What small things did you do TODAY to save money?

[trashtalk]

Our dryer was over 20 years old and needed to be replaced. New they are over $600, so that wasn't an option.
  The spouse has a friend in the scrap metal business, so he called to see if the friend had any dryers that he hadn't scrapped and may be functional. Unfortunately, he didn't.

 More research turned up used dryers on Craigslist or FB Marketplace going for over $200, or $75 for an ancient model. Used appliance stores in town didn't have any dryers for sale.
 Just when we were looking at traveling to another town to pick up a used model, the scrap metal friend called. It seems that a couple hours after my spouse called, someone had him pick up a dryer they didn't want. The dryer is a decade old, much more modern in looks and style than our previous one, but it had some dings and stains, and the plastic on the front panel was cracked.
  The spouse went and picked it up, unscrewed the panels, cleaned out the air intake and the electrical coils, replaced the vent ducting, and voila - a working dryer. We gave the friend money for his time and effort picking up the dryer, plus what it would have earned him at the scrap yard. And of course he took our old dead dryer.
  But the spouse and I were both excited. It was serendipitous that the friend happened to get the call about a dryer that day. And my husband was willing to put in a bit of time to clean up the dryer. VS $600+ for a new, or over $200 for a used, we paid $20, a 90% savings over the other used dryers. And the friend came out ahead too!
 

Brilliant on all fronts. Great work everyone!

[trashtalk]

* cut my 6yo and 3yo’s hair
* snagged cleaning products and an orchid in bloom from a neighbor’s move-out pile
* ate apples off our tree
* used the Libby app to borrow and read ebooks
* cut up three stained, holey, thinning towels for use as kitchen cleanup rags

[Imma]

Fixed our leaky toilet with ductape! I found a little crack in the tank and it caused a slow drip of (clean) water. The toilet is ancient and will be replaced soon (we've already set the date) so I wasn't willing to buy a new tank just to throw it away in 6 months. So I tried to push the sides together, covered it with tape, just to be on the safe side I've also put an empty glass jar on the floor underneath it. I hope this will hold for the next few months.

[Poundwise]

Built an aluminum ramp for my handicapped grandma instead of buying one. Fits better, looks better, only cost was time (used some scrap metal).

That's wonderful, and every time she uses it she will be so proud and feel loved!

[cool7hand]

Fixing electronic issues with a vehicle via YouTube. Again.

[FrugalShrew]

Built an aluminum ramp for my handicapped grandma instead of buying one. Fits better, looks better, only cost was time (used some scrap metal).

That's wonderful, and every time she uses it she will be so proud and feel loved!

Aww this is awesome! Way to go, @baconschteam!

[Roadrunner53]

Just threw together a bean soup in my slow cooker from things I dragged out of the freezer, fridge and pantry. Had a bag of previously soaked assorted beans in the freezer, frozen sauteed mushrooms and peppers, Had some chopped onions in the refrigerator. Added a couple of cans of diced tomatoes, one can of tomato sauce, 1/2 jar of leftover spaghetti sauce, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, a small packet of ham flavoring that came with the beans, and a packet of chili seasoning mix. I have a couple patties of breakfast sausage I will cut up in a little while and put in there too. It really just needs heated up and cooked for a little while. Kind of a hobo chili/soup! Will make many bowls of meals from just a mishmash of foods!

Plus, cleaned out some stuff out of the freezer and refrigerator. Now I have a little more space!

[Sugaree]

We've been needing a new lawn mower for awhile.   We have a 15+ year-old model that basically had to be repaired every time the grass needed cutting and parts were becoming g hard to find locally.  We've been saving up for it for awhile now and scored a killer deal at a moving sale yesterday.  One year old, 63 hours on the clock, $1100 under budget, and $2600 under retail.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

Just threw together a bean soup in my slow cooker from things I dragged out of the freezer, fridge and pantry. Had a bag of previously soaked assorted beans in the freezer, frozen sauteed mushrooms and peppers, Had some chopped onions in the refrigerator. Added a couple of cans of diced tomatoes, one can of tomato sauce, 1/2 jar of leftover spaghetti sauce, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, a small packet of ham flavoring that came with the beans, and a packet of chili seasoning mix. I have a couple patties of breakfast sausage I will cut up in a little while and put in there too. It really just needs heated up and cooked for a little while. Kind of a hobo chili/soup! Will make many bowls of meals from just a mishmash of foods!

