (we use distilled water in our humidifier). It only takes 1-gallon of water to do dishes that don't go into the dishwasher (we run it once a week) and after meal clean-up. We heat 5-cups of "saved" water in our electric kettle and add about 5-cups of cold water, and use the remainder of the gallon to rinse the dishes. It also only takes about 1/8 t. of dish detergent using this method. You need to use a small plastic tub or large plastic bowl in your sink for this to work well.

We use our bath towel for the entire week, and only wash up (spit bath) on Sunday, Tuesday and Friday, instead of taking a shower. Fortunately, the towels are hung near a floor vent which helps the towels dry quickly after use. One summer we used small 18-inch square microfiber towels and they dry even faster and are actually large enough to dry your entire body and hair if you have short hair. These small microfiber towels would be great if you have small children to reduce the number of large bath towels in the laundry.

When I heat water for my first cup of tea in the morning, I boil enough in the electric kettle to fill 2 more cups and store it in my Thermos bottle to use later.

[profnot]

I refused to go along with DH's love of shower gel and instead opted for bar soap, which I'm (unscientifcally) positive costs less and uses less to do the work.

Why don't you have a contest to prove you're right?

You get in the shower with him and demonstrate you can use far less shower gel on his gorgeous person than he uses. And he can show you how to minimize your use of soap in same way. It's all in the hand technique.

And just think of the water and bathroom heater savings!

[jeanniet]

I refill my soap dispenser with half soap and half water.

[pinkytoe]

I probably use 1/10th of the paper towels I once did since we now use washcloths instead for cleanup. I think I buy a roll about once every 3-4 months. They only get used on gross or very greasy things. I have always halved quantities on shampoo, detergent. I have a running argument with dh on the dishwasher though- he thinks it needs more than I do. We each use our towel for about a week before washing. I dry off with a hand towel. Let's see...I also drive a 20 yr old car which is probably twice as long as most people do.

[Blackdog Lin]

I also use rags rather than paper towels for all but the grossest of cleanups, like pinkytoe. And while DH insists on a paper napkin for his meals, I'm fine with a cloth napkin which at least saves us 1/2 the cost of napkins.

Oh, and along the same line, I recently figured out the concept of "we don't have to buy the same item for both of us". In the last year I tried to switch us to a much-cheaper brand of toilet paper. DH hated it, but I had no problem with it, so I now buy the more expensive for him and the much cheaper for me and save decent money. And on our morning coffee, I have to have a semi-premium brand, I just don't like the cheaper ones, but he can't tell the difference so I now buy both and make my half-pot first every morning, then use his cheaper brand for his half-pot later. Again saving decent money every month.

[awakenedsoul]

I use flannel squares from recycled sheets for t.p. I only use the paper kind for #2 or that time of the month. I don't buy much toilet paper anymore.

[ToomuchStuff]

My mom picked up a microwave dish cover, at a garage sale, still in its package. It looks like an upside down pie plate and it plastic. I know others don't like plastic and wondered if a Pyrex dish would do the same anti splatter job.
This is one reason why I like things like those Forman grills (or that style). They help with portion control and clean up. Cooking for a single person, if I am going to use the stove, then I am going to make several meals at once or would rather use something smaller. I always wondered about those circular oven things that were on infomercials years ago, rather then a large oven.

[lessisbest]

ToomuchStuff-
I have a wall-mounted (over the stove) convection/microwave that uses a lot less electricity than my regular oven, and I use it for a lot of my baking needs (I also use my 3 solar ovens a lot). I can bake 2 loaves of bread in the Sharp convection/microwave in 20-minutes WITHOUT any pre-heating for even more savings. I stack 12-inch pizza pans three high to bake cookies.

Years ago I had one of those round convection ovens and they work well, nice for keeping some of the heat out of the kitchen and cooking things quickly, but they were horrible to clean. The one we had included additional plastic rings so you could build-up the height enough to hold a small turkey, but it was a poor design because the rings cracked. The ones made with a glass bowl-style base were better than the all-plastic ones.

