Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

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livinlite
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Post by livinlite »

Excel or OpenOffice is helpful for predicting/trends analysis in earnings and tracking spending.
Getting a smaller apartment/house and adapting it to your needs is very helpful; though city dwellers can make great use of public spaces if they aren't lured into spending money.
My wife and I are still working on cutting things down, so learning ways to go out to eat/drink/coffee on the cheap has been helpful. We make use of HappyHour deals to eat at nicer organic-type restaurants and get out together. It doesn't fit in the strict ERE, but it beats what most people would spend at Applebees.. Same with coffee. For $4 we get a pot of tea at Starbucks (new concept store) that lasts through 2 hours of studying and every 15th pot is free.
Learning to be content with not buying new stuff is a big step. Esoteric practices like mindfulness and awareness type meditation can be helpful..as are long walks with no direction.
Learning to cook delicious meals from scratch.
Honestly, a lot of the tools we use though are not really that necessary.


4hrwweek
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Post by 4hrwweek »

For me, the NEEDED items are only the following:

-Food (eating in is always better, except if you live overseas where quality food is very cheap)

-Water (good spring water is essential to health)

-Hygiene kits (includes toothbrush, baking soda, floss, clippers, razor, tweezers, shampoo/conditioner, other small items)

-Good shoes (I wear tennis shoes most of the time, except in hot climates I wear sandals)

-Quality clothes, underwear, socks that can be used in many climates (clothes that are light and easy to dry out)

-Internet (essential because it provides work, phone, finances, communication, entertainment - required)

-Laptop (again, required because it provides internet and a means to access information)

-Kitchen area including a burner, pot/pan, sink, fridge, dishes and silverware

-Bathroom including shower, sink, toilet, cabinet, toiletries

-Bed with sheets, pillow blankets

-Work desk/chair for laptop and for organizing

-Carry on luggage bags, computer cases

-Prepaid cell phone for on the go communication

-Debit & Credit Cards, high benefit to cost ratio cc's, for example Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa

-Drivers License, Passport

-Hundreds of thousands of airline miles

-Hundreds of thousands of dollars in bank accounts

-High deductible health insurance (less than 80 dollars a person/month)
Anything I didn't have on this list, in my opinion, is living in excess.
Excess items include but not limited to:

-Tv's

-Cable

-DVD players

-New cars/trucks/lawn mowers/clothes etc etc etc

-Land lines

-I-phones/fancy phones/high tech phones w/ long contracts

-Anything with a long contract

-Fancy furniture

-Things you use only once/once a year/once every 5 years/never

-Decorations that are costly

-"Nice things" that don't give back much benefit except that they are nice

-The "next new thing" - these items are traps because they keep you in the wheel of buying the next "new" thing

-Low deductible health insurance (if you are not chronically ill or are paying more than 100 a month)
Of course, I could go on and on with this part but I think this is enough to get the point.
Your goal should always be freedom from the traps of "having to work" and more focus on building freedom by being different than the sheeple. You have to be - because if you weren't, you would not be getting anywhere.


Roark
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Post by Roark »

@4hww. Out of your necessities list I think I can spot some things you might like to try:
Socks/shoes - Invisible Shoes. These are healthy for your feet, will last forever, and are extremely cheap. You won't need socks from now on either. I've been wearing mine all over the world. You might take the book "Born to Run" out of the library for more background info on them. http://www.invisibleshoe.com/ I just go barefoot when I'm in the country and know the ground will be safe.
Shampoo/conditioner: Google "no poo." After an adjustment period you may find you can go without shampoo.
Bed: Consider sleeping the Asian way with a small mattress that you move into the closet after you wake up. This saves you a lot of money because you don't need to rent a place with an extra room for an office--the bedroom turns into an office after you wake up.
Not trying to "correct" you, just think I can provide some cool ideas for you to consider.


4hrwweek
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Post by 4hrwweek »

@Roark - thank you for your input!
What is your story?


Stahlmann
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Stahlmann »

It's usually against rules to bump old topics, but I do it consciously. I think the wisdom I can get there is invaluable (I hope older folks from this thread would show here and share what they screwed up :P, in this case being archaeologist makes sense).

