Ridiculous things you've done to save money?

Sorry but I have one it is impossible to pretend you are poor if you drive a Tesla.

And how about getting your water from the tap? It is perfectly safe an essentially free.

Nothing crazy listed so far.

I spent $110,000 to save a few dollars on gas.

+1 Steve W!

I've cut my own hair for years but it's more of a convenience thing (drive to barber shop, wait, be slightly unhappy with the result) more than economy.

Every once in a while, if I don't feel like brewing up my morning coffee, I'll drive the Tesla to Starbucks and turn in an empty bag for a free cup. I always feel a little chintzy doing that, but I guess a buck is a buck. Maybe I'll ride the bike next time.

Perhaps not so ridiculous - but when I had left my husband, was single-parenting my two year old son (now 33), and a full-time engineering student with very little money, I bought my son a cheap fishing rod and we spent Saturday mornings at the well-stocked kids' fishing pond in Boulder. Free protein for our diet and entertainment/good memories for a small boy.

A couple of years ago now I noticed that my local supermarket tried to increase the price of a 2L bottle of Pepsi by 20%. (The supermarket probably raised prices of other stuff we buy, but for some reason I specifically noticed the Pepsi price). That increase seemed ridiculous, so when shopping I now walk (sometimes through snow) to a nearby WalMart and buy 6 bottles, which last about 3 weeks. I sort of do it to save money, but it's really in response to the ridiculousness of the increase. I've noticed that the price of Pepsi has come down a bit, but it's still high.

An interesting pricing phenomenon is that quite often 1.5L bottles of Pepsi are often cheaper by volume than 2L bottles.

We also hang dry clothes and I hypermile, not financially logically based on my hourly rate, but, well, see my alias.

I'll go out of my way and spend up to an hour of my time charging at a Supercharger so I can avoid paying for a few dollars of electricity at home.



Oh... wait... no I don't.

+1 on the shaved head! It's mostly convenient, but it made it possible for me to spring for the P85

Also I prefer working extra instead of going out of my way to save a little.

First, GREAT thread idea!

I've been, ahem, frugal all my life. My friends and family remain puzzled at the "strange" behavior. Most people think we're struggling on one income. We're not, and normally live on about half our income. The rest goes toward things we enjoy (helping others) and a lot into savings/investments.

One key is this: Save, then purchase. Avoid debt.

I've never unstood why people think we're "poor". We have a comfortable, modest home that's very well maintained. We drive reasonably nice cars (usually new Hondas) and maintain them very well for about ten years. Our kids are well dresses and things such as Apple products litter the house. We feel very fortunate.

To the point of this thread:
When shopping for almost anything, the search begins at local thrift shops, craigslist, or eBay. I'll also spend some time searching at garage/estate sales if looking for a very common item such as garden tools. If not yet found, I'll shop Walmart because they often carry national brands at bargain prices. Most of my new clothes come from Costco. The kids shop where ever they want and have learned to wait for sales.

I'm not sure why I do all this except to say it's fun. I enjoy getting a bargain, and using the saved money for other things. I guess people don't understand why I purchase clothes at a thrift shop, then use the saved money for something such as a Tesla. It doesn't seem strange to me. I'm not rich, and this is just a way to stretch my financial resources.

So everyone was shocked(!) to see us driving a Tesla. Seeing that reaction has been almost half the fun

Went on a supercharged road trip last weekend.
It was supercharged in multiple ways, I also bought a Mountain Dew coming and going while supercharging.
I saved the bottles to get the $0.10 in deposits.

SteveW25561 said:

I spent $110,000 to save a few dollars on gas. 

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dont forget green pass ezpass discounts.

Typically I buy what I need, but my family has done some things to help charity:

My wife & kids try to attend at least 1 NASCAR race per year. Our favorite - because my wife is from Indy - was the Brickyard 400 until a tire debacle, then we changed to go to different tracks. After the race is over, my family spends extra time in the stands and collects as many caps from the Coke bottles that litter the stands. We then spend the next few weeks entering them into Coke Rewards. 80 bottles or so will get you a free 12-pack, which we can then donate to some community organization.

I will also admit that my wife took advantage of many of the coupon trends when they were first exposed. One time we had around 150 bottles of body wash (obtained free via coupons and sale prices) that we were then able to send overseas to the soldiers as well as supply local food banks.

+1 FlasherZ.

Good thing to teach your kids!

SBUX bags: I'm nine bags ahead! Should cover my SC trip to Cleveland.


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So sorry, but unless you're an Alaskan Bush Rat, you're in the minor leagues in this contest. Stand aside, cowboyz 'n cupcakes.....

You want ridiculous? Here you go:

I spent $115,000 to be able to schlep Cheap Diesel from The Other Fuel Station Down The Road, in order to fuel the Dino-Beasts, as follows (to be copied in my soon-thread "Don't Try This At Home, And Other Things Not To Do To Or With Your Model S".....

70 gallons at a time...

I've spent $300 on hives, protective clothing, books and beekeeping paraphernalia to get free honey

AudubonB +1

i went with 19" wheels instead of 21s to save money. best. downgrade. ever.

GasDoc said:

I've spent $300 on hives, protective clothing, books and beekeeping paraphernalia to get free honey

Click to expand...

And at roughly $10/lb. you'll only need 2-3 seasons to make it up.

Of course, $300 is cheap. You haven't contemplated all the honey house equipment yet - extractors and wax melters and buckets and screens and filters and ... and ... and ...