Linda P's Frugal February

[Linda Pattison]

We had several unexpected expenses in December 2012 and January 2013, so cutting back is a priority this year in February. Our 25-year-old refrigerator gave up on Dec. 22 and the one we wanted could not be delivered until Jan. 02 so we were without one over Christmas. We had purchased a tiny counter fridge to cope, but had to return it as it didn't work. We had a chimney problem which is temporarily repaired until it comes down in the spring, and a squirrel had the nerve to chew under a sill and destory a circuit of wiring, without being electrocuted. Oh but the best one was the furnace, which kept shutting down in brutal weather of -20 to -30C. We couldn't go anywhere over the season as we had to protect the pipes. The first tech assured us he had fixed it by cleaning the nozzle but no, it kept shutting down. Finally a tech formerly from the Bristol area tracked the problem to an electronic fixture.

With the loss of food and all these other things, we incurred many expenses. February will be lean, and my first goal is to pay down the cost of the refrigerator by $500. We are ahead on our prepaid oil costs, but our electrics will be up substantially because of turning on some electic panels during the furnace troubles. So I don't think I can cover everything by February cuts, but I will come up with a few things to save money in February.

[Linda Pattison]

I've been reading posts by other members and the first thing we need to do is visit the grocery less often. We've always used lists and planned to avoid waste, but it seems to me that impulse buying happens on the little 'extra' trips. We make good use of BOGO (buy one get one) bcause we limit it to things we normally use and which are non-perishable unless we can use immediately.

I'd also like to report back on using cold water for laundry- our clothes are bright and clean and often the 2 for 1 cold water detergents are featured, so we have saved a lot on detergent and on heating the water. Our dryer, which we have to use in winter, is an energy star product. All things added to the household are now energy-efficient. So far this year that is a refrigerator and a microwave.

The recent servicing of our furnace is resulting in saved oil despite severe weather. While January has ups and down in temperature Feruary is typically our coldest month. Mind, this year January has been cruel.

We had four bales of fibreglass batting stored because they were on sale last year tax-free. David has been imroving the insulation at our sills after foam-sealing any cracks, and wrapping all heting pipes in special foam tubing. We noticce slight improvement with each thing we do, even though the basic insulation here was good- he's making it excellent.

[MissEllie]

Sounds like you've had an expensive couple of months linda
We've also been looking at insulation and my job for this evening is to make a lovely new draught excluder from an old pillow case.
Good luck with your frugal month

[Linda Pattison]

I hope you'll share a pic of that, we have a door from our kitchen to a deck which is slightly warped and a 'sweep' on the bottom won't quite work. I have some old textiles and would love to see what you do. I'd been thinking of using some of the fibreglass inside mine.

[Linda Pattison]

Here we are, it's February 01, and we've completed the insulation of our hot water pipes in the basement. We noticed an immediate improvement in the kitchen, where there is a 50 ft. run from the furnace. David had been replacing copper pipe with Pex and it prevents corrosion between the minerals in our well water and the metal. We covered the Pex with foam tubes. They cost about $1.69 Cdn for 6 ft., so about a pound in UK currency for that length. Since the water stays warm for hours now, we don't run the tap while waiting for the temperature to rise.

[morbidia]

I had a new condenser boiler fitted at my house a feww years ago and although it is efficient at saving fuel its not as good as my old boiler, this one has a plastic pipe that takes away excess water and during 2010 when we had a very cold snowy winter any water in the pipe kept freezing and then the boiler wouldn't work, so I would be out side up a ladder in the dark every mornng before work pouring hot water on it from the kettle, I bought some of the foam pipe covering that you have used and it completely solved the problem and its been fine since. My insulation in the loft is not very good at all so as soon as my daugher moves out and all her things are gone from the loft I am going to inuslate it properly

[Linda Pattison]

morbidia, you are so right about the foam, and it is easy-peasy. You'll save a lot by insulating your loft, insulation is so cheap compared to fuel and I hope you get an exemption from the VAT when you purchase.

We had to make an unplanned trip today to fuel up the snowblower/tractor as a storm is coming so there can be fuel shortages after if the trucks are delaed on the highways. We made it more worthwhile by getting milk at the convenience store at the garage too.

David has also finished the insulation project in our sill space, no leaks there- he used canned foam at the seams, which is rodent proof, and pink fibreglass batting over the concrete. Our foundation is over 15" min so it hols ambient heat well. When we can afford it, we want to improve the basement hearth with glass doors, as the damper is old and not sealing reliably.

Having the furnace re-serviced has resulted in significant savings in oil, which we would have had to order before the storm but which should last 2 weeks now.

The other energy project we appreciate is the insulation of the coops, it is -17C outside and the birds do not mind being in, it's +5 C in the layer coop.

[Linda Pattison]

Cooking today as the snow falls and we accept that we will be snowed in for several days. Despite the loss of freezer meats the cupboards were full and we can eat them down - making chicken soup and chicken a la king to last 4 days, so that when we have to shovel and use the tractor we don`t have to worry about meals. It occurs to me after reding stef`s post that frugality does not mean deprivation. We have so much if only we stop and look through our goods. We save by cooking from scratch and benefiting from the nutrition not present in convenience foods. Of all our foods I enjoy the eggs from our hens the most. But my chicken meat comes from a local store.

