If you’re anything like the rest of us, you probably think that you don’t spend that much money on a daily basis, but then you discover that your bank account is almost empty. It may be true that you don’t buy things you don’t need and you try to be reasonable, but your money still has a way to escape you. That’s why, if you want to gather some savings, it’s essential to keep track of all your spendings – purchases, services, bills; absolutely everything. You will be surprised to discover how much money you’re wasting for basic things in your household like:
Setting the thermostat too high
It’s recommended to set your thermostat at 120 degrees to stay energy efficient both for the environment and the sake of your wallet. However, many households still have their thermostats set at as high as 140 degrees. If that’s the case for you, that’s where a lot of your money goes. It’s good to invest in a smarter, programmable thermostat that will control the temperature and default to an energy-saving mode when no one is home. Plus, it may be a good idea to think about the way you heat your water. Thanks to reading some tankless water heater reviews you will see that it’s a far more efficient solution from a long-term perspective. It only heats the water that you’re actually using at the moment, so it doesn’t use any energy to keep it warm to store it.
Grocery shopping while hungry
When you’re hungry, you’re craving everything and you have the impression that you could eat a lot of different things at the same moment; that’s rarely the case. If you’re shopping on an empty stomach, you will most probably end up with tons of things you don’t (and won’t) actually need – you will waste both money and food. It’s the same if you have too much time on your hands; you start walking around the store, reading labels and thinking about what you could eat or try. It may be helpful to pick a day for grocery shopping. Make meal plans for the whole week and stick to it – don’t allow yourself little trips to the store every now and then, even if it’s for one thing only (you will never stop at it).
Postponing repairs
Leaky faucets are not only bad for the environment but from a long-time perspective, they affect your finances, too. It may not seem like a lot when you see a couple of drops leaking whenever you are in the bathroom during a day, but if you think about it annually, you will understand. Especially that leaky faucets are not that hard to fix.
A drafty window can lower the room temperature by several degrees which will make you set your thermostat higher – it’s both expensive for you and damaging for our planet. Luckily, in most cases, it is possible to improve your house’s insulation without replacing all the windows.
Throwing away the food
It’s a great idea to cook more whenever you do it, but if you get tired of eating the same dinner every day during a week, you don’t have to leave it and forget it. You can pack it in a small container and store if in your freezer to have dinner ready quickly when a truly busy day comes. Sometimes you stuff something in your fridge and forget about it until it starts smelling bad, that’s why it’s so important to keep track of what you have and not to buy too many things only to fill the fridge.
Television
Think about how much time you spend in front of your TV. And then think about it again – how much of it you spent watching an actual cable TV and how much of it was Netflix? There’s probably no need to pay for all that. Consider yours and your family’s needs. Maybe a single streaming platform is enough, or perhaps you don’t even need that because you watch something several times a month and you could do well with daily passes or paying for single movies/transmissions.
Do you find yourself guilty of any of the above? Or maybe you have your own little sins that you’re subconsciously aware of? The bottom line is that you should be reasonable and attentive. Keep track of all the money that you spend, including bills and other regular payments. Consider opening a savings account and make regular contributions. Think about efficiency, even if it means paying some more at the moment – it will all pay off in a long-distance future.
