Money Saving Tips

[betsy10112000]

Originally Posted by jenniferalan

hi betsy ur doin a great job findin all these sites and passing the word on! Feel free to post here, I can't wait to see what kind of ones u find, I can only seem to find sites that trick u into providing info for free stuff!

Ps just wondering do u get many junk in the mail after the freebies come or any phone calls

nope never give my phone number - if it is a must to provide a phone number for a freebie cream or something stupid or small like that i just put in any old number that comes off the top of my head - lol

very rare that i get junk mail through post but the few every couple of months i do get is either money off coupons or more freebies so happy days all round :)
sometimes you do have to give your email addres and do sometimes get stupis emails but most ask when you sign up for the freebie if you want to receive their newsletter.

if you do plan on getting loads of different freebies then i advice you to download a software called ROBOFORM.its a free software and basically you fill out all your details on the form,name,address,email etc etc and then when you find a freebie you like just press the roboform icon on the top of your screen and it fills all your details out for you.ingenious :)
because it does become a pain filling out the same info over and over.
if you google roboform or try roboform.com you should be able to download it free:)
enjoy and i will post loads more freebie sites for you now :)

[betsy10112000]

Originally Posted by betsy10112000

nope never give my phone number - if it is a must to provide a phone number for a freebie cream or something stupid or small like that i just put in any old number that comes off the top of my head - lol

very rare that i get junk mail through post but the few every couple of months i do get is either money off coupons or more freebies so happy days all round :)
sometimes you do have to give your email addres and do sometimes get stupis emails but most ask when you sign up for the freebie if you want to receive their newsletter.

if you do plan on getting loads of different freebies then i advice you to download a software called ROBOFORM.its a free software and basically you fill out all your details on the form,name,address,email etc etc and then when you find a freebie you like just press the roboform icon on the top of your screen and it fills all your details out for you.ingenious :)
because it does become a pain filling out the same info over and over.
if you google roboform or try roboform.com you should be able to download it free:)
enjoy and i will post loads more freebie sites for you now :)

sorry guys headmaster chris says im not allowed to post anymore links - s you will have to do the legwork yourself :( meanie)lol

if you do want anymore help i am well aware of what sites to use etc because i dont like receiving spam either PM me and i will sort you out :)

[MandyD]

One thing I did to help me sort out my finances (I'm a terrible treasurer - I spend, spend, spend!) and take some of the weight off my shoulders each month, bill wise, was to get ESB and Bórd Gáis token meters installed. It's a pain in the sense that if I'm short of cash some week for whatever reason, I can't leave my meters slide until the next week, but at the end of the month I have no bills to pay, as I'm basically using a 'pay as you go' system.
I'd recommend a meter to anyone who's useless with money, like me lol

[betsy10112000]

Originally Posted by MandyD

One thing I did to help me sort out my finances (I'm a terrible treasurer - I spend, spend, spend!) and take some of the weight off my shoulders each month, bill wise, was to get ESB and Bórd Gáis token meters installed. It's a pain in the sense that if I'm short of cash some week for whatever reason, I can't leave my meters slide until the next week, but at the end of the month I have no bills to pay, as I'm basically using a 'pay as you go' system.
I'd recommend a meter to anyone who's useless with money, like me lol

hi mandy
the pay as you go ESB meters - will they install thm for free or is there a fee for having one put in do you know:

[jenniferalan]

hi mandy just wondering along the same lines as Betsy is there an installation fee and is there a big box for the metre? do u have to go to ESB office to get tokens? its a brill idea :)



The idea of giving personal vouchers as presents is a brill idea and very useful, must try that one in the near future!

[MandyD]

Hey guys,

Usually there is an installation fee, but if you contact MABS, they'll get them installed for you for free!

I buy my tokens in the Eurospar here in the town...anywhere you can buy 3V vouchers, or anywhere advertised as a paypoint, will sell the tokens.

You get a card, which is much like a bank/3V card, that you must present on purchase, especially for the gas, as it's put onto the gas card. The ESB one is mainly for show..they give you paper tokens for that.

I usually spend around 20 a week on ESB and 20 on gas...which is a good sight better than getting a 100+ bill in the post!!

I think someone mentioned MABS on here already?

[MandyD]

Oh and, there's no big box for the meter..it's just a lil gizmo that attatches to your regular EBS and gas meter....the ones in the white boxes outside?....and they only take like ten mins to install!

And if you run out of either, unexpectedly, there is an 'emergency credit' system too..you get a fiver of emergency credit which is good for at least a day...and pay it back when you top up again.

[jenniferalan]

Hi Mandy just wondering where u get the paper tokens for esb metre - is it from esb themselves or can u get it in a shop like Bord Gáis?

i have heard of MABS but what exactly do they do? (i know erica outlined but still dont know what u need to claim, how u go about it etc and can u just go in for advice? i need help budgeting and so does my family and me and partner are saving for a house so need all the help we can get )

[jenniferalan]

Originally Posted by HappyHunter

I make sure to keep my expenditure to a minimum, on €212.00 a week I don't have a choice.

I bring a flask of coffee or hot water and some fruit with me when going out so I am not inclined to buy snacks.

