Good Tips On Saving Money…. $$$

[heartstrings]

Blech.... tea is meant to be HOT!  

Are you from across the Pond?

[JerryNumbers]

Some of that depends upon the make, model and year of the vehicle. Some of those things used to be very easy to get to and simple to repair. On some newer vehicles they can still be got to, usually much more difficult than in previous years, and fixed, but on some of the newer vehicles unless one has specialty tools it can't be done. In some cases, even then more is needed.

 

My son-in-law is a mechanic so he does most of his own vehicle repairs and such, but he went to do something typically fairly simple on his wife's SUV and discovered that the only way to get to it was to remove several things and the engine had to be loosened from its mounts so it could be moved enough to get the old part out and the new put on.

 

I'm not very mechanically inclined, but I could take care of most things on my vehicles from the 60s, 70s, most things in the 80s and some into the 90s. Most of the new vehicles have all that government mandatory stuff right in the way crowding things up, plus with government regulations about other matters auto makers have had to compact the vehicles so the engines and space around them are very cramped. Then add the problem Jerry mentioned about all the computerization, and things get real tough for shade tree mechanics!

 

I told my wife if we ever get rich I'm not going to buy a fancy car, I'm going to buy a 1966 chevy half-ton pick up like the first vehicle I owned. Great trucks and very easy to maintain!

 

Wow, it would be nice to have a 50's or 60's model to drive & work on. A person coudl work on & fix about anything on them under his shade tree.

 

I remember my 1st car a 57 Chevy, it has the 283 powerpack & got about 21 MPG on the highway if you stayed out of the 4 barrel carburetor & below 75 MPH.

 

My 3rd one was a 67 SS 396 Chevelle, it to would get about 21 MPG on the highway if you stayed out of the 4 barrel carburetor.

 

Both of them were quite easy to work on, including the carburetors, I rebuilt the carburetor on both of them.

 

Not many years ago I replace the fuel injector spider on the 92 S-10 Blazer I owned. I believe it cost me the other side of $450.00, & it was a very hard job to replace it & took nearly a whole day to replace.

 

The only option I would add to the 57 or 67 I spoke of above would be A/C, I admit I am spoiled, I not only like to look cool in my cars I like to stay cool too! OH, both the 57 & 67 had plenty of power whenever it was needed, if you pressed down on the accelerator pedal it did not feel like a sponge or a squirrel in a cage under the hood.

 

I have worked on some of the newer ones, I've got a up to date code reader that will read codes on all cars at this time, yet with even a code reader it takes lots of investigation to find the problem. The code reader only gives you a place to start. Plus there's many special tools that are needed. On the 57 or 67 all you needed was a tool box & the want to, & you could repair anything on them.

 

Back in the 80's I did buy an old 1 owner 59 Ford pickup, I did restore it to original condition rebuilding just about everything on it. I drove it many miles & we really enjoyed it. I even had an under-dash A/C to keep us cool. It had a 292 V-8 3 speed column shift, even though I changed the rear-end out to higher geared rear-end it did not get the gas mileage the 57 & 67 I spoke of. 

 

Those were truly the 'Golden Years.'

[JerryNumbers]

I am going to be making some laundry soap - hopefully this week - with a recipe I was given.  The start-up will be a bit, because I need to buy the 5-gal bucket (I'm getting two, because I'm making some for my DIL, too), plus the Borax and washing soda.  I will also be making my own fabric softener, which is a whole lot cheaper than even the homemade soap!

 

Would you be willing to share your wife's recipe?  I'd like to see how it differs and if I'd rather use it before I spend the $$ on the recipe I have.  Thanks!

 

I recall soap making in the big iron pot in the back yard with a fire built under it. Good old lye soap, it would turn your skin pink, maybe even red!

[OLD fashioned preacher]

Are you from across the Pond?

North, not East --- actually, northwest of you, WAY N.W. -- 2500 miles

[Invicta]

Of course, if you don't have a/c, like us, you will save even more money.

[Salyan]

North, not East --- actually, northwest of you, WAY N.W. -- 2500 miles

What he said! Up here we have, um, 'fake' iced tea. It's a powdered juice that has nothing in common with American iced tea. I don't mind that stuff. But tea made with teabags ought to be hot! Guess that's the Loyalist in me.. :wink

[JerryNumbers]

What he said! Up here we have, um, 'fake' iced tea. It's a powdered juice that has nothing in common with American iced tea. I don't mind that stuff. But tea made with teabags ought to be hot! Guess that's the Loyalist in me..