In my current journey with ERE LBYM part is very important so I'm a bit arrogant with refreshing old discussions (not the first time :P).

blackbird
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by blackbird »

I'm not FIRE, but I do live well below my means. Some of my items echo previous lists, but I'm typing everything I think (for reinforcement if nothing else):

1. Library Card = This has been mentioned already, but the economic impact of this is hard to understate. My daughter is 8, and each Saturday we visit two libraries (a large public one and a smaller, but well maintained military one) and we walk out with max checkouts. This provides us a GIANT amount of entertainment, prevents us from buying dvds / books / cds 95% of the time, and helps us participate in our community through attending events (LEGO club immediately springs to mind, but we go to several events there through the year). Becoming a regular library patron when I was in middle school impacted my life in positive and long-lasting ways and we have relentlessly ingrained in our daughter the importance of a library.

2. Hair clippers = I've cut my own hair for over 10 years now and it has saved me much time and money. It helps that I have a spouse who can check for missed spots and tidy up my neck / ear lines, but this could probably be done alone, especially if a smaller clip guard is used.

3. Plastic lunch containers and large lunchbag = It took me a good year or so from the time I decided to stop going out for lunch often until the time I fully adopted no going out to lunch. I realized at some point that having a small lunchbag and not having enough plastic containers for soup / rice & beans / etc dampened my adherence because I never could pack all I wanted. Now I have a larger bag that can carry several pieces of fruit, 2 or 3 plastic containers with lunch and seeds/nuts, and a soda. I keep coffee supplies at my desk at work. Seems simple but it definitely helped me start saving a good amount of money each week.

4. Rabbit ears = We have not paid for cable television in 10? years I think. I'm not sure b/c it has been so long. I like to occasionally watch a football game (esp at holidays when family are staying with us) and I'm still amazed at how nice digital broadcast looks. We've had the same digital rabbit ears for well, I don't know, a long time. Maybe 2010? Regardless, I have friends who pay for cable solely to watch sports and I try to convince them that many of their games can be watched for free at the same level of quality. But no luck.

5. Aldi / Costco stores = Throwing these in here as well. We have an Aldi store maybe 2 miles away, and my wife has made grabbing produce and meat (when we ate it more often) there a science. She tracked the costs of several items we use as staples between Aldi, Walmart, and Target and the price difference was startling when you added it all up. Costco is a little further away (5 miles?) and not in the same category as Aldi, but for staple non-perishables that we intend to buy through the year we've saved a lot of money there as well.

6. Sturdy large wooden table = When our daughter was born we decided that eating as a family and working on projects as a family was important to us. We spent several weekends keeping an eye out for a large wooden table that would be sturdy enough for daily use. This has saved us money in what i believe are non-obvious ways. First, by eating every dinner together at the table, we have time to catch up on each other's day, ask about school / work, plan the evening or weekends out, and generally bond. IIRC, there have actually been studies that show the simple act of taking a meal together at the table has very beneficial mental / physical benefits in child-rearing. So I would argue that this has saved us money by improving our well-being and our family bond. The table also serves as our workbench, either for my daughter and I to make Perler bead designs (given as gifts to her classmates or our friends), my wife to work on PTA stuff (she makes the trophies for school events, prints signs / certificates, creates calligraphic posters, etc), and we host friends for dinner at the table instead of meeting them at a restaurant. This last one has been going on for years, we almost never are asked to meet out because we have made our table the locus of our (admittedly small) social circle. It just seems to be assumed when we talk about getting together that it is going to happen at our place.

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Sclass
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Sclass »

This was a good thread.

Somebody said sewing stuff. I’d mention a sewing awl for thick items like bag straps.

And I’d go as far as saying a cheap $50 sewing machine at Black Friday. One may just put it on the shelf and never use it, but it can open up a lot of avenues for saving money with some creativity. I alter free garments that I acquire from people not my size. My environment is flooded with out of date garments that can be scrapped and repurposed.

A cheap soldering iron. Again you need to use it and not bury it in a drawer. YouTube level skills can salvage many devices.

FBeyer
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by FBeyer »

Sclass wrote:
Wed Nov 01, 2017 8:38 am
...
And I’d go as far as saying a cheap $50 sewing machine at Black Friday....
A cheap soldering iron. Again you need to use it and not bury it in a drawer. YouTube level skills can salvage many devices.
Anecdote for you.
I curbside-scavenged an old mechanical Singer machine for my GF so we could alter clothes like you mentioned. The only thing we need to bring the machine to brand-new condition is a soldering iron because one of the condensators is blown :D


In regards to the OP.
Living below your means starts with the mentality. Once you can live comfortably with very few items, you can move to a much smaller place, and you have a much larger pool of viable accomodation to choose from. Becoming a minimalist of some kind is the first 'item' to check off of your list.

