What are your frugal and sustainable tips and tricks?

[gtaus]

Annual EV Car Show

Our local electric company hosts an annual EV car show. I got a chance to talk to some EV car owners about their vehicles. One guy had his Tesla for 10 years. On his model, he got about 220 miles per full charge, claiming that his battery health is at 85% after 10 years. That's better than what I would have thought. I asked him about the long-term costs of operating and maintaining his Tesla. He said he was keeping track of all his expenses and that his EV expenses were 1/5 that of his gas car. In 10 years, he only has had to replace one headlight and a set of tires. He currently has 100,000 miles on his car. Because of his model, he often gets free charges at Tesla power stations. Otherwise, he charges at home at about 3 cents per Kwh.

I had to ask CoPilot AI how that compares to a gas car...

**********************
Let’s break this down and build a clean equivalency between EV cost per mile and ICE mpg, using your numbers:

---

Conclusion​

To match the cost of driving an EV charged at 3¢/kWh, a gas-powered car would need to get ~350 miles per gallon. That’s 10× better than a Prius, and far beyond any current ICE vehicle.

*******************
That is an eye opener! One electric company (not mine) has a reduced rate to charge your EV at night between 10pm and 6am charging only 1 cent per kwh. I guess they just want to keep their plant running through the night and offer the reduced rate to encourage some demand during those dark hours.

All my cars are still gas, but they are all paid for in full and mostly in good running condition. Dear Wife and I don't put many miles on our vehicles this stage of our life, so I don't imagine buying an EV would save us all that much money. I do like to think about getting an EV as a second car if we lose one of our vehicles. EV prices continue to come down while the technology improves every year.

There were a few displays with battery outdoor lawn tools and ebikes. I have converted almost all my outdoor equipment to battery years ago and that has saved me a lot of money. My battery tools are just lasting years and years. My old gas engines on my tools lasted an average of 2-3 years before the carb fouled up and I would have to get a new one. Batteries are expensive, but the Li-Ion batteries I have are lasting more than 10 years.

I would love to get an ebike, but can't justify the cost of $2,000 for something I can only use maybe 6 or 7 months out of the year here in northern Minnesota. Also, I don't live in town, so I think I might not use it nearly as much as someone running quick errands around town. But an ebike would be nice.

Anyways, it was a good EV show and I like seeing the improvements year after year.

 

[BDutch]

Anyways, it was a good EV show and I like seeing the improvements year after year

I missed a huge reason why my husband and I ride an EV. Its a way to reduce the use of gasoline in combination with solar panels. We prefer to load the car during the day when the sun is up.

It costs 0ct/kwh after the investment. And doesn’t contribute to greenhouse gasses either after manufacturing and delivery.

There are more things to life then saving money. A glass of excellent wine in good company make me happier than saving money. So is reducing greenhouse gasses with the thought that it makes the world a better place to live in.

 

[EggzactlyRight]

It'll take forever for me to read through this thread - I don't know when I'll have the time but I'm looking forward to it!

Question (and I apologize if this has been brought up before): What is your opinion on saving only a few dollars worth of money but on a regular basis? For example: I've noticed that in my country many people value comfortability over price, at least in my area. There are quite a lot of stores here and the prices differ everywhere. There is one specific grocery store that is way more expensive in almost every way, at least when we look at the big picture. Sure, if I were to buy 1-2 things there I wouldn't mind, but I couldn't possibly imagine doing a weekly shopping there because the price would be noticably higher. And yet, so many people (with cars) decide to do their big grocery shopping there, despite the fact that there are 4 other stores like 2 minutes away. I wonder why? The products are almost the exact same except a few things here and there, so it can't even be the quality, can it? Or am I just overthinking?

Sure, just because you can save money doesn't mean you absolutely must, but... why not? I've always had a hard time saving money in big amounts because it's more noticable. But if I save a little money here, a little money there, I don't notice the difference in my everyday life but I do notice that I have more money left.​

 

[gtaus]

I missed a huge reason why my husband and I ride an EV. Its a way to reduce the use of gasoline in combination with solar panels. We prefer to load the car during the day when the sun is up.

It costs 0ct/kwh after the investment. And doesn’t contribute to greenhouse gasses either after manufacturing and delivery.

There are more things to life then saving money. A glass of excellent wine in good company make me happier than saving money. So is reducing greenhouse gasses with the thought that it makes the world a better place to live in.

Well, I think there are many reasons to consider EV's and battery tools instead of gas. When it comes to my battery outdoor equipment, I value the fact that all I need to do is slap in a fresh battery and can start working. No more fighting with my gas outdoor equipment to get them running. There is also freedom in using battery operated tools that you cannot get with a corded tool. I have paid more for some of battery tools than a corded tool for that convenience. You are right, it's not always about saving money.