 

Tea made with tea bags. Not very good stuff. Back in my early driving years the company I drove for had several drivers. We would stop for coffee, we had one driver that always drank tea. I tried it, but went back to my coffee.

 

[OLD fashioned preacher]

Laundry soap: With hand grater grate a bar of Fels Naptha soap (you can also add scent by including a bar of Irish Spring or whatever other kind if you wish or leave it out). Place grated soap in a pot and cover with water. Heat over medium heat, stirring, until melted. Remove from heat. Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of water. Add 1 cup of borax and 1 cup of washing soda. Stir to dissolve. Add melted soap and stir. Finish filling bucket with hot water.Let sit overnight. It will thicken to a gel. Stir well.

 

You can save an old laundry soap bottle (or other container) and fill half with the soap you made and half with water (in other words, dilute 50%).

 

Happy, this is probably the recipe you have. It has served my ladies quite well.

[swathdiver]

80 degrees is a sweatbox for a Floridian home.  76 during the day and 75 at night, burr!  In our last home it was 77 during the day, 75 around dinner and a cozy 72 at night.  It's all relative though, the old thermostat said the house was 75 during the day when the new one said 77, also depends on where the thermostat is, how far it is from vents.  So you're 80 might be my 77 but if you're 80 is my 80, I'm never coming over to your house!

[JerryNumbers]

80 degrees is a sweatbox for a Floridian home.  76 during the day and at night, burr!  In our last home it was 77 during the day, 75 around dinner and a cozy 72 at night.  It's all relative though, the old thermostat said the house was 75 during the day when the new one said 77, also depends on where the thermostat is, how far it is from vents.  So you're 80 might be my 77 but if you're 80 is my 80, I'm never coming over to your house!

 

Quite true, many thermostats are off, as are many thermometers.

 

Our temp according to 2 thermometers is usually 75 with a fan blowing.

[OLD fashioned preacher]

At 75 I'm sweating -- at 80 my shirt stays drenched. Give me a walk-in cooler, 40 sounds wonderful.

[John81]

Anyone know what might be wrong with a gas dryer that sometimes heats but most of the time doesn't, and even when it does heat it sometimes doesn't stay heating for the whole cycle time.

 

The dryer is only about 8 years old, I bought it during President Bush's second term.

 

I would like to save money by not having to buy a new dryer or having to spend much on repairs or a repairman if it's something I can fix myself.

[HappyChristian]

Laundry soap: With hand grater grate a bar of Fels Naptha soap (you can also add scent by including a bar of Irish Spring or whatever other kind if you wish or leave it out). Place grated soap in a pot and cover with water. Heat over medium heat, stirring, until melted. Remove from heat. Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of water. Add 1 cup of borax and 1 cup of washing soda. Stir to dissolve. Add melted soap and stir. Finish filling bucket with hot water.Let sit overnight. It will thicken to a gel. Stir well.

 

You can save an old laundry soap bottle (or other container) and fill half with the soap you made and half with water (in other words, dilute 50%).

 

Happy, this is probably the recipe you have. It has served my ladies quite well.

Thanks!  Yes, this is almost the exact recipe I have (although it said Fels Naptha or Ivory and 1/2 c Borax). We got everything we need last night so tomorrow night (tonight is church) I will be mixing up my batch.  I'm also going to be mixing up fabric softener.  

 

The softener is even easier to make:  3 c hot tap water, 1 c hair conditioner, 1 1/2 c white vinegar. Mix all together. Use 2 T per load (someone I know uses 4 T when she does towels).  (You can also cut the water amount in half if you want a thicker product)   I got a quart of vinegar for less than $2, the conditioner for $1.50. After this, I'll go to the dollar store for my conditioner.  I'm really excited about saving money on this!  

 

The ladies who told me about this said that something about the combination of these 2 really sparkles up the clothes.

[HappyChristian]

Anyone know what might be wrong with a gas dryer that sometimes heats but most of the time doesn't, and even when it does heat it sometimes doesn't stay heating for the whole cycle time.

 

The dryer is only about 8 years old, I bought it during President Bush's second term.

 

I would like to save money by not having to buy a new dryer or having to spend much on repairs or a repairman if it's something I can fix myself.

It's Bush's fault.   Sorry - I just couldn't resist! 

 

Is there a heating element in that dryer?  If so, it might be going out.

[OLD fashioned preacher]

It's Bush's fault.   Sorry - I just couldn't resist! 

 

Is there a heating element in that dryer?  If so, it might be going out.

Heating element would be in an electric dryer (resistive heat, like the filament in an incandescent light bulb)