What are your frugal and sustainable tips and tricks?

[SmiYa0126]

I don't know if you are asking anyone specifically about this issue, but I will offer what I do. For context, I live in northern Minnesota, and we typically get down to -30F to -40F in the dead of winter for a week, or sometimes longer. From December to February, we have average temps between -5F and -10F. Normal composting outside would not work for us.

I give all my kitchen scraps and leftovers to my chickens in a pan in the chicken coop. They eat it all. They "compost" all that stuff internally in their digestive tract. Then they poo into their deep bedding litter - which I currently use free paper shreds. The deep bedding litter absorbs the chicken poo. I continue to add fresh paper shreds about once or twice a month in the winter, as needed, to cover up the fresh frozen poo on top. Come spring thaw, I remove all the old deep bedding litter and toss it into my chicken run composting system. The soiled paper shreds break down into black gold compost in almost no time.

If you have a small backyard flock, you probably don't need any kind of separate composting system, like bins or barrels. Chickens can safely eat just about anything. Just toss it into the coop or run and let them eat it.

Having said that, I do have some pallet wood compost bins where I will dump the few items that chickens should not eat, or maybe the occasional forgotten leftover that got shoved to the back of the refrigerator and became all moldy. Anything that goes into those compost bins just sits there, forever. I don't spend any effort in turning those piles. After a few years, it is broken down and ready to use. But almost all our kitchen scraps and leftovers get fed directly to the chickens and I have more chicken run compost than I can use.

Thank you! I'll do that over winter!

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

What's a flock block? Sounds interesting.

Gtaus, I have a list of dry ingredients (depending on the season) i will add to a bowl and mix in Coconut oil, eggs plus the shells, molasses and bake in the oven. Your supposed to be left with a HARD pan shaped block! Mine never stays hard as a block but i do store it and dish it out to the hens in the form of a game I call 'scratchy doo for hide and seek'.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Thank you! I'll do that over winter!

Be sure to not leave any food in the run overnight it can and will attract monsters!! (other than salad.....the monsters dont want that)

 

[Sally PB]

I posted this on the pallet project thread, but it fits here too. Hubby built a flatbed conversion on our trailer for <$60. 2x4s, eye bolts, and bolts to attach it. Probably a few screws too.

It screws onto the trailer frame, so it's removable. We used it today to bring home the pieces of our new shower. It would have been exorbitantly expensive to have Menards deliver them.

I'm sure we'll have use for this again.

 

[gtaus]

Second Thoughts on the Value of Store Credit Cards (Harbor Freight)

It can be real tempting to sign up for a Department Store Credit Card. Many times they offer rewards and incentives above a standard credit card. Case in point, my everyday Visa credit card gives me 1-1/2% cash back at any store, but my Harbor Freight credit card gives me 5% in rewards that can be used only at Harbor Freight. Since I buy a number of products at Harbor Freight, it seemed to make sense to me to sign up for one of their credit cards.

I am now rethinking the value of that Harbor Freight store credit card specifically, and department store credit cards in general.

After you buy $100 of products at Harbor Freight on their credit card, you get a $5.00 Harbor Freight Cash coupon for another purchase at Harbor Freight. I used one of those $5.00 HF Cash coupons on a purchase, a replacement tire for one of my garden carts. However, the axel size of the hub was the wrong size so I had to return the tire.

Long story short, the people at my local HF store told me that I would get credit for the return, less the $5.00 HF Cash Rewards coupon, but that the credit card company itself would reissue me another $5.00 Cash Rewards coupon. It would just take 2-3 payment cycles to show up on my statements. As you probably have guessed, the credit card company never reissued the replacement $5.00 Cash Rewards.

I called up Harbor Freight customer service this morning and they told me that if you return anything on a purchase receipt, the first thing they do is wipe out the HF Cash Rewards, and you will never see it again. Bottom line, don't pay HF Cash Rewards on a ticket for anything that you might have to return, anywhere on the receipt, even if you have other items that you kept. That's not what the people at the local store told me.

Fortunately for me, I had the on-shift manager write, on my receipt, that I would get a $5.00 Cash Rewards coupon reissued to me by the credit card company. I got both the manager's name and the person running the checkout till. They both were wrong. Because I had all that information on the receipt, however, Harbor Freight customer service, not the credit card company, is sending me out a $5.00 HF Gift Card. It only took 5 months of waiting and 30 minutes on the phone.

Considering the time and effort it took to resolve that small issue, I no longer consider that store credit card with a higher rewards program to be such a good deal. Additionally, I signed up for monthly statements which I use to reconcile my transactions at Harbor Freight. Without my knowledge, they stopped sending me out paper statements. Evidently, they now charge $1.99 per month to send out paper statements. They automatically disenrolled me from paper statements when they changed their policy. But, they never told me.

Given all the problems I have had with these small issues, I am thinking it's just not worth the time and effort to carry their department store credit card.