Then you need a good kitchen knife, and a good set of pots and pans... And an internet connection.

Then: access to a toolset (no need to own). When you can build/fix furniture yourself you're well underway. My tools were purchased when I still worked as a carpenter so they sort of came with the lifestyle. Now, they are indespensible. In the last 14 months I've built tables, hallway closets, a wire-hider for the desk, a custom drawer for the stereo, garden beds, a vermicomposting farm, a crossfit prowler, a pullup bar, a clothes hanger, repaired biciycles, fixed faucets, built shelves, and a storagebox/floor table/floor-sitting-armrest thingy so I can get of my dependency on chairs and sofas.

Minimalism, cooking skills, construction skills. The 'things' that speed you along are minor compared to the mindset you need to bring.

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Lillailler
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Lillailler »

Farm shop: I just bought a week's worth of meat to cook at home. I know the breed, where it was raised and what it ate, and it cost less than supermarket meat which in turn is an order of magnitude cheaper than a restaurant meal. I find that being discriminating about what you eat, and also some form of LCHF / IF, so that you don't get hungry if you skip a meal or to, leads to lowered costs almost automatically.

My other favourite saver is a cashcard phone. I spend the same in a year on the phone as some of my friends do for a month on their contract phone.

Farm_or
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Farm_or »

Health preventive tools: Floss, toothbrush, peroxide, hair clippers, dumbbells (kettlebells), running or hiking shoes, safety glasses, ear plugs, gloves.

Energy savers: clothes line, Crock-Pot, sink (no dishwasher), Woodstove.

Home maintenance: pipe wrenches (only one will get you in trouble?), saws, hammers, drills, screwdrivers, chainsaw, splitting maul, axe.

Transportation maintenance: tire guage, air compressor, box end wrench sets, socket sets (both metric and standard) *what happened to Dewey decimal's promise? We should have been all metric awhile ago!

I'm getting carried away. But, a wide skills set is a complete waste without proper tools. A lot of money can be saved by owning the means to do everything without hiring help, if you are pragmatic about it.

I've been in diy shops with tools scattered from hell to breakfast. They keep four of everything because they don't put anything away and can't find it after the first use. The rules of usefulness have to be applied and tested constantly to all tools.

jacob
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by jacob »

Ultimately, tools+ are used to control your environment (unless you're one of these weird collector dudes).

Easiest way to control your environment is to remove aspects of it entirely. This is called simple living.
Without a lawn you need neither worry about lawnmower nor lawn service. For simple living, see Vicki Robin (YMOYL), Duane Elgin, ... there is/was a community including online forums.

Hardest (but ultimately most efficient) way to control your environment is to understand it completely and design it appropriately. That's ERE and web-of-goals. This could be called complex living. What makes it challenging is that modern humans aren't used to complexity.

Minimalism is possible with both approaches. It's certainly a lot harder with the latter than the former :mrgreen:

Some general thoughts. (Read the section about Legos in the ERE book)

Ultimately a solution is a combination of skill+tools+parts.

Sometimes the parts are just as important if not more than the tools. For example, it's easy to fall into the trap of believing that you've solved everything because you bought a giant set of 476 tools for $69.95 from Harbor Freight(*). Or maybe you buy the Advanced Toolset from Park thinking you can fix any bike.

(*) For non-US persons, HF is the mainstay outlet in the US for cheap-cheap-cheap budget stuff imported from China. Quality is kinda hit and miss. Pricing is very indicative of the material costs rather than the labor costs which are probably still under a dollar per hour, whereas for US/EU manufactured tools and parts it's the other way around. And just to complicate things ... just because it's made in a "first-world" country doesn't mean that it's better made than the import stuff. Some things are just hard to screw up. Whereas others (like belt-sanders) are pretty easy :-P

However, solutions are stymied without ready access to parts ON HAND. In my experience, even if you have a nearby supply house (say you live 300ft from a plumber... which I do), your work is going to be slowed down physically if you have to run back and forth 2-3 times for some bolt or coupling. You might not even know what to ask for. Learning what to have on hand is hard. It's generally not something you can learn from books.