There are very few people where I live that have rooftop solar. Maybe we are too far north. But our grid electricity rate is reasonable, and our electric company has invested in renewable solar and hydro power generation. I think we are now up to about 30% renewable energy. Unfortunately, the renewable energy is a bit more expensive than our coal powered plants because we have so much cheap coal that they can burn. But the renewable energy costs are coming down each year and our % of buying electricity from renewable resources is going up every year.

I was going to buy a small $150.00 solar panel setup for recharging my tool batteries. But I did the calculations and found out that it costs me less than 1 cent to recharge my typical 18v 4Ah battery on grid power. I would have to recharge my batteries over 16,000 times. For my average usage, that comes out to about 103 years to the break-even point. Not worth my investment. I'll try to protect the planet in other ways.

I know we are decades behind the advancements of some of the European countries in terms of Green energy, but we are making progress slowly. I hear that all the EV's in California are cleaning up some of their terrible smog in some areas but increasing smog in other areas depending on the geography. Turns out heavier EV's use more brakes and have more tire wear, which adds to the smog in areas with poor airflow. Los Angeles is like one big soup bowl and all that smog just hangs in the air. So, it's been a mixed bag with more EV's on the road in terms of pollution. I found that surprising.

 

[gtaus]

It'll take forever for me to read through this thread - I don't know when I'll have the time but I'm looking forward to it!

Well, there are many interesting comments in this thread and I have enjoyed the conversations that go back and forth. It's always good to hear differing views. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

Question (and I apologize if this has been brought up before): What is your opinion on saving only a few dollars worth of money but on a regular basis?

Well, I think creating a saving habit and putting away a little money here and there as you save is the best way. I think you summed it up best...

Sure, just because you can save money doesn't mean you absolutely must, but... why not? I've always had a hard time saving money in big amounts because it's more noticable. But if I save a little money here, a little money there, I don't notice the difference in my everyday life but I do notice that I have more money left.

I am much more frugal than Dear Wife. I will save and reuse just about anything I think I can find a second life either reused or repurposed. Dear Wife does not like clutter and will toss out things and then buy them again later if she needs them. But we make it work.

Do you actually put aside some of the money you save into a bank account or a pickle jar? I do. We sell our excess chicken eggs and I have been putting away that money for something nice. Maybe only $5 per week. Well, our BBQ grill broke down beyond economical repair this summer, so I took out that egg money and bought Dear Wife a nice new BBQ grill on sale, saving about $150.00 at the time. The nice thing for us is that the money did not have to come out of our everyday funds. We could just enjoy the new grill without fretting about the cost or having to tighten the belt in other areas.

Obviously, I was in charge of putting that egg money aside. If we left it up to Dear Wife, there would be nothing left in the egg account but there would certainly be new shoes, handbags, and clothes in the closet! But we know each other pretty well and work to our strengths. Only one of us has the ability to put aside those small amounts of money over time. It sure was nice to buy that new BBQ grill we needed using that egg money. Saving small amounts really adds up over time - if you actually find a way to bank it until you need it.

 

[Sally PB]

But if I save a little money here, a little money there, I don't notice the difference in my everyday life but I do notice that I have more money left.

Some people CAN put big chunks of their paycheck into savings. Some people can't.

I might have told this story before.

A coworker of mine commented that she'd "be working till she died! Because she couldn't afford to save any money or take advantage of the company's IRA program." Every day she came in with a cup of Starbucks coffee, and sometimes a donut. I asked her what those cost; she didn't know, she paid with a debit card.

A couple days later, she told me the cost. I think it was over $5. I told her she was spending over $25 A WEEK on that. She didn't think that was a big deal, as it "brought her a bit of happiness to start her day." Never mind that half the coffee would go cold and be dumped out. That was at least $1250 over the course of a working year.

So finding a way to save a bit here and there DOES add up.

Well, I think creating a saving habit and putting away a little money here and there as you save is the best way. I think you summed it up best...

Yes, exactly.

 

[saysfaa]

...What is your opinion on saving only a few dollars worth of money but on a regular basis?​

Well worth doing. It can be more effective than saving large amounts sporadically. Especially if you don't spend large chunks of money very often.

