I want to save piles more
I keep hearing on the news that things are looking up, the economy is expanding and there are, apparently, green shoots of recovery. That's marvellous, but this reincarnated affluence has yet to make its way to my bank balance.Therefore, until it gets here I'm still trying to find as many ways as possible to shave a few quid off bills and save a some pennies.
Also the idea of spending money I don't have to - even if I can afford it - makes me feel like a mug, and no one likes that.
So here's a selection of the innovations, inventions and generally great ideas that can help keep the cash in your purse for a little bit longer. Hive This is a bit of remote-controlled cleverness that allows you to control your central heating and hot water wherever you are. Hive lets you respond to the the weather or changes in your plans. It claims to be able to save you up to £150 in a year so it would pay for itself within 18 months. LED lightbulbs
For a long time the 'new' eco lightbulbs had a, well-deserved, bad reputation. They were dim and took ages to get bright enough to see anything and, in any case, electricity bills were rising so fast it was impossible to tell if they made a difference. However, newest kid on the block is the LED bulb and it's beaten the competition hands-down. They are expensive to buy - from £10 - however this is recouped within a fraction of the bulb's predicted life-span. Guardian writer Adam Vaughan calculated that replacing his 40 halogen downlighters with LED would cut the running costs (average 2.7 hours' use a day) from £287 a year to £23.Quidco
This is the site where you get cash back for shopping online. If you're shopping online then go to Quidco first. In five years I've earned more than £1000 for nothing.
Slow cooker
I appreciate this isn't a miraculous innovation, however it does save money. Firstly it's much cheaper to run - even all day - than a traditional oven for short spell. You can cook cheaper meats and they'll be delicious and tender plus I make enough to cover lunches too, saving on a run to Gregg's or similar.
Ecoflap
Not just the Ecoflap (isn't that the best product name you've seen for a long time?) but anything else that keeps drafts out. For example, a draft excluder, seals around the windows or heavy curtains.
Mysupermarket.co.uk
I find going to the supermarket feels more and more like entering a gladiatorial arena and I'm not the lion. The supermarket is full of increasingly clever and baffling ways of parting me from my money. My retaliation is to shop through mysupermarket.co.uk . I type in my shopping list and it shows me which of the deals is actually best value for money - and which isn't. No getting dazzled by seemingly wonderful deals - which actually are a bit rubbish.Energy monitor
This is a gizmo that tells you how much energy is being used so when you turn things on and off you can tell how much juice they're sucking. A pretty clear motivation to turn things off properly.This is a partnered post.