Maybe a better example is a stash of scrap wood. Suppose I want to build a door stopper (a wedge). In terms of tools, I need a saw (I don't want to whittle or plane it) and something to hold the wood while sawing it (clamp, workbench, ... ). If I have scrap wood, I can find a good piece in 30 seconds. I don't have to venture out to buy a 6 foot 2x4.

Recently, I fixed a slow cooker which had a broken plastic part. I'm not very strong in plastics and metals (I'm building up my metal capability) and it took me weeks (not full time, obviously :-P ) to source materials including failed expeditions for parts and trying stuff that didn't work. If I had had an assortment of parts, I would not only have been able to just go pick the ones I needed, but more importantly, having them all n front of me would have made it possible to come up with solutions much faster. The ultimate solution involved a nut that I had to get from eBay (Harbor Freight strangely don't have that size anymore); some DOM tubing I pulled out of my university pendant holder (I had forgotten I had it); and some electrical tape.

I had the same issue when I was fixing bicycles. Initially I was always waiting 2-3 weeks for some package to arrive as I queued up a list of needed parts. So I started ordering doubles. Sounds wasteful, but it really cut down on the turnaround time. The cost is that I now have a tub full of parts that I'm not using since I now only repair on my own bikes. (If anyone needs anything for their bike [in the US] hit me up.)

I don't want to recommend specific tools (yet), but I think the best way to gain useful tools, skills, and parts, is to do some DIY/Maker projects. In particular, if you build it yourself, you will also know exactly how to repair or modify it. Repairing and modifying commercial stuff also requires you understanding how to take it apart in a reversible way and understanding how it works and this is much harder that making it from scratch.

Biggest money saver project to start with: cooking

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conwy
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by conwy »

Thanks for this post Jacob. Awesome topic!

And thanks everyone else – so many brilliant tools and ideas here!