[Linda Pattison]

I'm sorry to have been absent for so long, I often have trouble getting into this site. David and I have had the flu since the 14th and are just getting through it. Terrible stuff and we had our shots, but they were only 70% effective world-wide this time. I managed to sve the $400 Cdn needed to pay down the new refrigerator, largely through confinement and eating up what we had on hand, plus not needing fuel for our vehicle much. Temps are milder this week, so not as much furnace oil required either. Another storm looming, but a chance it may pass to the south.

It's income tax time in Canada and the government has provided an improved online service resulting in savings for the average tapayer and quicker refunds if expecting one.

Some fresh foods have been scarce during the bad weather as we rely mainly on trucks to deliver and the roads have been dangerous. Power rates are up again, not sure what it will mean in actual $. We have kept the house at 17C for several years now and dress more warmly indoors. We're often in barn clothing anyway, we look like the homeless when we are in our yard! Propane prices are stable and we use it for all our cooking and in our livng room fireplace.

I'm sorting out excess apparrel for the Diabetes clothing drive, I prefer that to giving a cash donation and it is well-appreciated.

All of the barn changes have made the place perfect for raising chickens, we even gave a detailed tour to our 4-H agricultural club for young farmers. We also added to the insulation around the sills of our home, resulting in a more draft-free basement and we used fibreglass batts bought 2 years ago on sale so that was a bargain. Only 6 days left in February, money matters not too bad.

[Freeranger]

I'm glad you can still sound so cheerful, Linda, as it sounds as though you've had a very trying few weeks. I suppose all we can hope for from frugality is that it counterbalances all the necessary expenses. I've found it's been really good at making me think differently about a few things so am maybe going to be better organised in future. I agree about frugality not meaning deprivation - have just made a batch of dough for tea and the next couple of days, and we've eaten really well ( a little too well, some may say). The insulation improvements are improving your quality of life as well as saving money, and just avoiding being wasteful. It's amazing how much difference little things make overall. I hope you've survived the worst of the weather that we were hearing about and are toasty warm behind all the insulation foam.

[Linda Pattison]

It feels good to try the little things and have them work, doesn't it? Energy costs are skyrocketing and when you fix something not up to scratch you can feel a bit smug. We've had terrible winter in several ways, absolutely no Christmas whatever, but gosh, we have gotten through it and David was well enough today to run his beloved tractor and clear away the last of the troublesome snow.

We had a notice today from senior's pharmacare stating that we had such and such an income and stating our rates for 2013. Of course they had it wrong! We were being overcharged during 2012 as well. I hate dealing with government, they have access to our income tax, so (duh) they should have it right. Once it's fixed we will get a little cheque and I intend to count it in my frugal February! And today at the pharmacy the cashier told me we qualified for A 50% reduction in the fee for having a prescription filled and entered us innto the file. Yes, I felt smug.

The flock is doing well, paying for itself, and very cheery. The roosters are worth every penny in feed, and they are comical. I credit them with keeping me amused during the worst of the season. The senior one tugs on my pants leg when I want to leave. You can't put a price on that.

[Freeranger]

One of our major foodstores has an advertising slogan "Every little helps" - let's feel smug about all our little victories!

[Linda Pattison]

Each and every one! I found out yesterday while speaking to one of the met managers at our grocery that the long-awaited poultry processing plant is bout to open nearby. It is owned by a large group of employees and will substantially reduce transportation costs to customers. It also means local producers will have market for their product. Very pleased.

I find that getting to know the employees where you shop is both pleasant and useful. They are more than happy to share their shopping secrets!

[Freeranger]

I live in a rural area with small towns, and even at the big supermarkets I've been able to enlist staff help to ask for their cheapest deals. I told them about Frugal February and they've all been brilliant! In general, though, I try to buy from small producers and farmers' markets and I agree that it really helps to have good relationships with them.

[Linda Pattison]

They are a wonderful resource! One day I was at a competitor's store and spotted one of the cashiers from our regular market; we winked at each other and I whispered I'd not tell where she had shopped and she pointed me to some meat deals on the beef display. *High fives* shared and we slipped away from each other chuckling.

We had the flu and were housebound for another week- vehicle remained mostly in the driveway and we kept eating through our stash. As a result I was able to pay off the refrigerator (yay). Not only that, but we had been stashing a little money monthly into travel account and herd the Euro and Pound were down this week, so we bought 300 pounds for our UK trip in May 2014. We're going to watch the markets until then and purchase our UK spending money when it is to our advantage.

Beef prices are on the downturn here so we bought a bit extra for the freezer. Our neighbours are farmers so we tend to hear when prices are about to go up or down. There is usually a selloff at the end of winter when hay/grain reserves diminish and this has been a bitter winter so meat is available at reasonable prices, for now. I plan to make some crockpot batches of stew and chili con carne so that the ecooking energy is used efficiently. More bad wether coming so we again hunker down, and save!