For example: I've noticed that in my country many people value comfortability over price, at least in my area. There are quite a lot of stores here and the prices differ everywhere. There is one specific grocery store that is way more expensive in almost every way, at least when we look at the big picture. Sure, if I were to buy 1-2 things there I wouldn't mind, but I couldn't possibly imagine doing a weekly shopping there because the price would be noticably higher. And yet, so many people (with cars) decide to do their big grocery shopping there, despite the fact that there are 4 other stores like 2 minutes away. I wonder why? The products are almost the exact same except a few things here and there, so it can't even be the quality, can it? Or am I just overthinking?

...​

There is a difference between that store and the others besides price.

It might be location. Two minutes is not much time but if it is two minutes over a very rough or narrow or dirt road or the route had sharp turns or many stoplights and the more expensive store is easy to get to that might be enough difference. It might be a simple as the one store is on the other side of the road than the others - if it is a very busy road and traffic flows one way in the morning and the other way in the evening. More people shop on the way home from work and it is easier not crossing traffic - even if there are well designed stops and/or turn lanes.

It might be the parking lots or store buildings of the other stores are too small or too tight or not well lit or not well maintained.

It might be service...
It might be quality...

It might be selection. Even if there isn't much difference in what they carry, a few things being a little different could make a big difference. All grocery stores around here carry olive oil, most carry at least some olive oils that are first press, cold press. But only a few stores carry olive oils that have the date they were pressed printed on the label. I will go out of my way for that. And since I am there, I do the rest of my shopping there too even if it is a little more expensive. The same for a good selection of high quality vegetables. And I'll go even further for a certain brand of mineral salt. Only one store in this area carries the bread we like best. That store happens to also have an excellent produce departmen and carry first press, cold press olive oil with date of harvest and press. For someone else, it might be the wine selection or the coffees or something else.

It might be the prices are not as different as it appears. The "cheaper" store has about 20% lower regular prices on almost all grocery store type items (food, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, and such) than the store I usually go to. But the cheaper store's sale prices aren't much different than their regular prices; my store's sale prices are significantly different. I pay about 5% more over all because I know how much of any given thing to buy when it is on sale to last me until the next time that thing is on sale. That sounds like a lot of bother but it isn't. I've shopped there long enough to go by feel rather than consciously figuring it out.

Every time I do go to the cheaper place, I'm reminded why I don't like going there. Usually it is a different thing that stands out.

 

[fuzzi]

Well worth doing. It can be more effective than saving large amounts sporadically. Especially if you don't spend large chunks of money very often.

There is a difference between that store and the others besides price.

It might be location. Two minutes is not much time but if it is two minutes over a very rough or narrow or dirt road or the route had sharp turns or many stoplights and the more expensive store is easy to get to that might be enough difference. It might be a simple as the one store is on the other side of the road than the others - if it is a very busy road and traffic flows one way in the morning and the other way in the evening. More people shop on the way home from work and it is easier not crossing traffic - even if there are well designed stops and/or turn lanes.

It might be the parking lots or store buildings of the other stores are too small or too tight or not well lit or not well maintained.

It might be service...
It might be quality...

It might be selection. Even if there isn't much difference in what they carry, a few things being a little different could make a big difference. All grocery stores around here carry olive oil, most carry at least some olive oils that are first press, cold press. But only a few stores carry olive oils that have the date they were pressed printed on the label. I will go out of my way for that. And since I am there, I do the rest of my shopping there too even if it is a little more expensive. The same for a good selection of high quality vegetables. And I'll go even further for a certain brand of mineral salt. Only one store in this area carries the bread we like best. That store happens to also have an excellent produce departmen and carry first press, cold press olive oil with date of harvest and press. For someone else, it might be the wine selection or the coffees or something else.

It might be the prices are not as different as it appears. The "cheaper" store has about 20% lower regular prices on almost all grocery store type items (food, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, and such) than the store I usually go to. But the cheaper store's sale prices aren't much different than their regular prices; my store's sale prices are significantly different. I pay about 5% more over all because I know how much of any given thing to buy when it is on sale to last me until the next time that thing is on sale. That sounds like a lot of bother but it isn't. I've shopped there long enough to go by feel rather than consciously figuring it out.

Every time I do go to the cheaper place, I'm reminded why I don't like going there. Usually it is a different thing that stands out.

Well stated.

I don't frequent certain stores due to location (busy, traffic, left turn only), but also clientele. If I frequently encounter people yelling, children running around unattended, lack of hygene, I stop going there to shop.

I do a lot of my shopping at Aldi's, as they have better quality and lower prices on some items, but do have less selection. I'll go to Harris Teeter for items on sale, and selection, prices are much higher. If I want to buy quality meat I will go to Fresh Market, which is the most expensive store, but they have butchers behind the counter, no pre-wrapped meat, either. And I've started buying meat from local organic farmers, the taste difference is noticable.