[kib]

My mom picked up a microwave dish cover, at a garage sale, still in its package. It looks like an upside down pie plate and it plastic. I know others don't like plastic and wondered if a Pyrex dish would do the same anti splatter job.. If you can put it in the microwave, you can use it as a cover. Doesn't have to be pyrex, any microwave safe bowl or plate will do.

[catherine]

Here's another one.

I sweep before I vacuum because my Miele vacuum bags are quite expensive (about $4 each). I'd rather sweep, then vacuum, than have to try to empty the bag myself. I know Amy D used to do that, and I sometimes, do, but I figure I'd rather spend the time sweeping than dealing with all the dust when I try to get it out of the bag, and the bags are of such high quality I hate to throw them out.

[kib]

Catherine - my cats absolutely hate the wire cat brush I got for them, but I have found it to be excellent for "pre cleaning" the carpet so it doesn't take all day to suck up the cat hair. I wouldn't brush a nice expensive carpet with this, it's harsh, but for the crappy one we've got down it's just perfect. Also not bad on furniture.

[wren]

Such an interesting thread. So many good ideas.

- One way I've found to use less, is weighing food portions that I'm freezing, on a small digital scale. It makes the food go further, as well as limiting calories. I originally got the scale because I make herbal salves, and needed really accurate measurements. Now I use the scale for lots of things, such as foods like honey or butter which are messy to measure in a cup.

- To save on purchased detergent, I hand-wash wool sweaters with a little baking soda, followed by a mild vinegar rinse, the same way I do my hair. It works well. If they are not too dirty, sometimes I just hang them (dry) on the outdoor clothesline to air out and shake off the dust, instead of washing.

- to freshen up blankets and quilts instead of washing-- (this only works in a cold climate) - When it's below freezing temperature outside and you have dry powder snow, first shake off the blanket to remove loose dust, then lay it in the clean powder snow. Use clothes brush to brush off the snow, then lay the other side down. I also clean the rubber-backed mat in the porch this way, except use a broom to brush it off. Snow = a cleaning product!

[bekkilyn]

I was planning to buy more t.p. at the store last weekend when I went for groceries and discovered that the prices have crept up even higher. Since I still have t.p. at home, I decided not to buy it and also decided that now might be a great time to try out using a bidet bottle. If the bidet bottle works the way I'm hoping, I might not have to buy more t.p. for years!

I also stopped using shampoo and now use baking soda instead along with a vinegar rinse. I also use baking soda for deodorant.

[lessisbest]

I have a bidet bottle as an emergency choice (along with cloth wipes), but never really got into using it. I also have enough TP for one year in storage (just like we have enough food for a year).

I noticed Menards have SCOTT 1,000 sheets per roll 8-pack on sale for $5.77, and that's a stock-up price. Dillons (our Kroger-associated grocer) has Charmin 6-Mega or 12 Double Rolls on sale for $5.99 when you purchase 4 (in combination with Bounty Paper Towels - which I don't use, I use rags).

I calculate the cost of TP by weighing the roll. That is the only thing all rolls have in common to determine the actual cost. Not all "sheets" are the same size, length varies, some rolls have more than one ply, some rolls are actually 1/4" narrower..... And all the variables change all the time. I don't give a lot of consideration to "comfort", the cost is my bottom line. And when it comes to long-term storage, leave the soft and fluffy stuff at the store or use it quickly. Soft and fluffy TP disintegrates over time. I've also had a bundles of SCOTT TP that didn't have the cardboard roll and you have to make sure they are stored upright, or the rolls collapse if they are on it's side. The most TP for the $ is a 4-pak from The Dollar General with 1,250 sheets per (1-ply) roll.

[lessisbest]

I have to correct myself. The Menard's ad this morning said the Scott TP was on sale for $5.77, but it was $4.99 at the store - WOO HOO, even better price!