Plus, cleaned out some stuff out of the freezer and refrigerator. Now I have a little more space!

Your soup sounds delicious!

[Rosy]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Nothing beats an "everything but the kitchen sink" soup. Takes care of all the leftovers (thus automatically cleans out the fridge), the odd packets of this and that, or the last few peppers on the vine.

[pasadenafr]

Not my money, but I got my sister to buy an Air Fryer. My nephew tends to order takeout several times a week (!!), even though she often cooks, which is costing her a fortune (they're not frugal lol).

So I got her to buy the thing, and showed my nephew how to make single-serve BBQ chicken wings with french fries, with basically 0 prep. Takes less time than it takes for them to be delivered, and according to him they're better. He got so into it he read the entire recipe book and earmark what he wants to try.

My sister was also super excited that she can make a bunch of healthy things with minimal work and without having to fire up the oven or baby the stovetop.

Less take-out, less Whole Foods salad bar, more money, win.

[Catbert]

Just threw together a bean soup in my slow cooker from things I dragged out of the freezer, fridge and pantry. Had a bag of previously soaked assorted beans in the freezer, frozen sauteed mushrooms and peppers, Had some chopped onions in the refrigerator. Added a couple of cans of diced tomatoes, one can of tomato sauce, 1/2 jar of leftover spaghetti sauce, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, a small packet of ham flavoring that came with the beans, and a packet of chili seasoning mix. I have a couple patties of breakfast sausage I will cut up in a little while and put in there too. It really just needs heated up and cooked for a little while. Kind of a hobo chili/soup! Will make many bowls of meals from just a mishmash of foods!

Plus, cleaned out some stuff out of the freezer and refrigerator. Now I have a little more space!

My favorite type of soup/stew.  Many years ago my sister worked at a breakfast and lunch restaurant whose patrons were mostly downtown workers.  Every Friday the special was "Hobo Soup"  with all the bits and bobs that wouldn't make it to Monday.  They would regularly get confused people who didn't understand the concept, "But it's nothing like last time".   

[Roadrunner53]

Just threw together a bean soup in my slow cooker from things I dragged out of the freezer, fridge and pantry. Had a bag of previously soaked assorted beans in the freezer, frozen sauteed mushrooms and peppers, Had some chopped onions in the refrigerator. Added a couple of cans of diced tomatoes, one can of tomato sauce, 1/2 jar of leftover spaghetti sauce, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, a small packet of ham flavoring that came with the beans, and a packet of chili seasoning mix. I have a couple patties of breakfast sausage I will cut up in a little while and put in there too. It really just needs heated up and cooked for a little while. Kind of a hobo chili/soup! Will make many bowls of meals from just a mishmash of foods!

Plus, cleaned out some stuff out of the freezer and refrigerator. Now I have a little more space!

My favorite type of soup/stew.  Many years ago my sister worked at a breakfast and lunch restaurant whose patrons were mostly downtown workers.  Every Friday the special was "Hobo Soup"  with all the bits and bobs that wouldn't make it to Monday.  They would regularly get confused people who didn't understand the concept, "But it's nothing like last time".

Yep, I could never replicate this soup again! Next time it will be a different Hobo soup! Just had a bowl and it was filling and yummy and super spicy!

[getsorted]

Made coconut milk from dried coconut flakes instead of buying a can.

[cool7hand]

Fixing electronic issues with a vehicle via YouTube. Again.

[Sugaree]

Made coconut milk from dried coconut flakes instead of buying a can.

What's your process?  Does it turn out creamy like the canned coconut milk, or more watery like the stuff in shelf-stable cartons?

[getsorted]

Made coconut milk from dried coconut flakes instead of buying a can.

What's your process?  Does it turn out creamy like the canned coconut milk, or more watery like the stuff in shelf-stable cartons?

How thick and creamy it turns out just depends on how much water you use. I blend 1 cup of dried flakes with 1-2 cups of water to make it comparable to canned; you use twice that much water if you want it like the carton stuff. Put it in a high-speed blender for about two minutes, strain through a jelly bag. I think you're supposed to add a little salt if you don't plan to use it right away.

If you dry the pulp out again, you have "coconut flour." I used to dry it out and give it to a friend who didn't eat gluten, who made it into scones. But I Just compost it myself.

