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| Water, Water, Everywhere-frugal living |
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| raspberry24 |
 Posted: Sun May 22, 2005 4:45 pm Post subject: Water, Water, Everywhere-frugal living |
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"Water it down? Why not, when it works just as well?
Tap water, in most places, is good enough for most personal uses, even if we won't drink it. It's inexpensive enough that laundry, bathing and general cleaning cost estimates hardly take it into account. The fact is that tap water is cheap enough so that we can use it in various ways to save money.
Watering down a product isn't anything new, but maybe some of these products that can be watered down, will be new to you.
Some skin creams are very rich, even to the point of feeling "greasy." Since creams are emulsions of oils, waxes and liquids, you can water them down. Try it with just a small dollop in the palm of your hand first. Add a drop or two of water and mix with your finger. If that isn't thin enough, put another drop in. With a little experimentation, you'll soon know how much (or little) cream to use and how much water to add for the consistency you prefer.
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You can also use your blender or food processor to do larger batches, but don't forget that you may need another container, as the water increases the volume, too! '
If you're the type who uses a teabag twice, try making three cups of tea from it, but do it all at once. If you don't have a regualar teapot for making tea, put it in any container that will withstand boiling water. If you make three cups at one time, and steep it for a few moments longer than usual, the tea will usually be as strong as if you'd only made two cups with it. Use freshly boiling water (from the stove - a microwave doesn't work as well for this), pour it over the teabag and cover. Wrap the container with a towel to keep it as hot as possible for 10 minutes or longer. See there? You've successfully watered down two cups of tea to make three.
Liquid floor wax is expensive, especially if you need to use it often. Depending on the brand, you can cut the wax with about a fourth to a third of the volume in water with no appreciable difference in quality. Experiment until you find the right amount for the wax you use.
Did you ever find yourself down to the last drop of milk when you needed just a little more for a recipe? Add a little water and swish around to wash the milk from the walls of the container and use that. No one will ever know.
Adding a quarter cup of water to the frozen juice directions never hurt anyone! And if you can get away with a half cup or more, more power to you. Or to your food budget, maybe.
Watered down dish detergent is a common frugal trick because it really does save money. Most detergents are stronger than they need to be and can be watered down as much as half and half, then used at the same rate as the full strength potion. Going a little farther than that, put a tablespoon of dish detergent in a couple of cups of water and use in a spray or squirt bottle at the kitchen sink. Instead of grabbing the full (or watered down) strength bottle to rewash a pan or utensil while cooking, use the lighter version. You can also wash your hands with it and spray the stove top for a quick clean up.
Latex paint is water based... so, given the topic, I'll let you guess. Don't water it down too much or it won't cover well, but you can easliy gain a cup or so of paint for each gallon. And when you get to the end of the gallon, add another quarter cup and swish it around thoroughly to get all the paint from the walls of the can. Dip your paintbrush in this and brush the can lid to get all of the paint from there, too. (Don't do this with paint that's already dried, though.)
Use potato water as at least half the milk in bread and gravy recipes. Potato water will keep 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator if you're not baking on the same day you cook potatoes. You can also use plain water instead of milk in most bread recipes. Exceptions are biscuits corn bread, but most yeast breads can be made without milk.
Watering it down, in the right context, does not mean "cheap." When you get everything you can from the products you buy while still maintaining quality, that's frugal."
Source:http://frugalliving.about.com/od/moneysavingtips/a/watereverywhere.htm |
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| soma |
| Posted: Mon May 23, 2005 7:21 am Post subject: |
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Investing Sr. Associate
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| Quote: | | Adding a quarter cup of water to the frozen juice directions never hurt anyone! And if you can get away with a half cup or more, more power to you. Or to your food budget, maybe. |
My mom did that all the time, but instead of adding an extra quarter cup, she would add an entire cup more.  |
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