Ways to Stop Money Leaks in Your Home

Waste not,want not!
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
Save for a rainy day!
A penny saved is a dollar earned!

Okay, so these are tired and old sayings. Are they true? Sure they are or they would not have existed so long everyone knows them. Lets take a look.

Waste not, want not. How big is your light bill? Do you leave lights burning in rooms you are not using? Do you run your washer (clothes or dishes) everyday with little loads instead of waiting for a full load? Is your hot water set above 125 degrees? Hows your water bill? Do you run the water while you rinse dishes? Do you leave the water run while you brush your teeth? Is your faucet leaking? How is your gas bill? Is your thermostat set above 65 degrees during the day or above 60 degrees during the night? Have you covered your leaky windows with plastic or have you used weather stripping on your doors?

All these are simple and basic ways to save money. We all know them but do you really know how much money you waist by not following these simple little energy saving techniques? Well, for instance, when I moved into my new (but very old) home the toilet had a leak, and although there is no dishwasher, I had a habit of letting the water run while washing dishes in the sink. So, after fixing the leak and changing to using a rinse tub for doing dishes I saved 2000 gallons of water which is $20 a month on my water bill. Waste not, pay not...lol.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This can apply to tons of real life issues. Insurance (most obvious probably)for health, life, home, car, appliances, etc. A small monthly payment far out-weighs a huge doctor or repair bill. Sticking to a practical budget becomes impossible when those unexpected things hit like a trip to the emergency room or the mechanic. When I was younger I made the mistake of not adding car towing, and car rental to my auto insurance to save a few dollars each month. One day a friend drove my car into another vehicle and the repair took two weeks. No towing and no car rental REALLY took a chunk out of the old budget. Lesson learned!

Maintenance on major appliances like your furnace can save big expensive emergency repair bills in the heat of summer or the cold of winter. You know its going to happen on the hottest or coldest day possible. Life happens, you know.

Save for a rainy day is a good idea. I can't say that is easy, for sure. I use to think it took a lot of money to make a difference but actually if you just take $20 from your budget each month and slide it into a savings account (hopefully a good interest bearing account) you will be surprised how quickly this adds up. Out of sight, out of mind for the most part. Still, savings are there in emergencies for your use. Emergencies being real legitimate money needs like unexpected and unavoidable expenses. Emergencies needs for money in savings does not mean there is a great sale at the local store that is calling your name. Don't listen...lol.

A penny saved is a dollar earned. Don't you think it is much easier to just save a little money than to have to work overtime or get a second job to replace the money you let 'leak from your pocket'? Life is just too short to spend all your time working. So you have to wait for the new outfit or the new car. Is the overtime or the second job worth these things? Look at your monthly expenses. The money I saved by conserving on water ($20.00) now goes into my savings account. That is an extra $240 a year. That was easy! I changed my auto insurance to a different company and saved $60 a month which is $720.00 a year. I then joined an auto club which offered extra services at a much lower cost than adding them to the auto insurance policy amounting to $14.00 a month for $168.00 a year. Now the savings account has an extra $552.00. Take a look at your house taxes. Where I live if you are a full time resident you can apply for a tax exemption which saves half of your tax bill.

In other words, take a good look at all the ways you spend money and see where you are spending money that is just not necessary. Buy in bulk when possible. Don't drive ten extra miles to save a penny a gallon on gas. You get the idea.

The videos here have some good ideas and one is just plain fun! Please enjoy.