What’s a frugal trick you’ve chanced upon recently?

I accidentally semi-reinvented the “trencher”. Basically, in medieval times, food would be served on a slab of bread and that would kinda be the plate. Or, you know, bread bowls for soup and the like.

I have an air fryer, and I’ve learned I can line the basket in a large flour tortilla, and it generally keeps whatever I’m cooking/warming up from getting the pan too dirty aside from some easily knocked-out crumbs.

I hate washing things, and I hate wasting paper liners, so it lets me cut down on those, and I can just eat the tortilla.

37 points
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6 points

And for Canadians, SimpleTax.

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6 points

Canada/CRA website has a long list of free, donate any amount and paid apps for tax filling.

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5 points

Now owned and operated by wealth simple if you can’t find it anymore

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27 points
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5 points

Pro-tip. Don’t try kids movies or shows, scratched up enough that they don’t rip.

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24 points

Eating out isn’t exactly frugal but if you are going to get fast food and they have an app I’d recommend using it cause you can get some pretty good deals. I often get half off a meal which makes those rare times I decide to eat out that much cheaper.

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9 points

I hate it, but it’s true. Rocking a burger & fries for $3 is great especially when you didn’t have to purchase, prep, cook, and have to clean. This isn’t sustainable for many reasons but totally worth it occasionally

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1 point

Though it kinda sucks when you’re vegan and the animal product stuff is the combo that is discounted.

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18 points

My local power company is a price gouger… but my state has mandated that we can select our source provider with zero penalties for switching… even between other sources.

It’s not a ton… since the ‘delivery’ fees are straight up highway robbery and not under the control of the outside provider… but it’s still something.

Currently doing research on solar and how much I need to save to afford the up front costs.

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12 points

I want solar so bad but every couple years when I run the numbers it will take 15+ years to break even. That money is much better spent in insulation and other energy saving methods.

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1 point

I have no idea if this is feasible for a house, but some folks who do RVing and such get discount used panels/slightly blemished panels and put those on their rigs because they’re a bit cheaper than new. There’s actually a lot in the market these days, esp. in the west.

Maybe companies won’t install solar for you if you’re using salvaged/reused panels, or there’s some other hurdle, but it might be an interesting idea to poke.

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16 points

Still cooking my own beans in a pressure cooker, and making bread in a bread maker. Those two things have saved a ton of money.

If only I can convince my family to use a bidet, then we’d probably save $40 a month on toilet paper!

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13 points
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omg, getting others on the bidet train would really help me. My roommates plow through TP like Bolsonaro plowed the rain forest.

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8 points

Upvote because of random Bolsonaro burn.

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3 points

I was under the impression that bread makers don’t actually save money, they just make better bread for the same money.

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6 points
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When I did the math, it comes out to a substantial saving. Not just bread, but pizza dough, too!

But, there’s a nuance. If you’re buying small bags of bread flour and those tiny jars of instant yeast, you’re going to overspend like crazy.

Large bags of all purpose flour and big bags of active yeast are key. When I compared results using instant yeast and bread flour, nobody in my family could tell the difference 😂

Edit: clarity

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1 point

Unless you’re making 5 leaves a day, give makin g sourdough a shot. No more need for buying more yeast.

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1 point

When you say bread dough do you mean bread flour?

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2 points

I was thinking, “Isn’t it usually more expensive to make your own bread?” But then I realized with how inflated grocery prices are now, there might very well be a savings esp. if you can buy flour in bulk or something.

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2 points

Yes, once bread reached a price that no longer justified the convenience, that was my final straw.

Bulk flour and yeast SIGNIFICANTLY reduce costs, and my machine paid for itself very quickly.

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