Budget help

[ny biker]

I hate to say it, but the only way I've found to really reduce my electric bill was to replace the heat pump.

Still, there are some things you can do that can have a small effect and can make you more comfortable. I've found insulated drapes to be very helpful with keeping my home more comfortable in winter, especially the north-facing windows. But if you don't already have them, it would cost you money right now. The ones I have are from Target (their store brand and a pair from Eclipse), and I think Sears carries Eclipse also. Not really expensive, but not free either.

I used to use a big plastic dropcloth over my balcony door to lessen the draft there. I would fold it in half (otherwise it was way too big) and tape it to the wall above the door area with painter's tape. It doesn't look pretty but helps keep that part of the room warmer. This year I went out and bought a clear shower-stall shower curtain and taped that up.

If you have any holes in exterior walls or in the ceiling (like nail holes where there used to be pictures or hooks), tape over them. They let hot air out and cold air in. Same with electrical outlets in exterior walls. For longer term, you can buy foam insulating things that go around outlets and light switches on exterior walls (under the face plates) that stop the draft.

Unplug electric things that have remote controls (like a DVD player or stereo) if you aren't using them. Also do not leave your phone charger plugged in unless you're actually charging the phone. If you have your own water heater, check the setting and turn it down to a more efficient setting if necessary. Only use the washing machine and dishwasher when they're full, and use energy-saving settings if you don't do that already. And of course turn out the lights when you're not in the room and don't stand with the refrigerator door open.

As for the credit card, my bill was higher than usual last month due to Christmas shopping, and I didn't get a bonus last year which I usually use to cover the extra expense. And then in January my bike repair was finally finished and that cost nearly $500. So I've been on austerity since the start of the year. I just don't go shopping. No trips to the mall are allowed. It's been painful, because I usually like to buy winter clothes in January since you can score great deals with the post-holiday sales. But it's necessary, so I'm finding other things to do on weekends (like cleaning out closets and taking stuff to Good Will).

For groceries, stick to produce that's on sale if you can.

Depending on how cold it is, you might be able to save gas by not turning on the heat in the car. My commute is only 4 miles so my car doesn't warm up before I get to work, so a few years ago I got a nice fleece blanket that I keep in the car, and I use it as a lap blanket while I drive. It keeps me comfortable unless the temps are really low.

As for turning the heat down or off, bear in mind that you don't want it to get so cold indoors that the pipes will freeze. My condo association recommends setting the heat no lower than 50 degrees.

[Kiwi Stoker]

Leave all plastic at home and only use cash. Find every loose coin you have (look in bags, under couch, in pockets etc), bag it up and only use that for purchasing snacks or lunch. If you cannot afford it you cannot buy it. This stops me randomly purchasing snacks when I am out and about.

I am not sure if you are or not, is to eat vegetarian as much as possible. Maybe treat yourself to one or two meat meals a week.

Oh and something else my mum found out. Don't bake in your oven. Not worth it. She was making muffins etc at home and the power bill went through the roof. It was actually cheaper to BUY muffins than to make your own once you factored in the power used.

[Owlie]

I have plenty of frozen leftovers (I have a ton of turkey from Thanksgiving and Christmas, among other things) and things like rice and flour, so food isn't really an issue, save things like produce and milk. Getting up early so I can turn the heat off in the bedroom and eat a decently large breakfast will probably help with the cafeteria food too. Tuesdays and Thursdays are a bit challenging because I don't get out of class until 7:45, though.

I agree, it's totally not worth baking, the exception being the times when it's so cold that it needs the extra boost, and even then...

Nybiker--thanks for those tips. Time to re-familiarize myself with which cord is which. My commute is just over a mile, so unless it's super cold, I don't even bother with the heating. (And on those days I have to melt the layer of ice on the car anyway!) I've duct-taped over the outlets, and I need to look into some kind of weather stripping or something for around the AC unit

Muirenn--Food for thought. The biggest reason that I turn the heat above 60 or so in the living room is so that I can actually take a shower without freezing. I might just get a space heater and use it to heat the bathroom for like 15 minutes...

Related: Something that might help is to use the option to split my car insurance into two payments. Yes, I'd owe them another two dollars (and use a second stamp), but the second half would be due in April, when I should have my financial aid check for spring. That should give me enough of a cushion to pay off the interest and a little bit of the principal of the loan. As much as I don't like giving them more money than necessary, this may be worth it. Thoughts?

