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Sunday, October 24, 2010

Living the simple, frugal lifestyle—a matter of lifestyle modification Part 1

Over the last year, many old friends have asked us how we are capable of living on the limited budget that we have chosen. It is no secret that, in monetary terms, we are living just over the poverty level and loving every minute of this new way of living. Our lives are richer today than they have ever been.



This feature is specifically designed to give you a little insight on how you can begin the transformation to this simple frugal lifestyle. When it all boils down to it, this way of living requires a significant lifestyle modification. Believe it or not, we are still in this transition after living it for over a year and a half.

Ask yourself a few simple questions. Are you dissatisfied with your current job? Do you feel like you are slaving away at your job and can never seem to get ahead? Do you find yourself purchasing things you desire rather than need? Do you find yourself deeper in debt than you were 5 years ago? Are you genuinely happy in life or do you surround yourself with material possessions in an attempt to find happiness? Do you find yourself trying to create or maintain a social status or image you can’t really afford? Are you driving around in a new car? Do you purchase things to keep up with the Jones? Are you sick and tired of this way of living that only gives you temporary gratification? Great, read along and we will share with you some of our experiences to assist you in making your own transition to this way of living a little more pleasing.

We can not possibly look at all of your own personal spending habits, this is where you will need to take a real hard look for yourself. The key here is the willingness to make the necessary changes in your current lifestyle in order for your own plan to work. Depending on your current financial condition, your plan could possibly take a significant amount of time to finalize.

The most important factor in your success will be your commitment and the commitment of everyone in your household.

First, you will need to learn how to create and maintain a realistic budget. There are many free, yes I said free budget guides available on the internet. You will notice that we will be discussing as many free options during our journey through this transition. After documenting all of your household income, you will need to document EVERY expense you have. If you have found one of the free budget guides, you will notice that it is pretty comprehensive, but how do you come up with realistic figure to put towards each category. After all, can you tell yourself right now how much you spent on groceries last month? I didn’t think so. Start at the beginning of next month. Keep a log of every single expense you make for the month and save your receipts. This goes for every gallon of milk you buy, every gallon of gas, every cup of coffee etc… And we do mean every expense. If you pay your insurance every 6 months, you need to factor this into a monthly expense. This will be the foundation to your success.

After keeping track of your expenses for the month, you will have your budget of expenses.

Now comes the challenging part. Take a hard look at all of your outstanding credit. Be sure to list these and your current interest rates. Add up all of the interest you are paying each month. This is money you are throwing away every month. Yes, throwing away. After looking at some of the money saving tips we will present, you will take every penny you save and apply it to pay down these debts. When paying these debts down, you will apply every saved penny to the highest interest debt you have. Only focus on paying off one debt at a time. The sooner you pay off your first debt, the sooner you can apply the money you were paying towards that debt to the next. And this process begins until you pay off all of your debt.

Your goal will be to become debt free. This will be a significant challenge for some of you, but we are confident that you will succeed if you remain committed. We will address budget and debt reduction in greater detail in a future feature, but you get the idea. One note of caution, stay away from those debt consolidation services you may find on the internet. Many of these will only take advantage of your debt situation and keep you trapped and not pay down your debt as quick as you can do yourself. Also, contact your creditors and negotiate a lower interest. Yes, it can be done.

The only way you can effective eliminate your debt is to STOP using your credit cards. Put them in an envelope and secure them at home, don’t keep them in your wallet or purse. It is too easy to use them when you have them available. A wise old timer once said “when you find yourself in a hole, QUIT DIGGING”.

Now let’s look at a few tips on how you are going to save money to apply towards paying down your debt and putting a few dollars a month into a savings account.

Housing is typically your largest single monthly expense. It is recommended that your housing expense should never exceed 25 percent of your monthly income. If you are a homeowner, you will not have much latitude to lower this expense except to consider refinancing while rates are low. If you are presently renting, consider downsizing when your lease expires.