[Dollar Slice]

I've been needing a new pair of shoes for a while (my unfortunately expensive orthotic/doctor-recommended pair are wearing holes in the lining) so I've been holding out waiting for them to go on sale. Finally did this week and bought two pairs at $33 off each. I probably could have held out for an even better clearance sale since they are coming out with a newer version, but there's only so long you can gamble on having holes in your shoes when you have this much foot pain...

[cool7hand]

Getting lunch with a former colleague on his new firm's dime

[Sugaree]

Made coconut milk from dried coconut flakes instead of buying a can.

What's your process?  Does it turn out creamy like the canned coconut milk, or more watery like the stuff in shelf-stable cartons?

How thick and creamy it turns out just depends on how much water you use. I blend 1 cup of dried flakes with 1-2 cups of water to make it comparable to canned; you use twice that much water if you want it like the carton stuff. Put it in a high-speed blender for about two minutes, strain through a jelly bag. I think you're supposed to add a little salt if you don't plan to use it right away.

If you dry the pulp out again, you have "coconut flour." I used to dry it out and give it to a friend who didn't eat gluten, who made it into scones. But I Just compost it myself.

Thanks!  I love coconut curries, but my family is...not.  It would be nice to be able to make smaller batches of coconut milk for when I'm cooking for just me.

[Dicey]

Made coconut milk from dried coconut flakes instead of buying a can.

What's your process?  Does it turn out creamy like the canned coconut milk, or more watery like the stuff in shelf-stable cartons?

How thick and creamy it turns out just depends on how much water you use. I blend 1 cup of dried flakes with 1-2 cups of water to make it comparable to canned; you use twice that much water if you want it like the carton stuff. Put it in a high-speed blender for about two minutes, strain through a jelly bag. I think you're supposed to add a little salt if you don't plan to use it right away.

If you dry the pulp out again, you have "coconut flour." I used to dry it out and give it to a friend who didn't eat gluten, who made it into scones. But I Just compost it myself.

Where do you source your coconut flakes?

[getsorted]

Where do you source your coconut flakes?

Bulk stores and Asian groceries will have the best prices. The most expensive route is buying a small bag of unsweetened coconut flakes from the baking aisle at say, Wal-Mart. That yields about 2 cans worth of coconut milk and the bag is the same price as one can of coconut milk, so even taking the least-cheap route, you're getting half-price coconut milk.

There was a period of time when all my grocery shopping involved a five-mile round trip walk over muddy paths with a four-year-old. At that point, dried beat out canned for reasons totally unrelated to cost, but the cost was a nice bonus!

[getsorted]

I've lost a little weight and my belt was too big. Got out a punch and hammer and made a new hole.

Next step is taking in all my work trousers. That will be much more complicated!

[Dollar Slice]

I saved $5 on groceries using coupons.

Then I came home and made dinner, specifically using a recipe to use up some fresh ricotta cheese from a local dairy I bought as a treat earlier in the week. The fresh cheese had gone terribly bad already (well before the expiration date). >:-[  That was $4.23 in the trash.

So I guess I only netted 77 cents in savings. And my dinner was kind of lame with a missing ingredient. Hopefully I didn't poison myself after taking a bite of that cheese - I'm just grateful I tasted it before putting it in the recipe.

[Freedomin5]

I rediscovered a food vacuum sealer a friend had gifted two years ago. Now there’s a pot of chili happily bubbling in my pressure cooker. Once cooked, it will be portioned off, sealed, and frozen to provide several quick and easy homemade frozen dinners.

[LaineyAZ]

I rediscovered a food vacuum sealer a friend had gifted two years ago. Now there’s a pot of chili happily bubbling in my pressure cooker. Once cooked, it will be portioned off, sealed, and frozen to provide several quick and easy homemade frozen dinners.

A friend was just raving about her food sealer.  She said she even used it to remove air from an opened bag of potato chips and then recrimp it to keep them fresh.
If I had a bigger kitchen space I'd seriously consider getting one.

[lifeandlimb]

Got extra dried pasta because the quality brand (that we usually use) was on sale this week! Yay, shelf-stable items.
Bought less meat at the grocery store.
Grabbed a freezer pizza to ward off those nights when my boyfriend has a pizza craving and we end up spending $50 on fancy pizza from the restaurant.

[Gerard]

Caseload season at the supermarket! Processed a case of tomatoes two weeks back. This week is was absolutely beautiful Red Shepherd peppers. The veg part of our plates gets bigger, the meat and starch parts get smaller.

