A few more ideas to save money in your home? What can you add?

i like the cooking spray idea. Here are a couple of mine-- I was told by a friend: A bar of soap will keep ants away. You can put a sliver right where they're coming in at and it will throw off their trail. I haven't tried it, yet, it's winter afterall. Regular Dawn Dish soap (about 80 some cents) kills fleas better than any flea killer. Lather your pet up and keep it on there for about 2-3 minutes and rinse. It's gentle enough, so it won't hurt their skin. It has to be the original liquid, not the new stuff. And, you get a clean pet at the same time. of course, you have to follow up in a couple weeks to kill any baby fleas. I've also found that Dawn cleans bathscum really well, too. That magic eraser works on scum, too, but it's not really the cheapest way. it's the quickest way..lol. You can keep your clothes fresh by cutting a dryer sheet in 3rds and putting one in each drawer, and putting it on every 5-10 hangers. And if your pet stinks, rub a dryer sheet over them. I hear it helps w/ shedding, too, but I haven't noticed it on the account of my cats being giant furballs. they walk and a ball of hair just flies off of them. lol. the best air freshener is spraying febreeze over the carpet before vaccuming. the powdered stuff doesn't vaccum well and it ends up ripping your carpet over time. eventually you end up spending bigbucks to replace your carpet. it's good to invest in things that will last for years. i have a filterqueen vaccum and it does so many things; dusts, filters air while i vaccum, sweeps floor, fluffs pillows/blankets, and alot more. i also got a europro steam cleaner. i use it to clean just about everything in the house and all you need is water. you don't have to waste your money on cleaning products. if you're going to buy a kitchen appliance or a cleaning tool, get a good brand. otherwise you'll be replacing the cheap brand every year. If you can handle lemons, put a couple slices in your water. Lemons filter your water naturally, and they also cleanse your body. Add flour to pancake mixes to make it last. After emptying your spaghetti sauce in the pan, add a little water to the jar, and rinse it out into the pan. use coffee filters to clean your glass.(w/ glass cleaner, of course) learn how to make your own bread and pastas. if you eat healthier, you won't eat as much which helps save on buying more food. whole grains, fruits and veggies, etc, help keep you fuller longer. drink water only. i do alot of arts and crafts. if i like what i see in a magazine (picture frame, vase, etc) i will mimic it by creating it myself. i spend less money doing it that way, and i can alter it to my own liking. you can buy clothes at the goodwill and use the materials to make whatever. a baby dress full of ribbons, lace, etc for $1 is alot cheaper than going to the craft store. So, i've come up w/ alot more than couple. and i have more...lol. i just can't think of them right now. i like everyone's ideas, here. they're great!

You may have already heard of these books because they've been around awhile, but The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn are great books to have around. They are full of all kinds of tips like this. Some are a little extreme, but its all stuff that everyone can do.

A friend of mine passed on a tip that she uses for her Swiffer Wet Jet and Swiffer Sweeper, since the replacement pads and cleaner are so expensive. She said that she reuses the bottle and makes her own cleaning solution with vinegar and water. She also uses handtowels/rags instead of buying the pads. They're about the same size and will stick to the velcro on the wet jet, and will slip into the little slots on top of the sweeper to hold it into place. It's cheaper and they can be washed and reused. Also, since I live in the city and they have free recycling pick up, I clean out all of my cans, plastic and glass containers and put them in the recycle bin so that it saves room in my trash cans so I don't have to buy bags as often. You'd be amazed at how much room a few veggie cans or a empty laundry soap bottle can take up! I also buy them in bulk at Sams since buying them that way, if you have the room to store them, makes them cheaper than buying a smaller box at the regular store. Not everything is cheaper this way, though, so you have to watch prices and do the math. If you use dryer sheets they can often be used more than once. So can plastic sandwich and freezer bags, depending on what you had in them. If it was just a sandwich you can shake out the bread crumbs and use it again the next day for your sandwich. You can always wash/rinse them out, as well.

LOL first off i wanan tell you that when i was reading your discussion, i'm just a tad sick and my eyes are a little watery, i read one line as, to get the cat hair off your furniture and clothes to go over it with fish. i was like WHAT IN THE WORLD. lol i read it that wway TWICE. *giggles* I know a lot of people re-use their ziplock bags, but i couldn't be bothered, i hate doing dishes, little own washing out bags hah. Some people re-use yogurt/icecream/butter containers for tupperware. I have done that before i got those ziplock ones that you can resuse, they seal better for the freezer. My mother inlaw sticks EVERTHING in mason jars.. for some reason. I use a bagless vacuume and just empty it outside instead of buying bags over and over again. I made my own babyfood. although i had to buy the blender ;/ I have heard my dad say a few times to my mom that putting a splash of downy (fabric softener) on a clean facecloth or dishtowl, is cheaper and the same as a dryer sheet. . I dunno about that one... O i think i have run out of ideas. ;)

Wow I love these ideas for saving money. I'm not very good at coming up with 'new' things but one thing I've done in the past is instead of the individual 'drier sheets' I purchase cheap fabric softener and keep an old wash cloth on the drier. A couple of drops on the cloth then toss it in the drier and it does the same thing as the more expensive sheets but for a lot less money.

I didn't read all the reponses here, but I did read some, so if this is a repeat I apoligize. Another use for baking soda, is putting a few tablespoons in a bowl of water. Put it in the microwave, cook for five minutes or so. It loosens all the gunk on the inside of the microwave, just wipe it out then and your done. Also, it is cost effective to keep the microwave clean, it uses more energy when it is dirty (not that I have time to clean mine every day), but when it has food on it, the energy goes into that too and not just into whatever you are heating.