The next largest budget item is typically car payments. Avoid any temptation to go out and buy a new car. If you have a brand new vehicle, consider selling it or trading it in for a reliable older vehicle that gets good gas mileage. If you have a high car payment, this is one way to significantly reduce your expenses. You will also save money on your insurance. Be smart about your vehicles. A vehicle is not a status symbol. It is a functional need that serves as your means to get to where you need to go. If you are going to live a simple, frugal life, you must stop thinking of things as status symbols and think in the terms of functionality.

Next thing to take a hard look at is your monthly budget is food expenses. Many Americans spend nearly 45 percent of their monthly food expenses out of the home. This is rather alarming, but you need to evaluate your own eating habits. How often do you eat out at a restaurant? How often do you stop at a fast food establishment? How often do you buy your lunch at work? These are all areas to cut back on or nearly eliminate all together. Pick one night a month to eat a nice restaurant dinner. Limit yourself. Instead of stopping for fast food, plan ahead and pack a picnic type meal when you know you will be away from the house. Eat at home before you hit the road to avoid the temptation and pack some snacks for the road. Don’t forget to keep a cooler for cold beverages or a thermos for hot beverages in the vehicle when you hit the road. Buying drinks on the road can be rather expensive. Look at all of your options for packing your lunch to work. Sandwiches and leftovers are perfect to take to work with you. Oh, and stop buying bottled water. Buy a water filter and reusable water bottles and take them everywhere you go.

Buying groceries is a totally separate topic. There are so many tips and tricks to saving money; we are dedicating the next segment just on this topic.

OK, here you have the first tidbits of information on how you can begin your transition into the frugal lifestyle. These tips and recommendations will take many more segments to adequately cover them in detail.

Look for all of our future features to assist you in this transition. We encourage you to look for related topics on the internet. There is some really great information out there.


Thrifty: Living the Frugal Life with Style


Frugal Living - How to Live Comfortably on a Tight Budget


The Complete Tightwad Gazette


Suddenly Frugal: How to Live Happier and Healthier for Less

Saturday, October 16, 2010

It all starts with good seed

Fast forward to the middle of winter--The cold wind is howling and you just want to stay inside and relax. You warm up with some hot spiced cider and you thumb through the vegetable seed catalogs you ordered back in October.


As we continue to say, grocery prices will continue to rise and there is nothing better than home-grown produce.

This feature is primarily targeted towards the beginner gardener, but we hope any gardener can benefit from some of the information we will present.



As a beginner gardener, you will need to figure out exactly what you want to grow as soon as spring arrives next year. Sure, you can go down to your local super store or DIY center and pick up all kinds of seed, but do you really know what you are getting at this bargain price? Heck there are so many varieties out there and the package doesn’t adequately provide information on the seed you pick up from there colorful displays. Many of the seeds you can pick up in these stores are hybrid seed and some have been significantly mutated. We try to stay away from these seeds.

We prefer heritage or heirloom seeds. These are seed which have been passed down from generation to generation. These are typically high quality seeds. As you progress in your gardening adventures, you will learn to save seeds of your own once you have built your collection of heritage or heirloom seeds. You will be surprised how fast you can collect quality seed, save them for the following year and have plenty left to trade for other seeds.

Seed catalogs will provide some great information on the type of seed you desire to grow. Once you receive your seed catalogs, you will probably be a little overwhelmed and want to order much more than you need to start with. Talk to some experienced gardeners. Figure out what they grow and why they like a particular type of seed or plant. Just a note of caution here, if you ask 10 gardeners about a specific topic, you will most likely get 11 different answers.

We will be addressing specific vegetable garden planning in a later feature, but let’s keep our focus on how to get the ball rolling by ordering some seed catalogs. There are a variety of seed companies throughout the United States. We have taken the time to provide you a list of a few of these companies. Take a few moments to check out these websites and order a free catalog. We will remind you that once you are finished with these hard copies of catalogs to recycle them. Ideally, you may be able shred some of them for your composting operations. Besides the list provided below, use your favorite search engine to find many more. You may need to cut and paste these links into your browser.

http://www.seedsavers.org/CatalogRequest.aspx

http://www.victoryseeds.com/catalog/main_vegies.html

http://www.sustainableseedco.com

http://amishlandseeds.com/

http://www.ufseeds.com/

http://www.greenpeople.org/VegetableSeed.html

http://www.halcyon.com/tmend/links.htm

http://www.parkseed.com/gardening/MP/catalogrequest

http://www.gurneys.com



This list ought to get you started in the right direction. Once you order your catalogs, you will begin receiving them in the middle of winter. You will go to the mail box and pick up your catalog and immediately get a warm glow knowing that spring is just around the corner. You will also know that when winter is really bringing you down, you can pick up those seed catalogs and snap you out of that winter funk.

