Saving money in the household made easy

In this day and age, almost everyone thinks about saving and how to use their money effectively: how do I invest it profitably, do I really need this or that, and which cent can I save?

However, before you really worry about financial crises, you can manage your own finances very well. With simple and truly easy tricks, you can save hard cash: this doesn't just mean the eternal tips that you should leave your car at home sometimes, but serious advice with which a housewife or househusband can save quite a few euros in everyday life.

Saving money in the household made easy

Reuse dish brushes

Dish brushes – these are needed again and again and save us a lot of work with encrusted pots. If they are not yet old, but a little dirty, you don't have to throw them in the trash right away. Simply put the dish brush in the dishwasher with the dishes. Now they are not only clean again, but also germ-free.

Reuse toothbrushes

Toothbrushes don't just throw them away: once cleaned, you can still use them well to apply stain remover to laundry or to clean narrow areas, e.g., at the washbasin.Soda maker instead of mineral waterclean.

Mineral water is very healthy – yet you can save a lot here too. By purchasing a

soda maker, you achieve similar results and can also save money. Besides, the constant lugging of bottles and crates is eliminated.No expensive special cleaners

Who would have thought? Advertising and industry deceive us a lot when it comes to

household cleaners.Yet you don't necessarily need about ¾ of the offers in the supermarket. Recommendations from home economists state that a normal dish soap, a toilet cleaner, scouring cream, and an all-purpose cleaner are quite sufficient to clean the entire apartment. Many things can be cleaned perfectly with vinegar. This not only saves a lot of money but also protects the environment.Economical washing

You have to wash laundry every day – there's no way around that. However, hardly anyone thinks about the

electricity costs of a washing machine.Yet you can save up to 30% of the costs here. A wash cycle at 60° can be just as effective as a cycle at 95°. Example:The only difference: the machine requires less energy due to the temperature, so money can be saved. If you also forgo the pre-wash cycle and only wash with a full load using short wash programs, you are doing something good for the environment.Shop purposefully

Anyone who

does their shopping with a growling stomach will bitterly regret it at home. When unpacking, you will discover lots of items that perhaps ended up in the shopping cart unintentionally. Instead, shopping with a full stomach is much more useful. many shopping carts are very large and encourage increased shopping. Take a shopping basket with you and pay attention to your shopping list. Find out in advance if there are promotions and pay attention to the price. Usually, the cheaper items are placed at the very bottom. This makes shopping more fun.Another tip:Order in the kitchen

Sort your purchases in the kitchen and pay attention to

expiration dates. Surely you always discover things in the back corners whose best-before date has passed. Anyone who checks their cupboards more often and aligns their shopping accordingly, stows new items in the back and moves older ones within reach, has to throw away less food and also saves their wallet.Set the refrigerator correctly

If you also pay attention to the

temperature setting of your refrigerator, money can also be saved. Both refrigerators and freezer combinations do not have to run at the highest level. In the refrigerator area, a temperature of +5° is sufficient, while -18° is perfectly adequate in the freezer compartment. Additionally, you save yourself the icing up of the freezer compartments, which additionally boosts electricity consumption. It is also important to defrost the freezer compartment regularly so that huge amounts of electricity are not consumed here.Position the refrigerator correctly

If possible, the refrigerator should not necessarily stand next to the heater, the electric stove, or the dishwasher. Why not? The

heat source of the household appliances makes the refrigerator rotate more frequently, because it tries to maintain its temperature. If this cannot be avoided due to a lack of space, an insulation board from the hardware store can be useful.No hot food in the refrigerator

If a dish is still hot or warm, you should not put it in the refrigerator immediately, because that costs energy. Always let it cool down to room temperature first and only then put it in the refrigerator.

Save electricity when ironing

You can also save some electricity when ironing; this works with aluminum foil. You stretch this over the ironing board and then cover it with a molleton cloth. The aluminum foil stores a lot of heat and releases it to the laundry.

Posted on: 06/05/2012

Photo by Janine, meinhaushalt.at

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