If I do get the urge to buy snacks I read the ingredient list and that is one sure way of putting me off.

I encourage people to visit & have food here rather than going to restaurants to eat. This way they are sure of good service, no tips expected unless it's tips on fun things to do or doing something in the house.

I hand wash dishes because I gave the dishwasher away to save on electricity.

I use energy saving light bulbs all over the house & turn off lights when room not in use.

I never use immersion to heat water, the oil central heating heats that.

I installed a wood burner which heats all rooms if I leave the doors open into the rooms so central heating is only needed to get temperatures up and then it's turned off.

I get my wood from local woods and forests, from ditches where limbs of trees have fallen. Also buy from local person who provides chopped logs by the trailer load for €50. Thus cutting out the need to buy bags of cut sticks in stores.

Bought locally mined Anthracite for little or nothing which does the job.

Air dry clothes as I don't own a clothes dryer - reduces electricity costs.

Use bottle gas cooker which costs €30 x 3 a year.

Make big pots of delicious vegetable soup which are nutritious and healthy. Freeze some, eat some. No MSG or other flavour enhancers.

When cooking spuds, I boil a big pot, mash and save, some for freezer some for fridge & some for dinner.

I mainly buy my clothes in Charity stores, except for more personal items.

Do all large grocery shopping in Lidl.

To feed the desire to shop, I window shop online :) It saves the feet and conserves energy - no need to go buy coffee, drive or wait for public transport.

Get local people to do work on your house that you cannot do yourself. Word of mouth is the best adverti*****t.

Hi HH, just wondering how ur oil heats ur water? we have to use immersion!


U know how i said we dont use a lagging jacket cos we use hot air to dry clothes...well we will def get a lagging jacket now as bet it is costing us more in the long term!

also my mum leaves the immersion on all the time as she thinks that it takes more energy to heat the water when it is stone cold and she thinks that once the water is hot it is barely using much energy if it is still switched on as tank stays hot and stays the same if u know what i mean? do u think this is true or would it be better just to try on immersion once or twice daily for specific amount of time?!

When i have my own house i think ill get a range as it provides heating, something to cook on and hot water - i think it will be good all round!

[MandyD]

Originally Posted by jenniferalan

i have heard of MABS but what exactly do they do? (i know erica outlined but still dont know what u need to claim, how u go about it etc and can u just go in for advice? i need help budgeting and so does my family and me and partner are saving for a house so need all the help we can get )

Here's a link to the MABS website. Anybody can go to them for advice on budgeting and arranging finances. They will intercede with any creditors you may have and get you a more manageable payment rate, if you need it. They will also help you map out your spenditure and help you to cut out needless spending. The service is free and confidential, and can be a life-saver to those who really need to curb their spending, or have to manage on a low-income.
http://www.mabs.ie/

[Stuarty]

Originally Posted by jenniferalan

Hi HH, just wondering how ur oil heats ur water? we have to use immersion!


U know how i said we dont use a lagging jacket cos we use hot air to dry clothes...well we will def get a lagging jacket now as bet it is costing us more in the long term!

also my mum leaves the immersion on all the time as she thinks that it takes more energy to heat the water when it is stone cold and she thinks that once the water is hot it is barely using much energy if it is still switched on as tank stays hot and stays the same if u know what i mean? do u think this is true or would it be better just to try on immersion once or twice daily for specific amount of time?!

When i have my own house i think ill get a range as it provides heating, something to cook on and hot water - i think it will be good all round!

I dont think its true that leaving the immersion on all the time is more efficient, my mum tells a story that when we were younger she would leave the immersion on all the time and had large ESB bills. She just thought it was because there were 6 kids and we used more ESB than everyone else. Then someone told her that it wasnt more efficient and when she turned it off the ESB sent an inspector out to check the meter because the change was so great...My radiators are linked to my hot water so if they are on it heats the tap water, I dont use it much though because we only have a shower and no bath

[gillo]

Another way to be more efficient is when refuelling your car, never fill the tank, always only 3 quarters fill it, as the car actually runs more efficiently with less weight. Trust me to come up with this tip just when the price of oil is gone down lol!

[kiara]

Originally Posted by bluecurlygirl

In reply to something Kiara said - NEVER EVER CUT UP YOUR CREDIT CARD. It's actually a crime and you can be fined plus the fact that you will still be charged for using something you don't have. Just ring the bank and cancel it.

Wow really I didn't know that... Eddie Hobbs did it lots of times on telly! Oh he's in trouble now!

[kila2008]

Yeah I never heard that about cutting up a credit card before and I worked for a credit card company for 2yrs 3mths in the past and thought I had heard most things about them...lol

[elbo]

We have two electricity meters. One for night and one for day.
In the summer the night one can be used between 12 midnight and 9 a.m.
In the winter you can use the night one between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m.
The night meters is much cheaper than the day meter, so we never turn on the dishwasher/washing machine/dryer/etc. until after the allotted time at night. Yes, there is an extra meter rental charge of I think roughly about €10 on your bill, but if you have a large family and use these appliances on a daily basis, it saves a lot.