If you know of or find another quality link, please feel free to share it with everyone else.

As always, we appreciate your feedback on these free features. If you are reading this, you are fortunate enough to get this free information before someone talks into charging for it.

Look for future features on vegetable garden planning. We will also have specific features on how to get your seed started and when to start them once you do receive them.



Vegetable Gardening For Dummies


Survival Seeds Non-Hybrid 37 Varieties of Survival Vegetable Seeds Heirloom Seeds Non GMO Free Shipping!! Only $57.00



Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Bucket List

Before you go thinking that this article is about a list of things to do before you die, let me set the record straight. This list is about all of those creative uses for those plastic 5-gallon buckets we see all over the place.

Each year, millions of plastic buckets end up in landfills. Again, I go back to the concept that America is the most wasteful country in the world. This list serves as a thought stimulator so you can go out and save some of these buckets from landfills and reuse them for practical, everyday tasks.

Before we look at some of these practical uses, let’s take a look at where you can get these buckets for FREE. If you go to your local home improvement center, you can buy them for nearly 5-dollars apiece. Why would anyone spend good money on something you could get for free? Some things I will never understand. You will also find some of the sources listed below will charge a dollar or two for buckets. I expect most of them will soon begin charging for their buckets as well.

When I refer to 5-gallon buckets, I use this term as a generality. You can find buckets in a variety of sizes to include 5-gallon, 3 gallon and two gallon. You can also find metal buckets which are suitable for a variety of other tasks and projects.

These days, many products come packaged in plastic buckets. Commercial painters typically buy their paint in these 5-gallon buckets. Seek out some of these painters and see if they will save some of them for you. These buckets can be used for many uses, but are not suitable for those tasks associated with any type of food products.

Restaurants are another great source of free buckets. Restaurants receive many products in bulk in these plastic buckets. Talk to local restaurant owners to see if they will save some of them for you. They typically throw them away and would most likely save them for you. These are food grade buckets and good for just about all practical uses.

Bakeries are the ole gold mine when it comes to buckets. They receive many products to include icing in the buckets. Again talk to local bakeries to have them save some of them for you. These are food grade buckets as well.

Metal buckets are becoming more difficult to find, but you can still find them by checking with businesses that use petroleum or chemicals in smaller quantities. These have a few practical purposes.

When I first started hunting for plastic buckets, I had a very difficult time in actually getting them. I went to local supermarket bakeries and asked on a regular basis. I was regularly told that they didn’t have any. On one occasion, I even saw a stack of buckets sitting behind the counter and was told they didn’t have any. I then realized that they were saving them for someone else. I had an abundance of blackberries on the property and asked the ladies if they liked wild blackberries. They said they loved them and I told them that if they saved some buckets for me, I would bring them some fresh berries. Well this worked out great and I got plenty of buckets. I have even traded fresh eggs for buckets.

OK, so know let’s take a look at some practical uses of these buckets.

BULK FOOD STORAGE—We use 5-gallon buckets for many of our long term food storage needs.  We purchase 20"X30" mylar pouches, use oxygeb absorbers and seal them in the buckets. The buckets allow for stacking for better storage and add protection from rodents.
STORE ROOT CROPS—Potatoes, sweet potatoes, etc… can be stored in buckets, but be sure to cut plenty of 2 inch vent holes in the buckets to let them breath. Line the bucket with an old pillow case, fill with potatoes and put on the lid for storage.

KITCHEN COMPOST BIN—Drill several small holes in the lids of a 2-gallon bucket. Use this bucket under your kitchen sink for compostable kitchen waste. We typically shed some paper or cardboard and place this in the bottom. We then add coffee grounds and filters, crushed eggshells, vegetable scraps, peelings and clean torn up paper to the bucket. Every few days, we take it to the compost bin, rinse it out and start all over again. DO NOT add any animal fats, skins or proteins to your compost.

