Page 17 - Book11E

CHAPTER 2
One Penny at a Time
When we think of saving money or reducing expenses, we often think of significant amounts of money, but sometimes it’s the little savings that mount up over time that become
significant in the long run. When we
begin a plan to become debt free, we ask ourselves, “Where can I save money?” and it might seem that we have made all the cuts we can possibly make.
That is where the pennies come in.
When it feels like there is just nowhere
left to conserve, we can still find ways to save a few pennies. Here we’ve collected some of our favorite ideas for putting the pennies in your piggybank instead of someone else’s pocket.
Avoid penny meltdown
Your refrigerator is probably the single biggest user of electricity in your house. Did you know that one of the best ways to reduce the amount of energy it uses is to clean the coils? Doing this every six months will help you use less energy and save money. (Flip up or remove the kick plate or toe grill, and clean with a vacuum attachment or bottle brush. Make sure to unplug the fridge or turn off its circuit breaker first.) So will keeping the fridge set between 38 and 40 degrees and the freezer between 0 and 5 degrees — the settings where the refrigerator operates most efficiently.
Having it all doesn’t necessarily mean having it all at once.
—Stephanie Luetkehans
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