Money Wasters You May or May Not Have Thought Of
(This is one of my more tongue-in-cheek articles)
Everyone always wants to find ways to save money. Why? There are so many ways that it is easier to just throw money away, without even really thinking about it. Here are a few of those.
- Never wash a full load of laundry. In fact wash only one or two pieces of clothing in a machine load. It is so much better that way, as not only do you waste power, water, and detergent, you can get the extra work in that it takes to wash clothes in several loads. Use lots of soap, so that you have to run them through the rinse cycle twice to get it all out. At least your clothes will be clean!
- Wash your dishes with the water running all the time. Make sure it’s as hot as you can possibly stand it, too. With both of those, then you can waste water and gas at the same time!
- Always take baths. Baths use more water, so that way you can throw money down the drain. Of course, that isn’t the case if you decide to have a shower that is so long that you run out of hot water. That would be even better. And make sure to do it every day, twice a day, if you can.
- Water you lawn every day for the greenest grass in the neighbourhood. Heck, make sure that the water runs all over the sidewalk and is on full blast! Also do it at the hottest time of day, that way the water evaporates quicker, making it less efficient. And do it for at least two or three hours, just so that the lawn gets a really good soaking!
- Use every light you can in the house. Never open curtains, as that lets in natural light that is better for your eyes. Always use the old style light bulbs, too. These bulbs take more power and don’t last as long, so that makes them even better for the electric company.
- Keep your thermostat as low as you can in summer, so the A/C runs full blast. In winter, keep it as high as you can tolerate, so the heat works overtime. This will make sure that you use the maximum energy you can. Don’t ever change this for vacations or when you’re at work, either.
- Use your gas fireplace at every opportunity, even in summer. Hey, it looks cool and makes for great conversation! If it gets too warm, you can always open a window.
- Always buy brand name! This work for everything, from groceries to clothing. Everybody knows that generic products are usually brand names repackaged or something manufactured exactly the same way with the same ingredients (for drugs and food), but just to be sure you’re getting your brand buy the ones with the right labels. At least you know what you’re getting, then.
- Always buy new! This is especially true with technology. Having the latest technology trends shows how cool you really are. It doesn’t matter if the price will drop in three months to 50% of what you pay, and then all the quirks and bugs will be fixed. You gotta get it now!
- Wait on auto maintenance as long as you can. If the manual says 3000 miles / 5000 km for the oil change, then wait twice that, that way you know you’re getting your money’s worth. Of course if the engine seizes, that might be cool, too. Who has seen that? At least you’ll have something new to talk about! Same goes with tires. Don’t check them, ever. Just wait for the inevitable blow out, so that you can have a little adventure on the freeway when it happens.
What other wasters are there? I’d love to hear them!
Tags: better managing your budget, budget planning, budget tips, Frugality, learning to budget, saving on household expenses