USED KITCHEN OIL BIN—Use a 2-gallon bucket to save and dispose of your used cooking oil. Ensure the oil has cooled before you pour it into the bucket. Used oil can be used for emergency oil lamps during power failures. Watch for our feature on making emergency oils lamps. You can also mix your used cooking oil with citronella oil for outdoor oil lanterns to extend your burn time. If you find yourself with excessive amounts of used cooking oils, talk to a local restaurant owner about adding it to their oil/grease disposal.

MOP BUCKET—Many mop ringers will attach right to a 5-gallon bucket.

RECYCLING BINS—Buckets are great for small quantities of recycling materials. Use a separate bin for crushed plastic, aluminum, metal, paper, cardboard, glass, etc… Don’t forget to compost whatever materials you can use.

LAUNDRY PRE-SOAK—Use a plastic bucket filled with warm soapy water to presoak greasy or dirty clothing.

HARVEST BUCKET—We use the smaller 2-gallon buckets as harvest buckets. Periodically and with certain items we will use 3 or 5-gallon buckets. These are great to bring your fresh produce in from the garden. Use can also tie a rope to your bucket and use them to harvest fruit from your fruit trees. If you use a ladder to harvest your fruit, the rope allows you to safely lower the bucket to the ground before climbing down the ladder.

HONEY STORAGE—If you are a beekeeper, use these free food grade buckets to store your honey prior to bottling it.

BEE FEEDER—Use a 2-gallon bucket as a top feeder for your beehives. Poke about a dozen holes in the center of the lid using a push pin. Fill the bucket with your syrup and replace the lid. Remove the outer cover of your hive and invert the bucket centered on the opening in your inner cover. Replace the outer cover and place a brick on top of it.

CHRISTMAS YARD LIGHTS—Drill a hole in the bottom for the power cord. Remove any labels. Fill the bucket with one or two strings of mini Christmas lights. Shape the lights to fill the bucket. Put the lids back on and plug in the lights. Place these along walkways, driveways, or in flower beds. Use a single color for each bucket. Red and green are naturally the most popular.

HOSE CADDY—Cut a piece of scrap 1X6 piece of wood and screw the wood though the bottom of the bucket and mount it directly on the fence or fence post about 3 feet above the ground. Wrap your hose around the bucket. Use the inside of the bucket to store your sprinklers and nozzles.

CHARCOAL STORAGE—Use 5-gallon buckets as water proof storage bins for your charcoal. In our case, we make our own charcoal for grilling in bulk and use the buckets to store our charcoal. See my feature on how to make your own lump charcoal.

PET FOOD STORAGE—Plastic buckets are ideal for storing dry pet foods. If you typically buy dry food in large quantities, multiple plastic buckets will keep the food dry and critter proof. We use buckets to store cracked corn, oats and feed for our chickens as well.

EGG BASKET—We use 2-gallon buckets to collect eggs from our chickens each day.

DRIP BUCKET—We drilled two 1/16th inch holes in the bottom of 5-gallon buckets to use as drip irrigation buckets. These are great for raised beds, small patch veggies, fruit trees, berry bushes and flower beds. We have found it takes in excess of 30 minutes to deliver 5 gallons of water to our target area.

STEPPING STONE MOLD—Cut 2 inches from the bottom of a bucket. Ensure this cut is as level as possible. Fill the bottom with a single layer of pea gravel. Mix a small batch of ready mix concrete and fill to the top. Pat the mixture down with a 2x4 to remove any bubbles and level. Cover the mold with a damp cloth and allow to set for at least 24 hours. Flip the mold over and brush away excess concrete from the stones. You will need to experiment with timing due to temperature and humidity conditions. Once you perfect your timing, you can cut multiple molds to make many stepping stones at a time.

PIPE CADDY—Cut the bottom out of two 2-gallon buckets and remove the handles. Screw the buckets so the openings are parallel with the ground and spaced between 4-6 feet apart. Slide metal and PVC pipes into your new pipe caddy for easy storage.