It's not just Harbor Freight Credit Cards that I have had problems with lately.

I also had a Home Depot account that changed their policy somewhere and disenrolled me from auto-payments. I did not see that until I got a late fee charge for not paying my bill. I had my printouts from the time I signed up for autopayment and brought that to the store and showed customer service. I asked them how it was possible to get a late fee if I was on autopayments. They called the credit card company and were told that I had been disenrolled from autopayments - for my benefit!

Yeah, I think these credit card companies are doing things to our accounts in hopes of charging extra fees for late payments and such. The late payment fees can cost a lot. In my case, since I had the printout of my enrolling into the autopayment service, they removed the late fee, and I paid the balance at the store. I have not used that credit since then.

I remember the days when you signed up for a credit card, and enrolled in services such as autopayments, your account would not be changed by them - for your benefit - without your knowledge and consent. If you choose to sign up for a Department Store Credit Card. just make sure you watch it closely for unexpected changes that you never authorized! Those Department Store Credit Cards might not be worth it!?

 

[fuzzi]

Second Thoughts on the Value of Store Credit Cards (Harbor Freight)

It can be real tempting to sign up for a Department Store Credit Card. Many times they offer rewards and incentives above a standard credit card. Case in point, my everyday Visa credit card gives me 1-1/2% cash back at any store, but my Harbor Freight credit card gives me 5% in rewards that can be used only at Harbor Freight. Since I buy a number of products at Harbor Freight, it seemed to make sense to me to sign up for one of their credit cards.

I am now rethinking the value of that Harbor Freight store credit card specifically, and department store credit cards in general.

After you buy $100 of products at Harbor Freight on their credit card, you get a $5.00 Harbor Freight Cash coupon for another purchase at Harbor Freight. I used one of those $5.00 HF Cash coupons on a purchase, a replacement tire for one of my garden carts. However, the axel size of the hub was the wrong size so I had to return the tire.

Long story short, the people at my local HF store told me that I would get credit for the return, less the $5.00 HF Cash Rewards coupon, but that the credit card company itself would reissue me another $5.00 Cash Rewards coupon. It would just take 2-3 payment cycles to show up on my statements. As you probably have guessed, the credit card company never reissued the replacement $5.00 Cash Rewards.

I called up Harbor Freight customer service this morning and they told me that if you return anything on a purchase receipt, the first thing they do is wipe out the HF Cash Rewards, and you will never see it again. Bottom line, don't pay HF Cash Rewards on a ticket for anything that you might have to return, anywhere on the receipt, even if you have other items that you kept. That's not what the people at the local store told me.

Fortunately for me, I had the on-shift manager write, on my receipt, that I would get a $5.00 Cash Rewards coupon reissued to me by the credit card company. I got both the manager's name and the person running the checkout till. They both were wrong. Because I had all that information on the receipt, however, Harbor Freight customer service, not the credit card company, is sending me out a $5.00 HF Gift Card. It only took 5 months of waiting and 30 minutes on the phone.

Considering the time and effort it took to resolve that small issue, I no longer consider that store credit card with a higher rewards program to be such a good deal. Additionally, I signed up for monthly statements which I use to reconcile my transactions at Harbor Freight. Without my knowledge, they stopped sending me out paper statements. Evidently, they now charge $1.99 per month to send out paper statements. They automatically disenrolled me from paper statements when they changed their policy. But, they never told me.

Given all the problems I have had with these small issues, I am thinking it's just not worth the time and effort to carry their department store credit card.

It's not just Harbor Freight Credit Cards that I have had problems with lately.

I also had a Home Depot account that changed their policy somewhere and disenrolled me from auto-payments. I did not see that until I got a late fee charge for not paying my bill. I had my printouts from the time I signed up for autopayment and brought that to the store and showed customer service. I asked them how it was possible to get a late fee if I was on autopayments. They called the credit card company and were told that I had been disenrolled from autopayments - for my benefit!

Yeah, I think these credit card companies are doing things to our accounts in hopes of charging extra fees for late payments and such. The late payment fees can cost a lot. In my case, since I had the printout of my enrolling into the autopayment service, they removed the late fee, and I paid the balance at the store. I have not used that credit since then.

I remember the days when you signed up for a credit card, and enrolled in services such as autopayments, your account would not be changed by them - for your benefit - without your knowledge and consent. If you choose to sign up for a Department Store Credit Card. just make sure you watch it closely for unexpected changes that you never authorized! Those Department Store Credit Cards might not be worth it!?

Good advice.

I've noticed a trend with businesses/companies to discontinue paper bills in the mail. If you want a bill sent through USPS the company charges you $2-$5 a month! Okay, so you sign up for email notices, fine. Oh, wait, if you pay your bill with a credit card they charge you $5 again! If you sign up for bank withdrawal terms it's free...or is it? Read the fine print, they can take money out of your bank account anytime they decide you owe them, and without recourse! At least with a credit card the bank will generally take your side in a dispute.

