When you’re a parent, saving money can seem like the hardest of chores. But, when you think about it, it’s easily done if you carefully consider your choices.
Move To A Smart Meter
You could be paying a lot more than you realise for all of your bills. Smart meters are due to be made free for all customers by 2020, and are the answer to a more accurate representation of what you are using day by day. The use of this device is said to be able to bring down our gas and electricity bills by an average of £43 a year – an amount that definitely would be welcomed back into your pocket. Instead of having to remember to go outside, find the little yellow key, take a reading and either pop it online or phone up to disclose the number, the smart meter cuts out the middleman for you; and does it on a much more regular basis, meaning that you will be able to reap the rewards. With a screen that tells you just how much you are using, it can also prompt the average homeowner to be a bit more careful with their energy usage in order to save more. Being made aware of what you are consuming is definitely a good way to get you to think about what you can do around the home in order to further reduce your bills.
Look Into Solar Energy
You don’t have to live in a particularly hot climate to make the most of solar energy. Companies are more aware of the best spots to place panels in order to get the most exposure to the sun in order to produce and contain the most energy that you are able to get. Semper Solaris and other solar panel installers make clear that the excess energy that you do not use can be sold on to energy companies for a profit to yourself. When you consider that you are not paying for the energy that you are using (just the initial cost to get the panels installed), and can actually profit from what the sun is giving you, there’s not much to lose. Solar panels are becoming more and more common across the UK, with houses in raised locations (such as on hills and mountains) being prime targets for the sun’s rays – you may as well utilise them to your advantage! If you are unsure about your location, see if you have friends or family who have had them installed and get a true opinion from them.
Make Your Own
Instead of buying pouches and jars for your baby, look into making your own food instead. It will only take up one afternoon a week if that, and that’s if you haven’t got the freezer space to hold more. There are so many different ingredients that you can blend up to make a delicious meal for your little one. Fruits such as apples, pears, blueberries, strawberries and bananas can all be pureed into a mixture that’s suitable for a sweet tooth once you have started weaning. You can mix them with vegetables such as sweet potato, broccoli and carrots for a more interesting combination of flavours, or leave it just as a vegetable combination; you can mix and match to see what your child prefers. With the average pouch costing at least £1, for the cost of five pouches you can make enough food to last for at least a week. If you are past the pureeing phase, batch-cooking meals to put in the freezer is money-savvy for all of the family, not just the little ones in your life. Foods like casserole and bolognese freeze extremely well and are always initially made in big batches anyway, so instead of wasting any just freeze the leftovers to use for a later date.
Get Coupon Savvy
There are so many sites nowadays that offer you the chance to make sure that you are getting the right deal on whatever you purchase. With online shopping now rising in popularity, spreading your weekly shop across a few stores to get the best deal isn’t unheard of – and is saving parents money across the nation. If you don’t shop online, you can at least go onto sites such as Hot Deals in order to see which stores that you shop in have the bargains on offer for you to have a look at. Even following pages on social media, such as Extreme Couponing And Bargains UK on Facebook, can help you cut costs for birthdays and Christmas. You just need to know where to go to get the best price on what you’re buying, and the internet definitely has all the answers that you need.