BUCKET GARDEN—Buckets are perfect to grow vegetables for those of you without adequate garden space. This includes folks with small backyards or only a balcony. Drill several small holes in the bottom to allow for adequate drainage. Fill the bottom with 2 or 3 inches of gravel or small stones. Fill the bucket with good potting soil up to about 2 inches from the top. Add your seed or plants, water and watch them grow.

GARDEN TOOL CADDY—Cut the bottom out of a 2-gallon bucket and remove the handle. Screw the bucket to a fence post about four feet above ground level with the openings facing up and down. Insert your rakes, shovels, hoes, etc… to keep them in one place. You can also use this caddy in your shed, garage or workshop.

WEEDING BUCKETS—we use two buckets to weed the garden and flower beds. One bucket is used to sit on and the other as a weed receptacle.

COMPOST TEA DISPENSER— Drill a hole in the bottom side of the bucket and attach a female hose connector in this hole. Drill a hole in the top side wall on the opposite end of the bucket and attach a male hose connector. Seal around the connectors with silicone. Add compost to a mesh bag and place inside the bucket. Place lid on the top. Connect hoses and fill bucket with water. Let compost steep for about 15 minutes and turn water back on and water your plants and vegetables with your compost tea.

HOMEMADE STAIN—We collect black walnuts that are over ripe. After the husk has turned black, we put them in a five gallon bucket and fill it with water. We let this sit for about a week. We remove the walnuts and have a homemade stain for a variety of simple wood projects. Note: wear rubber gloves to avoid staining your hands.

CHICKEN FEEDING SYSTEM— Cut or drill four one inch holes around the base of a 5-gallon bucket. After cutting or drilling these holes, cut the top of the hole to form a triangle shaped hole. Place an 18 inch plastic planter base on a cinder block. Place the bucket on top of the planter base and fill with chicken feed. Snap on the lid and you have an automatic chicken feeder. When the feed is low in the planter base, they will peck at the hole and release more food.

ANIMAL WATER STATION— We use ours primarily for our chickens, but also use them to provide our bees water. You could use these for dogs or cats as well. Drill four ½ inch holes as close to the top rim of the bucket as possible. Place an 18 inch planter base on a LEVEL cinder block. Fill the bucket with water and snap on the lid. Invert the bucket and place on the planter base. The water level in the planter base will level out with the drain holes and create a vacuum in the bucket. As the water is drawn from the planter base, water will flow to the fill line again. You will periodically need to wash the bucket and planter base to prevent bacteria and disease.

CHICKEN NESTING BOXES— Cut a 1x6 piece of scrap board to fit in the bottom of the bucket. Screw the board through the bucket to the wall of your coop at a height of about 18 inches above the ground. The bucket will be mounted sideways on the wall. Screw a piece of scrap 1x4 board to the front of the bucket. Fill the bucket will some straw and wait for the chicks to start laying.

OUTDOOR BUTT CAN—Fill a 2-gallon bucket with sand and use as an outdoor butt can or ashtray. Empty as needed.

GARDEN MOOD LIGHTS—Remove label and handle from a 2-gallon bucket. Procure a garden solar light. Remove the stake from the solar light. Trace the diameter of the light below the top of the light onto the lid of the bucket. Cut the lines you traced on the lid with a utility knife. Wear gloves when cutting the lid. Place the solar light in the cut opening and seal with chalking or silicone. Place the lid back on the bucket. Place the bucket in a sunny spot in the garden and enjoy. For additional effect, you can fill the bucket half way with water colored by food coloring. Be sure the water level is well below the bottom of the solar light when the lid is put back on. These lanterns are also great for camping. You can also make a jack-o-lantern using the same concept. Simply paint the bucket orange and cut out your jack-o-lantern.

CAR WASH—I use two buckets for washing cars. One bucket is used as my actual washing bucket and the other is used upside down as a step stool to reach the top of the car.

TRASH BIN—Keep one in your shed, shop or garage for small trash and debris collection.

SHOP RAG BINS—Use one bucket for clean shop rags and one for dirty rags.