So, now I sign up for business account email notices and then I write a check and mail it. My checks are free through my bank, and I have lots of envelopes lying around. All it costs me is a stamp.

 

[fuzzi]

One more thing about companies and credit:

Fourteen years after my parents were divorced my mother passed away. When I called her credit card company to notify them of her decease the rep blurted "You know you're responsible for that debt!" The agent didn't have the decency to actually say "Sorry for your loss" as all my mother's other creditors had done. Even after it went to probate court the company began calling me, trying to get my father's contact information. They wanted him to pay the bill. I explained that he wasn't responsible, they'd been divorced for almost 15 years. The company continued to call me and I started hanging up on them.

There was enough money to pay her bill, but it had to wait for a year as it was in probate court due to no will. The credit card company continued to harass me. Thirty years later I still remember how rude they were.

 

[gtaus]

Oh, wait, if you pay your bill with a credit card they charge you $5 again!

Yeah, a few years ago, I started seeing businesses that take credit cards start to charge an extra 3-5% fee for using a credit card. I thought there used to be a law and/or some rule that if a company accepts credit cards, they cannot charge you more if you pay with cash. For years and years, I never carried around much cash or my old checkbook. But today, I have to or I might end up paying that addidtional 3-5% surcharge for using a credit card.

The credit card company continued to harass me. Thirty years later I still remember how rude they were.

I knew a lady who worked for a collection agency. She bragged about calling people at their workplace and harassing them. That is against the law, but the collection agents don't care. They get off on breaking the law trying to collect any money from anyone they can. And they don't care if it destroys people in the process. Extended family members were fair game for her. IMHO, it takes a special kind of abnormal mind to succeed in that collection business. I could not do it.

Apologies to collection agents who follow the law and who try to work with people to get their debts paid without having to be rude.

Having said that, I am sure there are lots of people that spend well beyond their ability to pay it back, and then they default on the payments. I know some people who have done that on purpose. I could not do that, either.

I have always been more of a frugal minded person. I don't buy something I cannot afford with very few exceptions - like a home mortgage. I like going through life knowing that I am free of collection agents always calling and harassing me. There is real value in living life that way.

So, now I sign up for business account email notices and then I write a check and mail it. My checks are free through my bank, and I have lots of envelopes lying around. All it costs me is a stamp.

Well, I have mixed feelings about the USPS. I get someone else's mail in my mailbox a few times a month. I just put it back into the mailbox and raise the flag. Not a big deal. But I wonder how many times my mail might end up in someone else's mailbox and they just toss it?

We used to get mail service every day. Not anymore. I noticed that I would go a few days without any mail and then one day I would get 3 days' worth of mail all at once. Our post office denies they do it. However, I talked to a former mail carrier, and he told me directly that they run short on people to deliver the rural mail, so they hold our mail for a few days before they deliver it.

On Monday, I got a lead testing bill from the water company in a town where I have a rental house. They send them out on a postcard type notice. I noticed that I was being charged extra for not having paid the previous bill. I called the water company and told them I never received the first bill, and that I thought sending out postcards in the mail increased the probability of it being lost as junk mail advertisements. They agreed. But it was cheaper for them to send those postcard bills instead of a standard envelope. Anyways, I have a long history of paying my bills on time with them, so they reversed any late fees, and I sent them out a check.

I just don't trust the USPS these days as much as I did growing up. I hate it when a company uses the USPS for sending me an item with tracking as compared to FedEx or UPS. The tracking on the USPS is almost never correct, often times lagging days behind.

Many times, a USPS package gets delivered to my house, but the shipping status never confirms delivery, as if the package was lost in the mail. It's just a joke of a tracking system.

I live out in the country, and don't have to worry about human porch pirates stealing my packages. However, a couple of times, years ago, I had some "delivered" packages that were missing. I called the company and got replacements. In the spring, I found the packages out in the melting snow all ripped apart by my neighbor's dog! Mystery solved.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

When I was 17 and entered college; there were credit card companies all down the halls giving away free things if you apply for a credit card. I'll never forget....I just left my very first class that required a dictionary which i did not have. I applied for the credit card because I wanted the free dictionary. I remember the section for social security number. I didnt even know mine!! I was 17yr old. I left it blank and a month later received a Discover card credit card with a 5k limit. I had it maxed out before the new year..... I have never owned a credit card since. I am 47 and just feel better about If ya dont have the money for something you want, find a way to make the money, or go without? I dunno. Its a mixed up system. Lets go talk to the hens about it

 

[Sally PB]

I always ask if the company tacks on the credit card fee before I pay on large purchases. I get 1-2/3% back on my CC purchases, but I'm not paying 3% to get it. That's going backward, obviously.

At small businesses (the local farm stand, for example) I like to pay by cash or check so that they don't have to pay the CC fee.