We use the compact fluorescent bulbs. Open curtains for light when possible. Instead of heating the whole upstairs, where we sleep, we use a heated mattress pad it is so much cheaper.Wear sweaters, use throws over our laps and turn down the heat. Portable a/c in our bedroom instead of central for the entire upstairs. I put draft blockers around exterior doors.Close heavy curtains on cold days. I mend my clothes, do not buy dry clean only clothes. Grow vegetables in the summer.

Whenever you think there is no shampoo or liquid soap left in the container, add some water. This works especially well with liquid soap. I have a bottle that was "empty" months ago but because I added water to what was sticking to the sides and the bottom, I am still able to get some soap out of the container. I am always pulling the toothpaste tube out of the waste basket because my husband throws it out when he can't get anymore out. He doesn't try hard enough. Lay the toothpaste tube flat on the counter, flatten the handle of your toothbrush on the bottom of the tube. Press the handle from the bottom of the tube to the top. I guarantee you will get several more brushes out of it. And, by the way, you don't need a whole brush full of toothpaste to brush your teeth. A little dab will do the job.

I don't run my drier unless I have to during the winter months! I have a wooden clothes rack and I dry items on that. I hang wet itmes on clothes hangers on all my doors in the house! The moisture going into the air of the home makes the home feel warmer and I can turn the thermostat down! I also open the dishwaher door and let the dishes air dry rather than let the dishwasher heat up air to dry them! This saves a bundle of electricity and again, the warm, humid air comes out into the house!

I already do the cooking spray thing, so i am up on that..I did not know about the dryer sheet...I find that the best way i can save money is to open my blinds early in the morning and take advantange of the day light time, it saves money when you use free light from out side rather than turning on all the lights in the house...At night after i am done with the evening meal and we are watching Tv , i find that if i have night light on it saves a lot on the electric bill...I have them on in the area's that we are in...My light bill is so high that i try hard to keep it down,it is my worst bill...

I use vinegar to clean with a lot. I use it to clean out my microwave really easy. And I use it to clean any glass in my house without leaving streaks. And whenever I forget about a load of laundry in the washing machine and they get that yucky smell to them, I just throw a washcloth soaked with vinegar for another cycle and the smell is gone. I'll have to try the canola oil trick! Thanks for sharing!

Baking soda is a great cleaner. I love the cooking spray one I am gonna try that and the fabric softener. Some tips Wash in cold water if you use electricity also hang dry if you can Cut old towels into hand towels Vinegar and water in a spray bottle to wash windows. I also take regular all purpose cleaner add water and use as a spot cleaner for counters and stuff. Make sure to clean you dryer vent with soapy water if you use sheets as it creates a film on it that increase the electricity used to dry your clothes. Wear it twice. If I only am out for a few hours in a pair of jeans I will just hang it up and wear it again before washing. Change your lightbulbs to those energy efficient ones. I saved a bit there!

I dry berry leaves and use them for tea. I pick them before a hot spell of at least 3 day forcast. I hang them upside down in a warm, airy spot. They dry great. Then I use glass jars that I recycle from anything I buy, wash them, dry them, and use them to store the leaves for up to a year. I pick the leaves before the berries form, just a couple from each plant, but we have hundreds of plants. Also some have male and female plants, pick mostly from males then. Tea is a lot of money for a few ounces, so this saves a lot. Storing dry things doesn't cost me any money. I also have aloe vera on my window sill and chives growing there, too. I wish I had lots of deep sills, I'd have an entire fresh herb and spice area to just pick and use in my kitchen, but only one sill is really deep and gets full southern exposure. I don't know if you can use any of these ideas, but they are great if you can.

One of the things I do to save money is I don't buy any cleaning supplies for the everyday cleaning. I just use vinegar for cleaning up anything. I put it in a spray bottle, also, and dilute it with a little bit of water, less than half water, mostly vinegar, and just spray it on and wipe, to get sinks and toilets and counter tops clean. Also it can be used to wash floors and just about any cleaning job you have, including mirrors and windows. Vinegar has a disinfecting ingredient in it so it is good for just about any clean up job.

I had never thought of this before. Great idea. I will start doing that and also the idea about the dryer sheet. Both of these are great. I am not good at coming up with ideas to save money but I always have my eye out for others that have suggestions.

Thanks so much for those tips. Especially the one about using dryer sheets to remove cat hair. I'm actually going to tear myself away from my computer to try that right away! Annie

Those are both great ideas! Do you have one for getting an ink mark off of clothing? I'm going to have to have to try the dryer sheet one. I already have spray bottles for olive and canola oil. They work really well!

I have a whole blog about ways to save money - it isn't that hard if you really want to. Coffee Break Whatever Save Money - link in my profile. I like that spray way - no areosal either. Does the oil "stay" well in plastic bottle? My problem now is that on low income, and doing all these save money things that I have lived and breathed for 30 years, I can make ends meet, but don't have anything to put away for retirement! A;; these money management people like Suze Orman, keep saying "do 401k, do 401k DO 401k!! Well, they never tell you how to do 401k if you don't have enough at the end of hte month to contribute or if you work for a company that doesn't offer 401k.

I was watching this program on saving money in the home. It said that up to 40% of your electric bill comes when your appliances are off. Just being plugged in. So I have been trying to keep some of them unplugged when not in use. Like the coffee maker and toaster. Will look for results when next bill comes.

I save money on groceries by printing coupons from smartsource.com and coupons.com. Usually have good coupons for toothpaste, detergent soap and lots of other things. Also check out my blog at savethatmoney.blogspot.com/ for more money saving ideas.