Let’s get a list going. Like with a Target debit card you can get $40 cash back and it takes 1 to 2 days to be withdraw from your checking.

  • rtxn@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    Get a chest freezer. It’s much more efficient for long-term storage than an upright fridge with a freezer because the cold air doesn’t spill out when you open it.

    Toss your incandescent and fluorescent lights. Get LED bulbs (not smart lights, just white LEDs). Where applicable, install timer switches.

    Fuck cars, get a bike. A simple, sturdy one, like an onafiets. They run on toast and determination.

    Understand the difference between having enough money to buy something and being able to afford something.

    Unsubscribe from music/video streaming services. Return to the seven seas.

    Maybe engage in some light tax evasion.

    • _danny@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      Toss your incandescent and fluorescent lights. Get LED bulbs (not smart lights, just white LEDs). Where applicable, install timer switches.

      It’s crazy how efficient LEDs are. They are a little bit more expensive but you’ll save it on your energy bill over time and you’ll have to replace them less.

      People also don’t realize how much of their energy bill is heat & air conditioning. If you don’t have pets, turn your heat off or way down while you’re at work. Just make sure it stays above freezing and above the dewpoint. If you can get any smart thermostat for cheap, they’ll save you a ton of money over the long run if you’re like me and constantly forget to set the temperature before you leave for work.

      Also, thick drapes work wonders at keeping the cold out of cheap windows. You can get them and the hardware to hang them pretty cheap from goodwill. You can also wrap them in Saran wrap if you really want to keep the cold out. They sell kits, but painters tape and a cling film are way cheaper if you can hide them behind some drapes.

      https://youtu.be/tbq6uZ9Y0nQ?si=m1Z9kp21PTQFhGnx

      • RememberTheApollo@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        I’d be careful about the HVAC thing. I read somewhere a while back that it can cost more to change temperature than to just leave it slightly lower/higher and just wear a sweater or just shorts and a T shirt. Changing temperature is especially expensive if you’re drawing more electricity during peak times to make that change, like getting home from work at 6pm or so, when rates are higher. If you have a small apartment it may not be so bad to change the temp in a smaller volume of space.

        YMMV, check your rates and times you’d be changing temp. Wear a sweater or strip as much as is feasible.

    • Hyperreality@kbin.social
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      10 months ago

      I don’t have an omafiets, but a single gear bike. The only gear it does have is quite tough to start, but my God is it so much better than something with 8 gears or whatever. So much less effort once you get going. I never realised this, but apparently you lose a lot of power through the gearing.

        • Hyperreality@kbin.social
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          10 months ago

          Nope. Do hills too.

          It is a bit tougher up hill, like cycling in a higher gear, but because you lose less power due to gearing, it’s not as bad as you’d expect.

          • Cheerstothe90s@lemmy.world
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            10 months ago

            I’m not an avid cyclist, and I found the inability to make inclines easier a no-go. I’m into electric assist though, but that increases bike price. I see quite a few used ones for sale tho.

    • garbagebagel@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      Maybe engage in some light tax evasion.

      Not me (definitely not me) but my friend certainly had a lot more money when they had a job that made light tax evasion easier :(

    • mean_bean279@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      The efficiency trade off of a chest freezer is often broken by people’s inability to remember what’s in it. If you can’t reach the stuff at the bottom then it all goes bad. This is why an upright most likely makes more sense, even though it’s less efficient. You end up wasting as much food simply from forgetting what’s in there.

      • rtxn@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        I consider not letting food go to waste as part of a poor person’s fiscal financial responsibility.

        • qdJzXuisAndVQb2@lemm.ee
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          9 months ago

          Can I be pedantic? I’m going to go ahead: fiscal means tax-related, so probably just ‘financial responsibility’ is more what you’re aiming for.