EXTENSION CORD STORAGE—Cut a hole in the bottom of the bucket large enough for the male end of the cord to fit through and pull enough cord through to loop back inside the top of the bucket. The male end is the end that plugs into the wall. Coil your cord inside the bucket leaving the center hollow. Pull the cord from the bucket when you need it and coil it back up when you are done with the job. The hollow center can be used to put a drill or other small tools as you carry them to where you are doing the work.

TOOL BUCKET— Use a 5-gallon bucket to carry hand tools to where you needs to use them. You can purchase or make caddies that fit around a bucket to expand this capability.

SHELF SUPPORTS FOR SHED OR WORKSHOP— Use 5-gallon buckets as supports for shelving in your shed, garage or workshop. You can use plywood, but I prefer to use two 1x6 boards measuring 6 feet long. I screw the boards right to the bucket tops. You can stack these about four high. I don’t recommend going any higher unless you fill the buckets with sand for stability.

TRUCK BIN—Keep a bucket in the bed of your pickup truck at all times. Tie or strap the bucket down. Use this bucket for tie straps, rope and other odds and ends. Be sure to snap the lid on to keep rain water out. You will find yourself using this bucket for lots of smaller gadgets.

BOAT BUCKET--Keep a bucket with a lid in your boat. You will find many uses for your bucket to include using it for dry stowage for those valuables you do not want to risk getting wet. They make great bait buckets as well as nifty lunch boxes and garbage buckets. Buckets are also great for bailing water if necessary.

CANOE BUCKET—Use 5-gallon buckets to protect food, clothing and valuable from water on canoe trips. Be sure to secure the lids on the buckets and tie the buckets to the canoe.

FISHING BUCKET—Buckets are great for keeping your catch for brief periods of time. Fill the bucket with water to keep your fish alive a little longer.

CAMP BUCKETS—Buckets have many uses for camping. Pack food items in buckets and store non perishable items in these buckets during the camping trip. They will keep your food dry and inaccessible to smaller critters. Buckets are perfect stools to use around the campfire. You can use buckets to forage for kindling for your campfire. Clean buckets are also great for hauling water and doing dishes. Use a bucket to wash your clothes while camping.

HILLBILLY BEVERAGE COOLER—Place one 12 pack of your favorite beverage in the bottom of the bucket. Fill with ice and add enough water to cover the ice. (Perfect for sitting around that summertime bonfire in the country). Snap on the lid and you have your own front row seat.

MUSIC INTRUMENTS—Use as a makeshift drum. Drill holes in top end and tie strings for a ghetto banjo. Make a bucket bass. More to follow on these makeshift instruments.

TOY STORAGE—Get your child to assist or actually paint their toy storage buckets. These buckets can serve as storage for everyday toys, beach toys and a variety of other kid related items. Look around and use your imagination.

SPORTS EQUIPMENT CADDY—Cut the bottom out of a 2-gallon bucket and screw it right to the wall of a garage or utility room to store sports equipment like baseball bats. Use a 5-gallon bucket to store baseballs or tennis balls.

HALLOWEEN CANDY BUCKET—Paint a 2-gallon bucket orange. Use black paint to make your jack-o-lantern pattern on the bucket. Simple bucket for trick or treat candy collection.

EASTER EGGS COLLECTION BUCKET—Have kids decorate 2-gallon buckets for Easter and have them collect their Easter eggs in them.

TREE HOUSE DUMBWAITER—Tie a rope to a bucket on the ground and hoist food, supplies and tools up to your kids tree house. Using a pulley helps pull the bucket up.

EMERGENCY WINTER CAR KIT—Use a bucket to store your winter emergency car kit supplies. Here is a suggested list to store in you winter car kit: windshield scraper and small broom, flashlight, battery powered radio, extra batteries, water, snack food, matches, candles, metal coffee can, extra hats, socks and mittens, first aid kit with pocket knife, blanket, tow chain or rope, road salt and sand, booster cables, emergency flares, fluorescent distress flag.

