‘Cheapskate’ shares 4 everyday money-saving household tips
We’re all on the lookout for ways to save money (stock image) (Image: Getty)
With the cost of virtually everything — from the weekly shop to filling up the car — climbing almost daily, we’re all on the lookout for ways to keep our household expenses down. Now one savvy saver has revealed four straightforward habits you can adopt to reduce your household bills.
The woman, who goes by diaryofacheapskate on TikTok, where she’s amassed nearly 250,000 followers, frequently shares straightforward money-saving advice. She recently posted four simple tips which, when combined, could help you keep more money in your pocket. Beginning the clip, she said: “Here are some cheapskate things I’ve done today to save money.”
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Keeping your home smelling good
The first suggestion couldn’t be more straightforward. “Everyone likes a nice smelling home, but I don’t waste money buying air fresheners,” the woman said.
“Every day, without fail, all of the windows in the house get opened. Having fresh air circulating around is the best and cheapest way to get your house smelling good.”
Opening windows creates an airflow, clearing out stale air, odours and other airborne pollutants. There’s even a German word for this practice — lüften, which roughly translates to “ventilate” in English, reports Birmingham Live.
Cooking pasta
Pasta makes an excellent choice when you’re attempting to economise. It’s inexpensive, satisfying, and works with countless other ingredients to create a quick meal. And there’s a method to save even more when preparing pasta.
The woman said: “This is an old habit I’m picking up again. It’s to leave my pasta soaking in water for a few hours before cooking it. I left it in a sunny spot for a few hours to heat the water up a little bit too. It reduces the cooking time and the money spent on electric.”
Cleaning the vacuum cleaner
Like any household appliance, vacuum cleaners require occasional maintenance. The woman shared an ingenious method she uses to clean hers without wasting water. “My hoover is looking a bit worse for wear, it needs a bit of a clean,” she said. “For jobs like this I don’t want to waste water just on cleaning it.”
Showing herself collecting a bowl of water from the kitchen sink, she continued: “This bowl of soapy water has been used to wash the kitchen pots, so I’m going to use it again to clean the hoover. I might as well get two uses out of it while it’s still hot. This isn’t a job I do very often. I don’t find my hoover gets dirty very quickly.”
She also revealed another technique for cleaning your vacuum without creating additional chores. “I’ve done some other housework this morning,” she said.
“I’ve used this cloth to do some dusting. When I dust I just use a cloth and water. So, instead of wasting another cloth cleaning the hoover, I’m gonna use the same one. It’s going to be getting dusty anyway and it saves me having to put two cloths into the laundry.”
Bag for life
Her final piece of advice centred on something most households already have tucked away — a bag for life. She said: “I feel like social media inundates you with the idea that you need to buy something for every occasion.
“We’re going swimming tonight, but I don’t need to buy a swimming bag to take with us. A bag for life works just fine. It’s not pretty, but it’s functional, and best of all, it was free.”
While retailers do typically charge for bags for life, they remain relatively affordable, with some available for as little as 30p, and some shops will swap worn-out versions for a brand new one at no cost.
She concluded: “Does anyone really notice what bags other people take swimming? I can cope with the judgement if they do.”
In the caption accompanying the video, she wrote: “Money-saving habits built into my everyday life. Little changes all add up.”