[Freedomin5]

I rediscovered a food vacuum sealer a friend had gifted two years ago. Now there’s a pot of chili happily bubbling in my pressure cooker. Once cooked, it will be portioned off, sealed, and frozen to provide several quick and easy homemade frozen dinners.

A friend was just raving about her food sealer.  She said she even used it to remove air from an opened bag of potato chips and then recrimp it to keep them fresh.
If I had a bigger kitchen space I'd seriously consider getting one.

Honestly, it’s a fun toy, but it’s nothing that a good heavy duty Ziploc freezer bag can’t do. Plus, the Ziploc is reusable.

[Roadrunner53]

Not my money, but I got my sister to buy an Air Fryer. My nephew tends to order takeout several times a week (!!), even though she often cooks, which is costing her a fortune (they're not frugal lol).

So I got her to buy the thing, and showed my nephew how to make single-serve BBQ chicken wings with french fries, with basically 0 prep. Takes less time than it takes for them to be delivered, and according to him they're better. He got so into it he read the entire recipe book and earmark what he wants to try.

My sister was also super excited that she can make a bunch of healthy things with minimal work and without having to fire up the oven or baby the stovetop.

Less take-out, less Whole Foods salad bar, more money, win.

'

Please tell us how to make the chicken wings!!!

[AccidentialMustache]

It was yesterday, but I learned to grout bathroom tile. The last folks (who I'm pretty sure DIY'd the bathroom "refresh") didn't... actually get grout between all the tiles. Mostly up high, but some down low where the shower will hit and DS is getting old enough that baths aren't always the order of the day.

I don't know if I can say I did a good job, but I did no worse than the previous owners did.

I would like to buy touch-up grout in less than 10 lb bags though.

[Imma]

Removed the tomato plants from my garden and picked a few pounds of green tomatoes that I'll ripen indoors.

[Freedomin5]

Instead of paying to eat breakfast at a restaurant, we packed a light breakfast, biked down to the river, and dined al fresco.

[FrugalShrew]

I repaired some underarm holes in an old t-shirt that I use for a pajama top! I am irrationally proud of this, ha.

It feels good to fix something and extend the life of a well-loved item, thereby keeping it out of a landfill and reducing the need for something new to replace it.

[marion10]

It’s been some good frugal days- taking advantage of living near a large city. Sunday went to a humanities festival featuring one of my favorite authors. We had a trolley tour of the neighborhood and even a bar at the closing- all free. We did buy a box lunch - I paid for my friend and she paid for gas.
Hit up thrift shop and got a dress for $6 and some craft supplies for $2.
Found out our local college dietetic department has 3 course dinners for $12 once a week - we are signed up for several of those.
Library schedule is out- more author lectures on the calendar.
Our symphony orchestra has a training orchestra that does excellent concerts- all free or for $5. They are on the calendar.
Signed up for local parking garage special offer and got 3 free parking passes.

[Poundwise]

I repaired an umbrella with sentimental value. It had a broken rib, which had punctured holes in the fabric.
I sealed the holes with pieces of tent repair tape.
I experimented with making crimps to hold the pieces of broken rib together. It didn't work as smoothly as this instructable because the rib was twisted out of shape, but I used hot glue also and hope it will hold for a while. Anyway, if the broken rib is at least held out of the way, that will be good.
https://www.instructables.com/Fix-Broken-Umbrella/

[okisok]

Mended/altered three items of clothing to keep them in the rotation
Used a Fetch rewards gift code to add $5 to an account before a charge hits
Used Target Circle and Ibotta rewards to get two packages of allergy meds and two tubes of toothpaste for -$2 (the rebates were more than the total cost, so I made $2 and got the items for free)
Waited to buy groceries this week until I really need to buy some items
Have been drinking homemade iced tea made with tea bags and random flavored teas in my stash instead of soda. A 12-pack of Coke is over $7 here now, so that's out. We get free soda at work, so I'll drink it at work and have nearly free tea at home.

[Michael in ABQ]

I came into work at our office on a Saturday and forgot to bring lunch. Instead of walking down the street to the brewery and buying a $10-15 sandwich (and a $5-6 beer to go with it) I ate some of the various snacks we had here. A yogurt, some peanuts, a box of tuna and crackers, and a cheese stick. That also saved probably 45-60 minutes walking each way, waiting for the food, and eating it.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

This is a frugal fail from another time, but a rescue for today. I pre COVID stocked up on discounted travel gift cards. After sitting on a bunch of them during COVID, I decided that it was too unpredictable, and not worth the discounts, except for in rare use cases.