Some tools already mentioned that I also use:
  • Hair clipper. I paid about $120AUD for a very good electric * clipper/trimmer and have owned it for about 2+ years now, and it's still fully functional. Makes shaving and touching up my hair quick, fast and painless. Pleasure to use, with a nice rubber grip, easy recharging from the mains (no separate batteries) and easily adjustable settings. Easy to maintain, with almost no moving parts. I'll post the brand/model soon. (Bonus: it was bought in Australia, as were all my electronics to-date, which means it takes a high 240 volt supply, so it can effectively be used almost anywhere in the world without a converter. An adapter is still required, but those are pretty cheap.
  • Good blankets. Luckily the blankets in my latest shared accommodation are very warm and insulating. But before then, I bought a very warm blanket that has kept me warm every winter for years now.
  • Durable shoes. I only own two pairs of shoes now: A) black boots, R.M. Williams, originally $500AUD, but very well made, super comfy, highly versatile, very tough and have lasted 3-4 years now; B) sneakers, MUJI, originally $50AUD, very comfy, remarkably tough, easy to clean, great for jogging, workouts and just casual wear, have lasted me a year now.
  • Cooking pots. I use steel ones, which are easy to scrape clean with simple steel wool. Got my current set for free, off Olio! The big one is great for soaking then cooking beans, and the smaller ones are great for cooking multiple meals at once, to save time.
  • Sandwich containers. Amen! Every time I buy food shrink-wrapped in bulk (e.g. beans) I divide it into smaller portions and put them in bags. That way, as I consume one bag at a time, the rest of the food stays as fresh as possible. I also use them for portion control, i.e. to help keep count of how many calories and dollars I'm consuming at each meal, and keep that under control.
And some other tools that may not have been mentioned yet:
  • Jars and containers. Anytime I buy a food item that comes in a container I try to re-use the container. E.g. lately I've been keeping the plastic cartons that mushrooms come packed in, and using them to keep 3 servings of rice in the fridge, so I can cook all the rice on one night, and have 3 more nights of effortless rice available.
  • Kettle-bell (8KG). For £30 (roughly the price of a month's gym membership, where I live), I have pretty much the only peice of exercise equipment I'll ever need. It's amazing how many exercises I can do with it: one-handed presses and curls gripping the bell, various kinds of sit-ups, pushing it from side to side while planking, you name it! Can be combined with chin-up and lateral bars at any work-out park, for added resistance.
  • Plastic water bottle. Fill it with tap water everyday before leaving the house, to stay hydrated without wasting money on new bottled water. My current one costed 30¢ has lasted me a month. It's large, has a nice firm lid, and a comfy ergonomic shape for easy gripping. I just put it in my backpack and forget about it until I need it.
  • Hot water bottle. An easy way to stay warm in bed or anywhere in the house during winter, without relying on heaters. All it needs is hot water.
  • Big, tough, comfortable backpack. I spent $500AUD on my Minaal, without regret. It's *so* comfortable that I find it nicer wearing it than not wearing it! It has a sleek black/charcoal colour and can be zipped-up for a briefcase look, so it's perfect for taking to work, job interviews and professional events. At the same time, it's huge, so I can use it everytime I go shopping to carry many bulk items comfortably, and avoid spending extra on plastic bags or having to use a car or public transport. It has tonnes of compartments, but the main areas are super-easy to access, so I can quickly get out my laptop, etc. at airport security. It also has an attachable waterproof sleeve, perfect for rainy weather.
  • Big, super-warm jacket. I spent about $80AUD on a Rothco N3B Snorkel Parka. Bought online, I lucked out and it fits me perfectly. This jacket is used by the American military and is suitable for actic conditions. After owning it for about a year, I can confirm that it's the warmest jacket I've ever owned (has me sweating in winter). It's also built very tough and durable. E.g. the zipper feels strong and sturdy. And has many large pockets - the side-pockets are so big I can fit a banana and a carrot in one, and my phone charger in another. Also 100% vegan as far as I know (no down, surprisingly). Wearing this jacket feels almost like being enclosed in a tough sturdy tent. I can go on very long walks in the cold with this jacket, and feel safe and pumped the whole time. It's helped me in my recent efforts to abstain from public transport.
  • Plastic fork. This light, costless, humble piece of cutlery has saved me to no end! I always keep one in my backpack, clean after every use, and replace it once-in-a-while (supermarkets and small take-away stores give them out for free). With this device + a small tin of sardines (no more than 66c) I can enjoy a fast, cheap, highly nutritious meal anytime on-the-go. (Sardines are one of the most nutrient-dense foods available, very high in protein, calcium, B-vitamins and healthy Omega fats and a nice amount of calories, enough to make you feel full without putting on lots of weight. They're basically one of my go-to foods.)
  • International power adapter. I finally found an adapter that works from any country to any country. All my electrics were purchased in Australia, which has the highest voltage of any major country, so they're all safe to use anywhere in the world, as long as I have an adapter. This adapter has been excellent. I've had it for 3 months so far. It's solid and durable and includes 2x USB ports, so I can keep my phone and tablet charged as well. It's light and easy to pack so I take it anywhere, for charging-up on-the-go.
I could go on to list many others, but I'll stop here. These are probably the best tools I've had, in terms of money, time and effort saved and rewards reaped.

George the original one
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by George the original one »

jacob wrote:
Sat Nov 04, 2017 9:40 am
Ultimately, tools+ are used to control your environment
So true! I was just thinking about the tools that I most frequently use to sustain my lifestyle:
- chainsaws (gas & electric) to cut firewood
- files to sharpen chainsaws
- axe, hatchet
- splitting maul, sledgehammer, & wedge
- garden shovels, forks, & rakes
- greenhouse (dang it, the harbor freight greenhouse gifted to us two seasons ago is lying in a twisted heap)
- rototiller that also has woodchipper, mower, & dozer attachments (rent rather than buy one if you have rental center nearby)
- mower (think of it as pest reduction, fire prevention, and composter rather than something to keep an unnecessarily groomed landscape)
- ladders
- a secure dry location to keep the gear that isn't in your living quarters
- sturdy shoes (Georgia Boot Company's Romeos work well for me)
- fishing waders & other funtime paraphrenalia
- computer with redundant internet connections
- kitchen knives, cutting boards, cooking pans, slow cooker, & microwave (assuming normal people already have stove/oven & toaster oven)
- 5 gallon buckets for hauling river water when the well isn't working (usually just lack of electricity, but sometimes things just break)

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Sclass
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Sclass »

I notice crockpots come up a lot. Black Friday is the time of year to score one cheap. I replaced my old one with a $17 BF special with an electronic timer & removable ceramic tub last year. Great for a low cost low labor dinner.

