Money's tight and you're desperate: Part III of V

Part 3 of 5: utilities and transportation

Welcome to Part III of V in my series on what to do when you're desperately broke. Just today, as I was feeling great about my recent raise and increased hours in my day job, I was dealt a blow I wasn't expecting and it goes along perfectly with the first topic in today's post.

You see, I went to pay my electric bill in person so I could pick up an application for my utility provider's income based billing plan. I had been on it before but my plan period (one year) had come to an end and I needed to reapply. I thought the income limit was a bit higher than it actually is. When I looked at the application, I thought, "Hm...that's not as high as I thought, but I think I might still qualify." When I got home, I checked my pay stubs for the last few pay periods and my heart sank when I realized that I don't qualify anymore. I'm about $200 over the maximum limit for a household of two. And, despite my raise and increased hours, unless I find a way to increase my income further, I won't be able to afford my next electric bill. I also live in one of the hottest climates in the United States so I am worried about how I will manage this summer when average temperatures are well over 110F.

So, let's get on with it--how can you save on your utilities and transportation?

Saving on utilities
First, before you do anything else, if you are reading this at home, look around you. Is there a light on that isn't being used? Turn it off! Is a radio or television on in an empty room? Turn it off? If it's daylight and your blinds or curtains are closed and lights are on instead, turn off the lights, open the blinds or curtains, and sit by the window to use natural and FREE sunlight to see by.

Now that you've sorted your immediate electricity usage, I want you to look up ALL of your utilities providers--electric, gas, water, trash and sewer. Call each one and ask if they have any income based programs and ask how you can apply. Even if you think you don't qualify, apply anyhow. I am over the limit for our electric company's saving program, but I plan to apply anyhow. I called after reviewing my paystubs and was told to apply regardless because my income was close enough that there might be deductions they can take or other programs they can enroll me in--I won't know without applying.

And, during the same calls, ask about equalized payment plans where they average out your usage over the course of the year so you pay about the same amount each month instead of variable amounts from month to month. My electric bill can by sky high during the summer, so it helps my budget to be on an equalized plan to spread that extra cost out over lower cost months.

If you aren't on a time-based electricity billing plan, get on one! The cost of electricity here is significantly lower from 7pm to noon and on Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays. I save 90% of our cooking, laundry washing, and dish washing for these "off peak hours". I also try to minimize usage of lights and other electric items during noon and 7pm as well.

Work on shorter showers and better dishwashing habits. By focusing on cutting our showering time as short as possible, we have shaved quite a bit off the cost of water and natural gas. I also make sure that we are careful when washing dishes. We stopped using our dishwasher a long time ago a it really ran the water and electric bills up. We now wash dishes by hand, but we make sure to turn OFF the water while we are scrubbing. Even more so, I try to fill a bowl with soapy water and dip my sponge into it to wash my dishes instead of running the water or squeezing soap onto my sponge over and over. I then use the minimum amount of water possible to rinse my dishes. We then let them air dry since we live in an extremely dry climate.

During the winter, if I bake during off-peak electricity hours, I leave the oven door open after I am doing baking and after turning off the oven. The heat from the turned off oven can help keep the kitchen warm.

Air dry your laundry if you live in a non-humid climate. We have one small drying rack and it doesn't fit all of our clothes for each wash cycle, so I drape clothes over the towel racks and shower rod in the bathroom to dry overnight.

Keep the top of you refrigerator clear, especially if it's an older model. Heat rises and your fridge and freezer generate heat as they run. If you have a ton of stuff heaped on top of the fridge and freezer, you make it harder for that heat to escape thus forcing your appliance to work harder to stay cool.

Unplug EVERYTHING that doesn't need to be plugged in OR plug everything into power strips or surge protectors that you can turn off between uses. This includes your television and computers--both continue to draw electricity when turned off. Every night before going to bed, go around your home and turn off the power strips and unplug things. It may be annoying to do this, but it can add up over time.

Follow the sun with your blinds or curtains. During the winter, be sure to keep blinds and curtains open when the sun is shining in on them. During the summer, keep the blinds and curtains closed when the sun is shining in. During the winter this will help you recover some heat while during summer it will help you reduce heat in your home. Also, if you have ceiling fans, be sure to use them to help circulate air, especially during the hot summer months.

Keep your thermostat as low as possible during winter--wear layers and socks and use blankets instead of cranking up the heat. During the summer, do the opposite--keep the thermostat as high as you can handle it and wear shorts and tank tops. My electricity provider today suggested keeping your summer thermostat at 79 to 80F. But, be careful that you don't adjust your thermostat so low in winter or so high in summer that it is a health hazard.

Finally, when you are calling your utilities companies to ask about better rates, energy plans, and so on, also ask if they offer any type of energy audits or if they have programs for things like free energy saving light bulbs, weather proofing kits, and so on.

