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Cutting the Cost of Household Bills?

Posted by Cliff on from the stretch-that-budget dept.

schlumpf_louise asks: "I'm in the UK, and I'm about to move out of university accommodation and live in a house, for the first time. When we move, we will have to pay for water, electricity and gas. We'll still be students renting from a landlord, so we can't make any major physical changes to the property. The house has gas central heating and a gas cooker. Four computers will be running pretty much all the time, in addition to the usual general household appliances. What tips do any of you have for (legally) saving on bills? Are there any technologies that are worth buying for long term savings? What should we not do, or not use?" What other saving tips, and frugal suggestions might you have for a house full of college students?

1 of 370 comments (clear)

  1. Build your own house. by Fantastic+Lad · · Score: 1, Offtopic
    Build house with. . .

    1. Insulation. Lots and lots of insulation. Insulation is not sexy, but if you make very thick walls, like three feet thick, and spray in the fiberglass-pink, as well as use tin-foil to reflect infared back into the home. . , you can basically heat a home with minimal effort. A wood stove, or a heat from a compost heap set downhill from the house with circulating pipes to carry heat to the floors, etc., plus use of solar heat collection. . . Kill your heating bills. There are lots of clever ways to heat a place other than the conventional, super-wasteful methods we use today.

    2. Build somewhere you can sink your own well. Run the pump with an electric motor driven from a solar panel. Keep a huge water storage tank buried next to your house. Never pay the water company ever again.

    3. Solar collectors for power. Get off the grid altogether! Spend $10,000 on good panels, (which can collect even in low-light conditions), and batteries and all the wiring, etc., and you needn't pay another electricity bill ever again.

    What's left?

    4. Cancel your cable/satellite subscription. TV is for losers. Period. TV is a waste of time and money and brain cells. Simple.

    5. Phone bills. . ? This is the only thing I'd keep. I like communication.

    6. Food. Food is cheep now. Very cheep. When fuel costs continue to rise, trucking and transport costs will also rise. The cost of goods will have to go up. Bush's fucked up reality means the poor will starve. So buy lots and lots of cans and preserved food stuffs now. The depression is near. Be prepared. You think your food bills are high now? Hm.


    -FL