The Frugal Beagle

Efficient and organized shopping starts with a good menu plan. You shouldn’t let a lack of time prevent you from sitting down to create a workable plan. Once you complete a plan, it may take only half an hour and ends up saving you plenty of time. Additionally, you are able to offer meals with good nutritional value to your family members.

• Try to not to be intimidated by the whole process. If creating a week’s worth of menus feels like too daunting a task, you should aim for 3 or 4 days. You will be inspired by your progress and want to expand it.

• Plan how often you should visit the grocery store. In general, weekly menu plan works nicely for most families because you’ll always have fresh produce and you can take advantage of monthly grocery store sales. With less frequent trip to the store each month, you’re saving time, money and gas, but an even more important benefit is that you can avoid impulse buying, which, may account for half of all monthly expenses. As you are getting better at organizing things, you should try to improve yourself by creating a monthly plan or at least a biweekly plan.

• Check your calendar. Consider how many meals you can make between grocery store visits. Which days you need to lunch at work as well as breakfast? Will there be times when the whole family won’t be at home, or a day when there are more people to feed at home than your immediate family members? You should take time constraints into when preparing menu. Having a complicated recipe on a busy night won’t make sense if you have barely enough time to cook.

• Check your inventory regularly. Take quick note of anything with expiration dates. Include them when creating a menu to avoid waste. This is also a good time to organize your refrigerator. Remove anything that is already expired, and rearrange everything in it.

• Stock up on basic stuffs. If you’re running low on common things like milk, salt, flour, eggs, and egg, make sure you include them to your grocery list.

• Be specific when creating a list. Using general terms like “cheese” or “pasta” leaves plenty room for open interpretation. What varieties and kinds of cheeses? Occasionally even a well-planned list will get out of control. When you make your list, try to be as specific as possible.

• Check what’s on sale. Find recipes that combine well what you already have at home with things that are on sale at the grocery store. Say, if you have carrots and potatoes at home and beef roast is best deal this weekend, then pot roast is a good addition for your menu plan.

• Have your boiler maintained regularly. This won’t only make it works more efficiently but it is also safer. Safety shouldn’t be compromised in your pursuit of saving money.

• Try lowering the temperature by one or two degree at a time until you start feeling chilly. It is possible that if you lower the temperature on the heating control by just one degree, you’ll save between 5 and 10 percent of the annual heating bill. It is a substantial saving for an unnoticeably lower temperature.

• Remember to turn your heating off when it isn’t needed. If you know that you’re going out for a few days, turn it off or turn it down to the lowest possible level without damaging your appliances or killing your fish pets.

• Buy fuel out of season. If your heating system uses solid fuel or oil make enquiries about purchasing a quantity during the hottest summer month to get the best price possible.

• Set the timer wisely to conserve energy. If your family can make do with the heater coming on ten minutes later and turned off ten minutes earlier, then you may save a worthwhile sum of money during the winter.

• It is important that the central heating system uses a thermostat and timer at the very least. You should use a model that has individual thermostat on the radiator. One cause of power inefficiency is that you only use one thermostat and it controls the temperature for the entire house. If your thermostat is located in either a particularly cool or warm room, your house will be heated based on the temperature in that room. It means that the house is either too warm or too cold. By using TRVs (thermostatic radiator valves), you can have an efficient and more accurate control. It would be possible to adjust the temperature for each room in your house, because some rooms may need to be cooler than others: living room is usually kept warmer than hallways, for example. If you can adjust the most optimum temperature for each room, it won’t only save you some cash but you’ll feel easier with the temperature. However, TVRs are rather hard to fit and it could be necessary to have them installed by a technician, unless you’re very competent at electronics yourself.

• When the boiler is being serviced, it would be preferable to ask the technician to measure its efficiency. It’s now possible to get highly efficient boilers than ten or twenty years ago. A newer boiler model can save up to $150 each year. This is rather a significant saving and it may go on saving you money for many years.

Marketers have researched consumers and their buying habits. Being aware of their strategies can help you become a smart shopper. After all, every dollar and cents matter. Here’s what you should know:

• You shouldn’t assume things that are displayed at the ends of the shelf are on sale. They’re prime real estate in a store. And even if they are displayed as a bargain, it is likely the prices are still too high. Look for things at the middle of the aisle.

• Things that are placed at the lower part of the shelf are usually cheaper. More expensive brands usually invest on better placement. However, in kids sections, the prime real estate is lower on the shelves where those little eyes may see them quickly.

• The freshest products may be placed deeper. Things near their expiration date often placed at the front so they can be sold quickly. When you want to buy dairy products, meat, vegetables and fruits, sometimes looking a little deeper may give you fresher products.

• Items that are on fliers are not always sale items. You shouldn’t assume that if an item makes it to the fliers, it is on sale. Many times products advertised aren’t on sale at all. Always track the prices of frequently purchased items to know whether you have a great deal on your hand.

• Watch for “loss leaders.” They are usually displayed prominently on the supermarket circulars and occasionally on the back. They’re discounted heavily and the supermarket takes a “loss” with the hope that consumers may come, buy more items with ‘positive’ profit margin and offset the loss. One important clue that a product is a loss leader is that you have a limit on the amount you can purchase.

• Smaller package sizes can be more expensive. Some manufacturers often use smaller packages to boost profits. The best way to compare prices is to look at the quantity vs. cost. Always have a calculator ready at hand to determine cost per ounce or per unit price to allow you make an informed buying decision.

• Use loyalty programs efficiently. Supermarkets claim that loyalty programs are a good way to save money. Even so, grocers know that loyalty programs only good for getting you to spend a lot more in the process. It is likely that stores with frequent shopper cards use higher markups. Keep track of the price to determine whether a loyalty program works in your favor.

• Don’t take the direct route. There is a reason why milk, eggs, meat, and other basics are located at the back of the store. Supermarket designers place inessentials, like snacks or clothing, at the direct route to the basics and staples, so customers will linger just a bit longer and pick up a couple of things. If you find it difficult to resist those products, avoid them.