 

[Molpet]

Annual EV Car Show

Our local electric company hosts an annual EV car show. I got a chance to talk to some EV car owners about their vehicles. One guy had his Tesla for 10 years. On his model, he got about 220 miles per full charge, claiming that his battery health is at 85% after 10 years. That's better than what I would have thought. I asked him about the long-term costs of operating and maintaining his Tesla. He said he was keeping track of all his expenses and that his EV expenses were 1/5 that of his gas car. In 10 years, he only has had to replace one headlight and a set of tires. He currently has 100,000 miles on his car. Because of his model, he often gets free charges at Tesla power stations. Otherwise, he charges at home at about 3 cents per Kwh.

I had to ask CoPilot AI how that compares to a gas car...

**********************
Let’s break this down and build a clean equivalency between EV cost per mile and ICE mpg, using your numbers:

---

View attachment 4226288​

Conclusion​

To match the cost of driving an EV charged at 3¢/kWh, a gas-powered car would need to get ~350 miles per gallon. That’s 10× better than a Prius, and far beyond any current ICE vehicle.

*******************
That is an eye opener! One electric company (not mine) has a reduced rate to charge your EV at night between 10pm and 6am charging only 1 cent per kwh. I guess they just want to keep their plant running through the night and offer the reduced rate to encourage some demand during those dark hours.

All my cars are still gas, but they are all paid for in full and mostly in good running condition. Dear Wife and I don't put many miles on our vehicles this stage of our life, so I don't imagine buying an EV would save us all that much money. I do like to think about getting an EV as a second car if we lose one of our vehicles. EV prices continue to come down while the technology improves every year.

There were a few displays with battery outdoor lawn tools and ebikes. I have converted almost all my outdoor equipment to battery years ago and that has saved me a lot of money. My battery tools are just lasting years and years. My old gas engines on my tools lasted an average of 2-3 years before the carb fouled up and I would have to get a new one. Batteries are expensive, but the Li-Ion batteries I have are lasting more than 10 years.

I would love to get an ebike, but can't justify the cost of $2,000 for something I can only use maybe 6 or 7 months out of the year here in northern Minnesota. Also, I don't live in town, so I think I might not use it nearly as much as someone running quick errands around town. But an ebike would be nice.

Anyways, it was a good EV show and I like seeing the improvements year after year.

Daily driver to work could be good. Where l retired from has charging parking spots.

I remember reports of people at the charging station when it was -20. Eight hours later they didn't have half a charge.
Pickup pulling RV got 80 miles to a charge. They started carrying a generator and fuel .

I have heard they are working on a solar coating/paint that could charge. I'm waiting for that. I have 60 amp service to my house, so a home charger isn't happening.

 

[Molpet]

It'll take forever for me to read through this thread - I don't know when I'll have the time but I'm looking forward to it!

Question (and I apologize if this has been brought up before): What is your opinion on saving only a few dollars worth of money but on a regular basis? For example: I've noticed that in my country many people value comfortability over price, at least in my area. There are quite a lot of stores here and the prices differ everywhere. There is one specific grocery store that is way more expensive in almost every way, at least when we look at the big picture. Sure, if I were to buy 1-2 things there I wouldn't mind, but I couldn't possibly imagine doing a weekly shopping there because the price would be noticably higher. And yet, so many people (with cars) decide to do their big grocery shopping there, despite the fact that there are 4 other stores like 2 minutes away. I wonder why? The products are almost the exact same except a few things here and there, so it can't even be the quality, can it? Or am I just overthinking?

Sure, just because you can save money doesn't mean you absolutely must, but... why not? I've always had a hard time saving money in big amounts because it's more noticable. But if I save a little money here, a little money there, I don't notice the difference in my everyday life but I do notice that I have more money left.​

My older brother says it's only a few dollars for XYZ. I skipped XYZ and invested it since the 80s. He didn't start putting into stock options until 20 years ago. But it's the company stock so has lots of ups and downs. Mine is diversified and does ok when his tanks.
He had high paying engineering jobs at corporations. I was a maintenance person at a junior college. He borrowed money from me , grandmother and my parents. No one got the money back He has filled for bankruptcy 2x.
He is still working, almost 80. His oldest , 40 something daughter, is living in the basement with her husband.
I was able to retired in 2012 and still don't buy XYZ. Poultry is my luxury items and they are friends with benefits.


Price and working conditions determines where I ship. I shop mainly at Meijer, Aldi and Jewel. Jewel is more expensive for some items but they pay their workers better and have a retirement program for them.