EMERGENCY WATER STORAGE—Use ONLY food grade buckets for emergency water storage. Extended loss of public water is probable during severe disaster situations. Experts state that each adult requires one gallon of fresh water per day and need ½ of this amount just for drinking. Some experts recommend storing at least 3 days of emergency water while others recommend up to 21 days. If you plan on storing emergency water supplies please follow the FEMA guidelines here: http://www.fema.gov/plan/prepare/water.shtm


EMERGENCY TOILET—great for boating, camping or during extended power outages. Line the inside with two plastic bags. As nature calls, remove the lid and do your business then snap the lid back on. When the reaches about ¼ full, tie the bag and dispose of properly. Replace the bag for continued use. Store this bucket in the outdoors for continued use. You can actually buy lids specifically designed to using a 5-gallon bucket as a toilet.

OUTDOOR COOKER—Cut the bottom out of a metal 5-gallon bucket. Cut four equally spaced 1 inch holes around the bottom side wall. Find a round grill grate or cut on from the perforated metal diamond mesh material. Place the bucket on enough paver bricks to extend two inches around the bucket. Load the bucket with hardwood or lump charcoal. Once a good bed of embers are glowing, add the cooking grate. This can be used for grilling, but we use it to preheat water for out outdoor canning operation.


WARNING: Children can fall into a bucket and drown. Keep children away from buckets even with a small amount of liquid. Always empty buckets when not in use or securely place lid on the bucket.


DANGER: Never use plastic buckets for excessively hot items or burning. Never dump hot ashes in any plastic bucket. The only suitable bucket for ashes is a metal bucket with lids.

CAUTION: Please use extreme caution when drilling or cutting buckets for your projects. Wear gloves and eye protection to avoid personal injury.

NOTE: Do not leave empty buckets stored upright outdoors during spring and summer months. If they fill with water, they become prime breeding ground for mosquitoes.

We will be posting pictures in the future—stay tuned. We are also working on future articles about re-purposing everyday items to save them from landfills and save you a few dollars.

If you have any additional uses for these buckets, please post them for everyone can see them. Feedback is always greatly appreciated.

This information is copyrighted material. Please feel free to share it, but if you desire to use this for any commercial purposes, get permission first. This includes reposting this on any commercially related websites—bottom line is if you are making money off of your website, get permission to use it and give appropriate credit. Please send e-mail inquiries to frugal_farmer@yahoo.com







JOHN PEARSON



Copyright© 2010

Friday, October 1, 2010

Frugal thughts on witer energy savings

Let’s face it folks, our electric companies continue to operate on a for profit basis and must continue to reward their shareholders in the form of dividends. The cost of electricity and heating oil continues to rise. Our only relief from this expense is to be wise in our demand for electricity and heating fuels. Why would anyone willingly give away hard earned money to utility companies and share holders by wasting valuable water and energy?

This feature focuses on preparing yourself for winter and some general tips on energy conservation. If you have any additional ideas, please share your thoughts with everyone else. Some of these tips may seem like no-brainer solutions, but few people actually implement them.

- Perform a function check on your heating system NOW. DO not wait until you NEED to use it during the first cold snap of the winter. If you require any repairs or maintenance, you will have more luck in getting it repaired now than if you wait until when everyone else needs their heaters fixed. Typically, heaters will burn dust and give off that burnt odor. You can open your windows during fall type weather to allow these odors to dissipate. If you wait until it is too cold outside, you will be trapped with these burnt odors.


- Be smart about using your thermostat. Set and keep your thermostat at 68 degrees or below. Experts state that you can save 5 percent of your heating bill for each degree you lower your thermostat below 70 degrees. Most frugal people will lower their thermostat while they are sleeping to reduce their heating requirements. Experiment with this and see what your threshold is for comfort. Many people find that 55 degrees works out during sleeping hours.


- Check and replace your heater filter. This applies year round, pay particular attention during winter months. When your filter is “dirty” it restricts air flow entering your heating system. This means that less air is circulated through your heater and it becomes less efficient. General guidelines recommend replacing your filter at least once a month during peak use. If you find excessive dust in your home, we would recommend replacing it more often than once a month. Replacement filters can become a little costly. Consider purchasing those washable filters. This is frugal and reduces sending the disposable ones to the land fill.