[Irulan]

Related: Something that might help is to use the option to split my car insurance into two payments. Yes, I'd owe them another two dollars (and use a second stamp), but the second half would be due in April, when I should have my financial aid check for spring. That should give me enough of a cushion to pay off the interest and a little bit of the principal of the loan. As much as I don't like giving them more money than necessary, this may be worth it. Thoughts?

It's probably worth $2.55 to not have to really scrimp somewhere else.

[jyyanks]

I agree that splitting your car insurance into 2 payments is a good idea. I also second a space heater and using it in the bathroom or in the bedroom right before bed.

Is there anything you can sell on craigslist to make some extra cash? I ended up selling a bunch of stuff that I wasn't using and made some extra pocket money.

I would also just pay the minimum on the credit card until you get back on your feet. Good Luck!

[tulip]

Your commute is one mile? Sell the car and walk. Or take the bus, but in the time you wait for the bus, you can already be there.

If you must keep the car, shop around for insurance. I cut mine by many hundreds of dollars just by asking.

[Owlie]

Your commute is one mile? Sell the car and walk. Or take the bus, but in the time you wait for the bus, you can already be there.

If you must keep the car, shop around for insurance. I cut mine by many hundreds of dollars just by asking.

Alas, car is necessary. There's no real public transport system, no sidewalks between my apartment and the university (they're all on the other side). I'm not in Dayton itself--rather, I'm in a suburb that seems to be rigged to be unwalkable. I got away with no car in Cleveland because there were sidewalks and public transit. I swear, I'm moving back to a bigger city.

The loans are grad school loans, and since I'm still in school, they're not due yet, though the unsubsidized ones are collecting interest.

[jessmarimba]

I agree, it's totally not worth baking, the exception being the times when it's so cold that it needs the extra boost, and even then...

Muirenn--Food for thought. The biggest reason that I turn the heat above 60 or so in the living room is so that I can actually take a shower without freezing. I might just get a space heater and use it to heat the bathroom for like 15 minutes...

Related: Something that might help is to use the option to split my car insurance into two payments. Yes, I'd owe them another two dollars (and use a second stamp), but the second half would be due in April, when I should have my financial aid check for spring. That should give me enough of a cushion to pay off the interest and a little bit of the principal of the loan. As much as I don't like giving them more money than necessary, this may be worth it. Thoughts?

I always split the car insurance. Definitely worth it to spread the anti-wealth around. I also just dropped comprehensive insurance - my car is old and high mileage and it just wasn't worth it. Would've dropped collision, too, except I'm afraid of sliding in ice or snow here and actually needing to repair the car.

My b/f's house is always frigid in the winter - except the bathroom. He keeps a tiny space heater in there and it makes it really, really hard to ever leave the shower On the other hand, my bathroom is the coldest room in my house. I keep my heat at 60 but the bathroom has a cast iron tub and tile floors over a frigid Colorado crawl space and I swear it just leaches heat out of the house. No room (or extra outlets) in my bathroom for a heater but I dream...

And the baking price applies to electric, I'd guess? My range/oven (and water and heat) are gas and I rarely go more than one "step" over the minimum usage charge. Electric is still what drives up my utility bills and I can't trace the source for the life of me. I swear it's higher now than when I had my non-functional hot tub still hooked up and running. But then, Xcel is trying to make all of us pay for some experiment it spent $150 million on up in Boulder.

[OakLeaf]

One thing to remember about car insurance limits is your uninsured motorist, which in some states (thankfully for Owlie, Ohio isn't one of them) is two-thirds or more of your total premium.

Your UIM coverage can be no higher than your liability limits, so even if it's expensive, keep your liability limits high. As cyclists, we're especially vulnerable, and it's our own UIM that will pay if we're hit by an underinsured motorist. I pretty much assume that everyone out there, if they have insurance at all, has the legal minimum, which would cover about four hours in the ER for anything serious. I keep my liability at $1M even on the moto, even though I'd have to be trying pretty hard to cause that much damage to someone else with my moto, just because it's very conceivable that someone underinsured could cause that much damage to me. You're talking about not only medical bills, but lost earnings while you recuperate.