Saving on transportation
Let's face it, most of us need to use a car, bus, train, or other mode of transportation on a regular basis. It can be a huge budget killer. Let's talk about public transportation first.

If you take a bus or train, figure out if you can afford to buy a weekly or monthly pass. If you can, will it save you money? Call your local transportation organization and ask if they have any income based plans or if there are ways to get free passes. Ask if there is any discount if you buy your passes online or in person or over the phone--I used to live in an area where you could save quite a bit if you bought a monthly pass and bought it online.

Find out if your employer offers any commute assistance programs. My employer offers public transportation discounts and rebates and other programs to their employees in California. Some companies offer such benefits to all of their employees regardless of location. I have worked for several companies that offer free or discounted bus or train passes and that one company even offered regular prizes for their commuters that took the most bus or train trips to and from work.

This may seem obvious, but WALK as often as possible to do errands or get from point A to point B. I can walk to my local grocery store and a pharmacy. The library and post office are within bicycling distance. Walking or bicycling to these places not only will save you on the cost of transportation, but it can be great for your health which can save you money over time on the costs of medication and healthcare.

If you bicycle, learn to do your own maintenance on your bike. Consider bicycle commuting if you live in a safe enough area to do so. Read more about my bicycle commuting HERE.

But, what if you own a car?

I do own a car. It is 17 years old with 232,000 miles on it. I drive it as little as possible and work hard to keep it in good shape. Be sure you are maintaining your car so that it will keep on running! Use coupons or Groupon to save on thing like oil changes and brake maintenance. If you belong to Costco or Sam's Club or have a friend or family member that belongs to them, consider buying new car batteries and tires there. Call around to local independent mechanics and ask what they charge for maintenance. Often (but not always) they will meet or beat the prices of chain auto repair shops.

Make sure your tires are properly inflated and only use the air conditioning if you really need it. The A/C can actually suck up tons of energy and drop your gas mileage and overall efficiency, especially if you have an older car. If you live in a climate with dramatically fluctuating temperatures, keep on top of your tires and make sure you check their inflation regularly--although I suggest you use independent mechanics for maintenance, many large chains offer FREE tire inflation checks and will fill your tires for free (just beware they might try to up-sell services to you--be ok saying, "No thank you.").

Use Gas Buddy. You can download the Gas Buddy app or use it online to find the best price on gasoline in your area. Prices in my area vary by as much as 50-cents per gallon! My local grocery store typically has the best price in my area and if I shop there enough, I can rack up points for discounts on gas. Lately I'm only saving 10-cents per gallon once per month, but that's still money saved! There is another gas station by one of my two work sites that is an even better price though so I plan my gas fill-ups to take advantage of that gas station when I can.

Consider carpooling to work or events. If you work the same hours as a coworker or two, see if they will carpool with you. Either take turns driving or figure out a way to split the cost of gas. If you plan to go to an event that you know your friends or neighbors are attending, ask if you can ride together and split the cost of the gas.

Combine errands. I hate doing numerous errands all in one trip, but I love how much it saves me in terms of both gas and time. I usually map out my errands so that I can go in a loop and to minimize any backtracking. This does take some planning, especially if you are doing things like grocery shopping and buying perishables or frozen foods. In warm or hot weather, I make sure to have a cooler in my car and to place cold and frozen items together in grocery bags.

Consider combining errands with your neighbor as well. Go grocery shopping together and split the cost of gas. Go to Costco or Sam's Club together if one of you is a member and not only split the cost of gas, but split the cost of bulk items, checking first, of course, that the prices of these items is actually cheaper per piece or per unit than anywhere else.

Finally, if you are truly desperate, ask family or friends to give you gift cards for gas, groceries, or other necessities instead of gifts at birthdays and holidays. Ask a family member with a Costco or Sam's Club membership if they can add you to their membership and then be very careful about what you by at these stores. Most major gasoline chains do offer gift cards...

Read all of the posts in this series HERE, or for individual posts:

Read Part 1 HERE--Getting support, embracing free, food bank, and feminine hygiene.
Read Part II HERE -- Medications and healthcare, grocery shopping tips, and housing.
Read Part IV HERE -- Cooking, kitchen, and pantry habits

Part V will cover laundry, toiletries, cleaning, and pet care

Please keep in mind, that how much you save on any tip in this series will depend a lot on how much effort you put into your savings and how much you are willing to change your habits. I once had someone tell me how broke she felt and how she felt like nothing she did would make a difference. When I offered a list of suggestions similar to the items in this series, she replied, "None of that's going to save enough to be worth doing." Well, maybe some of these individually won't amount to much (like clearing the top of your fridge), but when taken all together, the results DO start to add up over time.