Noedig
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Noedig »

Taking that to mean 'The things I use most, that cost little and add to my quality of life':

-Breadmaker (too effective at making delicious bread, having to give that up for a while for my waistline)
-Bicycles (secondhand, always have a spare one in case of puncture (every 6 months) or theft (every few years in London).
-My second hand iMac 2009 24inch.
-Good boots. A really good coat.
-My four crammed Ikea 'Billy' bookshelves. Whenever bored, I start browsing. Always find a surprise.
-My portable DAB+internet radio. Recommend ResonanceFM from London, BTW.
-My cooking pots and implements. Steel. Each was chosen carefully. Each is required. All pretty old and if broken would be replaced with replicas.
-My favorite clothes: two identical pairs sweatpants; two check shirts; sundry t-shirts; one pair of super comfortable hiking socks (used to have 2 pairs: daughter #1 appropriated one, along with the additional sweatpants that she terms 'Dad pants' and slobs around in)
-Duvets cushions and blankets distributed around the home for nesting wherever I or my family end up.

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conwy
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by conwy »

Three more:
  • Rubber bands. A couple of years ago I actually decided to search out some quality bands, and ordered a pack online ("Tulip Wide Rubber Bands"). I've still got a few of them, and they're still in perfectly good order! Very, very versatile things. Good for anything from tying cables to sealing plastic food wrappers to keeping related items together in a backpack.
  • Plastic bags. Huge pity that these end up in the ocean choking whales, when they're so useful to humans. Just today I wrapped my wet swimwear in one, to keep the rest of my backpack from getting damp. I use them to store food, to contain dry or wet foods, to keep electronics protected from dust/dirt in my backpack, and probably much more.
  • Small liquid containers. I paid a bit more for some quality ones from MUJI, and they've lasted me 2 years so far. I keep them in my toiletries bag and use them to hold shampoo/conditioner, hair wax, soap, whatever. They're great for airport security because they're well under 100ml.

Fish
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by Fish »

Interpreting saving money as "avoiding bad spending outcomes", here is a sampling of some items in my life, ranked by impact. I have also provided expected increases in spending in the absence of the tools, after considering changes in behavior that would result.
  • Birth control. ($10,000+/year) - How has this not been mentioned yet? :twisted:
  • Bus pass. ($2,500+/year) - Both DW and I always take the bus to work. Use of bus pass for personal needs saves $200-300/year.
  • Index funds. ($2,000+/year) - Avoiding high expense ratio managed funds saves us money, at least in this "rising tide lifts all boats" environment. The savings is obviously proportional to capital.
  • Rewards credit card. ($1,000/year) - A winner at our level of spending.
  • Costco membership. ($500/year) - More about getting quality food than saving money.
  • Library card. ($300-500/year) - Our kids go through hundreds of books in a year... and as for us adults, some less respectable low two-digit number. This is more of a quality-of-life improvement rather than expense reduction. Given my methods of acquiring books cheaply, I estimate this is what we would actually spend on books if we didn't have the library. We would also read much less and have more clutter.
  • Hair clippers and other haircutting tools. ($300-400/year)
  • Garden tools. ($300/year) - Is it the tools, or the willingness to use the tools? This is how much we spent before ERE ushered in the golden age of DIY. Yard looks much better too.
  • Insulation, double-paned windows ($200/year) - If our house were "average" in this regard we would bundle up and turn the heat down from 21C to 18-19C. So more comfort than savings?
  • Toolbox (as used for automotive maintenance/repair). ($100-200/year)
  • Fruit trees/plants. ($50/year) - This is not the retail value of the food, but an estimate of the avoided food cost.
  • Amazon Prime subscription ($0/year) - After correction for unnecessary stuff we purchase because Amazon makes it more convenient.
It's really difficult to precisely quantify the impact of health-related items/equipment, especially since it "works" on a much longer timeframe than anything here. But I think that's among the very highest financial ROI behavior (along with not getting divorced and not accidentally reproducing).

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conwy
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Re: Tools/Devices/Items/Equipment that helps you to Live Below Your Means

Post by conwy »

So I think it's time to open this up to the forum...

A digital tool that I actually developed entirely myself: EatPayLove. (http://epl.conwy.co).
It's a mobile-targeted app that tracks calories and price of food items per day.

I couldn't find any other app on the market that keeps track of both, so I ended up writing this baby myself. It's been immensely useful and addictive (in a good way). Using this app, I've succeeded in generally keeping calories consumed below 2,700 and spending on average at around $15 AUD.

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