I was looking for a random gift card for an upcoming trip, and found $600 sitting in the online gift card site, that I'd never used. I had no idea they were there, because the spreadsheet where I previously tracked them was corrupted. Logic suggests that I should have then immediately gone to the online gift card site, and either printed everything, and/or stored it elsewhere. Nope, just forgot about it. Really irritated with myself, but ... happy I recovered it today?

[Dollar Slice]

I was looking for a random gift card for an upcoming trip, and found $600 sitting in the online gift card site, that I'd never used.

Yikes! Glad you found them. That would have been really irritating to lose.

I had a sort of similar thing with a pandemic cancellation, I cancelled an expensive concert ticket in early-mid pandemic and I think I didn't realize/remember that I got credit at the venue instead of getting it refunded to my credit card. But thankfully at some point about a year later I was looking at buying tickets to something with a friend, and I happened to notice in tiny print on the corner of the venue's website that it said I had a credit with them. So I was able to apply it to the new tickets.

[snic]

Thanks!  I love coconut curries, but my family is...not.  It would be nice to be able to make smaller batches of coconut milk for when I'm cooking for just me.

You can also freeze leftover canned coconut milk. We do this all the time. It keeps for months.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

@Dollar Slice - that's great that you found your concert credit! I wish the airlines made it easier. My preferred airline allows you to just upload credits & gift cards to your digital wallet, so you don't lose it. It's also the default payment, when you go to buy a flight & have a credit. Why can't all of them follow this? Oh wait, I know, because they don't actually want you to redeem them!

[okisok]

Took my lunch to work. I had a leftover snack from last week in my desk, too.

Stopped by the grocery store and only bought the Ibotta free and the store coupon deals. $3.49 for $10 worth of items.

Dinner will be lunch leftovers that I'm hoping I can stretch in a salad to tomorrow's lunch, too.

[Just Joe]

I'm rebuilding our utility trailer. It was rear ended several years ago and finally succumbed to the damage. The collision caused many of the pop rivets to slip out. Once that happened, the trailer body started to fall off the frame. The floor was worn out too.

Its made of sheetmetal much like a car but the shapes are more simple. Good thing to practice bodywork on.

Cost - new plywood floor, paint, upgraded fasteners to stainless from factory steel rivets which were failing one by one. Needed one new tailight. Trailer is pretty well made despite it's lightweight. I can clean up the wiring harness and reuse that. 

Fasteners are quite affordable on eBay in quantities of 50 or more compared to the hardware store where the prices $2-$3 for x4 bolts. Actually over the weekend, I noticed the bolts at the hardware store are less expensive than the nuts... I guess some accountant figured out that bolts are useless without nuts and that nuts are often lost before the bolt. So something... ;)

So total cost is maybe $100. Trailer ought to last another 15-20 years if kept out of the weather. Far cheaper than owning a pickup truck. My hauling needs are modest.

[FrugalShrew]

That's awesome, @Just Joe! I'm definitely a fan of utility trailers, and how excellent that you were able to extend the life of yours with some DIY repairs.

[Dutch Comfort]

Mended 3 clothing items for myself. They can be kept in rotation for longer......
Put up a lot of outgrown kids clothing to Craigslist. Already sold the first 2 items.
FIL had a brand new sports-bag lingering which he gifted to DS to use for his soccer training.

[Just Joe]

That's awesome, @Just Joe! I'm definitely a fan of utility trailers, and how excellent that you were able to extend the life of yours with some DIY repairs.

Thank you.

[Trifle]

About three times a month I hit Grocery Outlet to see what they may have gotten in for canned and frozen goods.  I try to be disciplined and only buy things that are on my shopping list that week.  I have a price book, so I can tell at a glance whether the GO price is cheaper than Aldi, and if it is I scoop it up.

This week I bought canned diced tomatoes at GO (the exact same brand our Aldi carries), at 40 cents less per can.  Saved $3.  And some very nice frozen organic vegetable mixes.  Saved about $7 there.   

[Loretta]

I cooked a pretty good dinner at home. 

[Freedomin5]

DD’s bike helmet fell apart. Instead of buying a new one, she’s going to use her rollerblading helmet.