- Your water heater is one of the least efficient appliances in your home. Be smart about your water heater. Turn your heating temperature down to 120 degrees or on the normal seating. Insulate to pipes going out of your water heater. Insulate any accessible pipes to reduce heat loss. You can pick up pipe insulation rather cheap at your local hardware or home improvement store. Install flow restrictors (aerators) on your faucets and shower heads. When it comes time to replace your water heater, consider the new efficient on-demand water heaters or “Energy Star” rated appliances. Some Energy Star appliances may cost a little more than a cheaper model, but will save money in the long run.

- Dishwashers have become modern conveniences in most households in America. If you use a dishwasher, run it only when you have a full load to save electricity and hot water. Set you drying mode to air dry only. If you use only a few dishes, consider washing these by hand, the old fashioned way. Fill one basin with hot soapy water to wash the dishes and rinse with water sparingly. Use a drying rack and towel dry the dishes.

- You can save money when doing your laundry this winter and throughout the year. Most household heating systems dry out the air. If you seal up your outside vent and allow your dryer to vent to the inside, you can provide moisture and heat back into the home. Place an old nylon panty hose over the exhaust vent and check it regularly. Wash close only in cold water. Modern detergents clean most clothes very well in cold water. This will save use of hot water. Consider using a drying rack to dry your clothes. In the winter, you will need to find a suitable place indoors to dry these clothes. We typically hang clothes on our shower curtain rod.

- A fireplace can be a romantic touch to a cold winter night, but most fireplaces are extremely inefficient. Ensure your damper or flue is closed when not in use. If you desire to use a fireplace during the winter and have a suitable source of inexpensive or free firewood, consider getting a fireplace insert. You may even get a federal tax break for a fireplace insert. Another option is to use a wood burning or pellet stove as a primary heat source. Last winter, we used our wood burning stove as our primary heat and saved a bundle.

- If you have ceiling fans, remember to switch them to reverse the air flow and pull the warm air from the ceiling to floor level.

- Take advantage of solar heat gain. If you have any windows on the southern side of your home, open any curtains, drapes or shades to allow the sun to assist in heating these areas.

- Check for air leaks and seal them up. You will find these leaks around door frames, windows, around plumbing connections, around electrical connections, floors and ceilings. Use caulk or insulating expandable spray foam to seal these cracks. Be sure to check/replace the rubber seals on the bottom of your exterior doors.

- Check insulation and consider adding additional insulation. Most builders only add enough insulation to get by. You may want to evaluated your insulation needs and purchase what you need to keep the heat in your home this winter.

- Bundle up and get cozy. Get used to your house being a little cooler from turning down your thermostat. You can stay warm by putting on a sweater, robe, sweatpants, and sitting with a throw blanket when reading or watching TV. Get in the habit of wearing socks around the house as well.

- There are numerous ways to conserve energy while cooking this winter. We are fortunate to use our wood burning stove as a heat source and a method to cook soups, stews and chili during the winter. We can slow cook a pot of belly warming stew on the wood burning stove and save energy. We boil water to add humidity back to the house and provide hot water for tea, ciders, washing dishes and bathing.

- Only heat those areas being used/occupied. Close heating vents and doors in those rooms you do not use. You will save energy by not having to heat these spaces.

- Holiday decorations and lighting. Be wise when it comes to decorating for the holidays. Use timers to control interior lighting for your decorations and tree. For outdoor lighting, consider reducing the amount of lights for your display. Always use timers and set them to go off at bedtime. Most people use the local late news as a time to turn off their holiday lights. Consider replacing older lighter with more efficient LED lights.

- If you haven’t replaced all of your incandescent lights in your home to compact fluorescent or LED lights yet, continue to do so. This will save considerable amount of energy.

- Continue to be aware of vampire power loss. Unplug all appliances when not in use. All appliances with clocks consume unnecessary power—this includes DVD players and microwave ovens.

- We will publish additional information on energy conservation and savings in the future, but please feel free to add your own ideas by providing comments.

- Now take a look around your home and see how you can save on your energy bill and be part of the frugal revolution.