12+ ways to save money around the house

There are lots of ways to save money around the house. Here are a bunch that you can add to your collection of money-saving tips …

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Learn how to do your own repairs

YouTube is your friend. There are so many tutorials on YouTube for pretty much any kind of repair you want to do that it is very difficult to justify not trying it. If it doesn't work out, at least you tried, and hopefully learned something. We've tried to repair washers, dryers, refrigerators, and more (with varying degrees of success).

Repurpose what you have

I don't think that I can count the number of times my wife has repurposed a piece of furniture for some great new duty. She'll put casters on the bottom of an old dresser to use in the garage, or she'll turn a changing table into a coffee table. (We've used this one for many years!)

Wash your own car

Washing your own car with a bucket of soapy water, a sponge, a chamois, and a hose is not only less expensive than taking it to a car wash but it's also more fun.

Use cloth napkins rather than paper napkins

Cloth napkins are not only classier and better for the environment, but they also save money because they could be used many times.

You can also change the type of napkin that you have at the dining table with the seasons.

Save grocery bags and bread bags in place of zipper bags

There are definitely purposes for Ziploc® bags. (I use gallon bags to store half of the diced tomatoes from a big can when I make my hamburger soup.) But as long as you're not depending on an airtight seal, bread bags will work just fine.

Shop Habitat for Humanity ReStore

Get home improvement supplies second hand at places like the ReStore or discount warehouses. Getting exactly what you want can be hit-or-miss, but when you do find something that you want, you can save a lot of money. Plus, it's going to a good cause.

I got a seriously nice five-drawer filing cabinet for $30. The thing is solid and the drawers open and close like the doors on a German car.

Buy used tools at thrift stores and yard sales

In some cases the tools that you get at a yard sale can be even better than the ones you would buy in a store, mainly because they used to make things to last. Just be sure to check for cracks or large rust spots on the tools before you buy them.

If you're looking to buy an electric tool you're taking a risk unless they have a power cord there. One time I bought a drill at an auction and when I got it home sparks started to fly out of it. Oops.

Also, do some research prior to buying. I recently saw some Dewalt drills at Goodwill. They didn't have batteries, but I thought that wasn't a problem because we already owned a smaller Dewalt drill. When I brought them over to my wife (who uses the drill most often) she pointed out that the battery pack on the ones I had was different, and that the drills were likely older models.

Rent or borrow tools you only plan on using once or twice

This is one benefit of getting on good terms with your neighbors. You don't necessarily need to buy your own power washer.

With regard to renting tools, I've heard stories of people that have made businesses out of getting a bunch of lawn aeration jobs lined up, renting a lawn aerator for a day or two, and then aerating a few dozen lawns. There's no equipment to own, and it gets returned to the store afterward.

Make your own candles or air fresheners

This can involve an upfront investment but once you've done the investment and have tried it a few times you can save money and get exactly the kind of candle or air freshener you want.

Update: While working from home, I've developed a liking to scented candles. I admit that I didn't take my own advice on this one (“try before you buy”) and I've bought a number of them from Walmart.

I have been saving the “end part” of the candles (and the jars) after burning them down by doing this:

I heat the jar in a pan of water, and then pour boiling water into the jar. (Pouring the water in the jar is the important part; I heat the jar first to lessen the chance that the jar will shatter because of thermal shock.)
The wax melts and floats to the top. I then let the jar cool on the countertop.
After it's back at room temperature, I pop out the wax and clean out the small remainder of wax remaining. This gives me a small hunk of wax, and a clean jar.

I plan to get a few wicks and re-melt the wax to form another candle or two. A bit like making a soda out of every drink on the soda dispenser at a restaurant, but oh well.

Use reusable food containers instead of plastic baggies

Ziploc or Glad® are two brands we have, and they're both good. I'm tempted to stick with just one of them because it's easier to mate the tops and bottoms if they're all the same brand.

Update: Using several different kinds of plastic containers was getting annoying. It seemed like I had to hunt for matching lids all the time. We splurged and got some new (less disposable) Rubbermaid containers, and passed on all of the other ones.

Cut up old t-shirts and use them as cleaning rags

Do you have an old t-shirt that has so many holes that you can't even wear it around the house anymore? Cut them up for rags; they work great. If you're the crafty type, you can also use them for crafts like wreaths or quilts.

Save wood pallets to make furniture and decorations

My wife paneled the inside of our daughter's cabin with pallet wood. It looks really nice. She also has built chicken coops, fences, dog ramps, bookcases, and various playground things out of them.