Money saving tips can be as simple as turning off a light. Here are all the frugal things we do at night to save a little extra money -
* After dinner and when we are ready to settle into the loungeroom we bring the solar lanterns inside ( after charging all day ). They are placed around the loungeroom and the lamp is turned off. If the lanterns have been fully charged, we get 4 - 6 hours of good light from them.
* We turn off lights in the rooms not being used. Both Darren and I grew up with this being a common practice in our families. Lamps are never left on in the hope that someone might go into that room.
* Before bed we turn off the standby lights on the tv and double check that other appliances haven't been left on.
* A soon as it's dusk we close the curtains and pull down the blinds in the laundry. On hot days we keep the blinds down in the bathrooms too.
* If the washing has been outside on clothes horses, we bring them inside and place them over the ducted heating vents.
* We use battery operated lights hidden under the overhead bathroom cupboards. These are also great in case the power goes off.
* Darren prepares his lunch, snacks, water bottle and lunchbox ready for work the next day. He also brings his own tea, coffee mug and cutlery so these are always restocked and cleaned. If I've got a cleaning job the next day, I fill my water bottle and have a morning tea snack packed ready to go.
* If it's cold or windy, we make sure the draught stoppers are on the external doors.
* Blankets are used when we watch tv at night in the colder weather. Our ducted heating automatically turns off at 9pm. By having the blankets handy, we are not tempted to turn the heating back on.
* The overnight ducted heating temperature is set at 15.5 degrees Celsius.
* In Winter we put a blanket on our bed.
* Meat is taken from the freezer and placed on a tray in the fridge for dinner the next day. This helps us avoid the takeaway temptation.
* All dinner leftovers are portioned out into containers and put in the fridge. If I remember, I then label and put them in the freezer. This avoids picking / nibbling at what could be a proper dinner serve.
 |
| Lots of blankets in our home |
 |
| A programable ducted heating controller |
 |
| Using draught stoppers |
I am constantly turning off lights in rooms vacated by my hubby, drives me absolutely crazy. Yes, we do have solar panels but why waste power when it is unnecessary.
ReplyDeleteI think our night time routine is much the same as yours, bar the solar lanterns. I really don't like to see houses with curtains or blinds left open and lights left on in multiple rooms. Like you, I just wasn't bought to do that and it seems pointlessly wasteful.
ReplyDeleteWendy do you have a toaster oven I have often thought of buying one as an old friend recommended it years ago for when there are just two in the house.l do fill up my oven With many things when I cook with it but wondered what you thought? She said for warming pizza and making a small amount of scones it was terrific
ReplyDeleteNo I don't have a toaster oven. I don't have enough bench space to have one. I do have an air fryer and find it great for doing roast veggies in 25 minutes or to crisp / brown up things like salmon patties, sausage rolls and cottage pies etc etc.
DeleteWhen I make scones or pretty much any baking, I bake in bulk and freeze most of it.
Very much enjoyed this post Wendy. Practical and inspiring and also comforting! Caroline
ReplyDelete