Examples of extreme frugality!

amother

Tulip

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 8:58 pm

amother Ghostwhite wrote:

Cutting open toothpaste tubes to scrape out every last drop

Keeping the heat at 60 in the winter

Wearing out of style suits from the sixties because they still fit

Listening when the kids use aluminum foil to wrap their sandwiches to make sure they don't use too much

Labeling disposable plastic cups for sleepover guests and only letting them use that one

Keeping every single light off in the house and living in darkness (besides for the one room you are in) so the electric bill won't be too high

Omg the heat thing! My in-laws are not wealthy, but they care a lot about looks and fitting into the community so they spend I don’t even know how much on fancy clothes but they refuse to turn the heat higher than 65 and ac lower than 75! On the other hand, my parents are wealthy, never flaunted their wealth in terms of clothing, cars etc but thermostat and/or electricity in general was never even a discussion. Wow was I in for a culture shock when I got married!!

amother

↑ Red

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:08 pm

amother Tulip wrote:

Omg the best thing! My in-laws are not wealthy, but they care a lot about looks and fitting into the community so they spend I don’t even know how much on fancy clothes but they refuse to turn the heat higher than 65 and ac lower than 75! On the other hand, my parents are wealthy, never flaunted their wealth in terms of clothing, cars etc but thermostat and/or electricity in general was never even a discussion. Wow was I in for a culture shock when I got married!!

My fil came to check the thermostat in my bedroom as I was going to light candles to make sure I didn’t lower it (it was on 75, upstairs, 100 degrees out, yes I lowered it I was passing out)

mo5

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:09 pm

amother Lightcoral wrote:

What are you saving the water for? What do you mean waste? What’s it wasting? Water is not running out.

In many places, it’s mandatory or recommended to conserve drinking water so this practice makes sense.
Drought is a real thing

amother

↑ Tanzanite

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:12 pm

amother Indigo wrote:

Reusing styrofoam cups, plastic drinking strawers, sandwich bags and ziploc bags aluminum pans. Only wearing other people's used clothes and never buying new. Shutting the faucet while scrubbing dishes.

Shutting the faucet when doing dishes or brushing your teeth is not always about money. If you live in a drought area it is necessary. EY and Los Angeles pretty much demand this as they have faced years of drought. When I went to seminary those of us from California were praised by the seminary for being water wise while those from NY were criticized for wasting precious water.
California at different times had bans/restrictions on watering lawns and other water wasters.
But yeah, water costs a lot of money especially in areas of drought.

↑ BH Yom Yom ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:12 pm

mo5 wrote:

In many places, it’s mandatory or recommended to conserve drinking water so this practice makes sense.
Drought is a real thing

Quote:

This, exactly. (Aside from the financial benefit of saving money on the water bill.)

amother

↑ Lightcoral

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:19 pm

I don’t live where there is a drought and no water is being conserved. Water also costs very little per year here with all our sinks running and not being shut off in between things.

amother

Lightgreen ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:58 pm

This thread is so judgmental and holier-than-thou.
Let people live. There are only a few things here that really make life uncomfortable. The rest is just habit and mindset.
eg. Why would you throw out eggwash? I add it to more eggs when I make scrambled eggs for the kids. That's just bal tashchis to throw out good food. I don't throw out ends of bread either. Put them through the food processor with spices and you have great, fresh breadcrumbs. Saving water is not about cost, it's about waste.
There is no reason to leave lights on in the whole house if the whole family are eating dinner in one room.

It actually makes me wonder, if each person who wrote in here would adopt two of these habits, you would likely find you begin to value what you have more and you'd likely have some extra cash at the end of the month as well.

amother

↑ Vermilion

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 9:58 pm

amother Lightcoral wrote:

I don’t even understand reusing disposable. Why buy plastic plates? Just buy corelle and keep washing. Why buy paper towels and try to reuse? Get cloth shmattas and wash them. Buy reusable bags and wash them… the whole point in disposable is one time use. Why is anyone buying and reusing? They cost more, it makes no sense.

Exactly. I did go through a stage when I didn't have the heart to throw out some of the more expensive, "fancier" and sturdier disposables for yomtov or other occasions. But then I reframed telling myself that the reason I buy them in the first place is to cut down on the washing up and I am paying for that luxury. Also, I was running out of storage space. The benefit is that now I do buy less disposables and when I do, it is a thoughtful weighed out decision in order to make my life easier.

amother

Cappuccino

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 10:14 pm

amother OP wrote:

It’s great to be frugal…
But everything has its limits!
What examples of frugality have you seen that you felt is extreme?

I’ve recently been told by someone she keeps the leftover egg shmear from her challah rolls overnight and adds it to another recipe later on in the week.

So do I…
Is that considered extreme frugality?
Not for later in the week, but if I’m baking challah on Thurs or Friday I’ll save it to throw into another recipe. Why waste?

amother

Dimgray ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 10:16 pm

amother Latte wrote:

Are you klausenberg? They're the only people I've met with this chumrah.

I am far from klausenberg lol but I have this with egg and with raw onion!

amother

Puce ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 10:31 pm

Beautiful wrote:

FYI not supposed to leave raw eggs overnight unless they're mixed with something

I usually fry whatever is left in that scenario right away and have a quick snack or give it to one of my kids. We love eggs, it's great protein, shame to just throw it out.

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 11:19 pm

amother Lightgreen wrote:

I agree. Why make fun of people who are more careful with their possessions and belongings and save money that way? 🤔

Busybee5 ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 11:29 pm

amother Latte wrote:

Are you klausenberg? They're the only people I've met with this chumrah.

We also don't leave eggs overnight. No idea where it came from but it's like not mixing fish and meat. (I think!) Like it's some sort of danger.

Brit in Israel

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 11:36 pm

Seems like people are mixing up extreme frugality with being sensible And trying to save money/resources.
Normal for one is how they are brought up, for others that's frugal/wasting.

↑ Elfrida ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 11:38 pm

Busybee5 wrote:

We also don't leave eggs overnight. No idea where it came from but it's like not mixing fish and meat. (I think!) Like it's some sort of danger.

Some kind of ruach ra is meant to inhabit them. It's a kabbalistic thing that's become mainstream.

I can't help wondering if it's because an open egg would spoil very quickly without refrigeration, and salt would help to preserve it... But just because because there may be a scientific explanation doesn't mean a spiritual one isn't equally valid. They're not mutually exclusive.

↑ Iymnok

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 11:41 pm

I don't understand the distain for used clothes.
Consignment shops and thrift stores in upperclass neighborhoods can have real metzias. It just takes time and patience to go through the rest.

LovesHashem ↓

Mon, Jun 24 2024, 11:56 pm

We don't use the heat and a so much, we wear layers and use fans. But if I have guests it's whatever the guests want. I would never impose what I'm comfortable with on my guests.

And when I am pregnant boy you better beleive the ac is blasting all day every day.