u/Food4Lessy

Theres so many ways to save on personal care & ​dental.

Heres a few of my favorites from Dollar Tree ,Amazon, ​Walmart ,Aldi, Target .

Ultrasonic Toothbrush - Soniccare 1100 ($20), Equate Galaxy. Aldi refill 4 for $5.

Floss with Fluoride paste

​Mouthwash - Castor Oil($1/4oz), hydrogen peroxide whitening ($1 Pint)

Shaver- Braun Foil 2xAA ($20 last 10-15 years)

Hair Trimmer - Conair ($10) , Wahl ($20)

Waterproof Sunscreen - Diaper Rash Cream 40% Zinc
Face cleanser - Zinc Shampoo

Theres so many ways to save on personal care & ​dental.

Heres a few of my favorites from Dollar Tree ,Amazon, ​Walmart ,Aldi, Target .

Ultrasonic Toothbrush - Soniccare 1100 ($20), Equate Galaxy. Aldi refill 4 for $5.

Floss with Fluoride paste

​Mouthwash - Castor Oil($1/4oz), hydrogen peroxide whitening ($1 Pint)

Shaver- Braun Foil 2xAA ($20 last 10-15 years)

Hair Trimmer - Conair ($10) , Wahl ($20)

Waterproof Sunscreen - Diaper Rash Cream 40% Zinc
Face cleanser - Zinc Shampoo

$20 ​DIY Washing machine (5gal bucket, plunger ​with two holes) vs $300-600 Washing Machine

$20 DIY Air​ purifier ( box fan, Washable AC Filter) vs $200 proprietary filter

$20 Drying Rack with fan blowing vs a $800 dish washer and dryer​

$20 Braun AA shaver vs $200 rechargeable shaver

$20 Wahl corded trimmer

$30-80 A3 A5​ Razor Scooter vs $200 eScooter

$100 Vintage chromoly bike

$100 DIY cold cellar

$150-300 Vintage Direct Drive Washer with analog controls

For half the year, finally hit close to zero waste. With $10-20 per month power and water bill.

Captured 50% of solar energy and ​water. ​Biked & ​Walked over 75%. Ate 25% from small garden. ​Purchased 75% of things refurbished or used

Spent
4kw Solar Panels $1500 on ​Ground mount​. 16kw LFP battery $1500.

Used ​Solar(during ​day) & Natural gas(at ​night) to dry clothes​, washed clothes during showers. Reduced wardrobe to 6 outfits.

Theres been great deals on solar for off grid ​DIY battery station, Plug In Solar fo4 ​Renters (400W-1200W wireless shutoff outlet) for some States, and roof solars.

HQ ​Solar ​Panels are as cheap as $32/100W. Might find cheaper used. Found new one AreSol on ebay.

LFP Battery Power Stations for $100 to 250/ 1kWhr. My favs are Pecron,Anker,Segway. The first two have decent customer service.

Solars cables 12AWG are $1/ ft on Amazon & Walmart. Check their polarity with multimeter

Solar Federal Tax Credits ends by 2032-2035 large 4kw-20kw system

Are the top quality handheld immense blender and mixer (​by Braun, Vitamix, KitchenAid) better than Milwaukee & Hyper Tough Max drills for blending & mixing in kitchen?

Its for once a week use. I have clean corded and 12v ​cordless ​drills with 350 inch lb and 4A motor​. And want to save space.

Those AI data center and almonds​ are taking all the power and water from us.

A. ​I was testing ways to reduce my water useage​ since ​my ​bill is crazy $75/mo with hikes every damn year.

Turns out soaking my clothes in 15 gal tub with used shower water ​for a few hours is way cleaner than using ​machine wash. And was a good workout that I cancel my gym membership.

B. I scored a ebay ​deal for $32 100W and $70 200W solar panels​ which is cheaper than fb marketplace. Was able reduce my power bill by more than half to under $25/mo and power the 1kw battery($250) for outages. We get eight outrage a year lasting 4-8 hours. 600W of solar is good enough.

Whats been your recent and past frugal success that better than expected?

Saving money was a bonus compared to better quality of life improvements.

Ultra-frugal living involves an extreme ​disciplined approach to minimizing expenses to maximize savings or achieve financial independence. ​Prioritizing resourcefulness over convenience to keep expenditures as close to absolute zero as possible​.

I started out as generally ​frugal then evolved to ultra frugal over last 10 years.

The ultimate goal is have more fun with less and having creative outlet tinkering with new ideas. ​It all started with the goal of lowering my summer ​power bill from $250/mo to $25/mo. How low can you really go without being miserable?

This meant switching from Central AC(1800W) to USB fans (3W). With the help of 200W battery solar panels ($300) ​and installing ​tint($15).

Winter was no fun wearing puff jackets. So I​ fired up my 100W projector to watch old school movies on the 150 inch wall. The waste heat is used to warm my room.

Next came photography, buying used and refurbished gear with a warranty. 3/4 of which turn out to good deals on 2.8 glass. I ended earning a sizable hobby income.

Next came product and restaurant reviews. I wrote detail reviews for fun and to help others. Then companies started sending free plane tixs and product.

Who know being a creatively ultra frugal earns gold

After 15 years, my 2010 Whirlpool washer needs servicing. $150 parts and labor. These top loaders use less water on low level fill.

My new cold blower dryer attachment ​only uses 35 watts and 1/10th natural gas ​to dry breathable polyester clothing .

Solar drying is a big hassle for large loads.

The fan blower and gas dryer are 100 times more practical time wise.

Next frugal project is running frigid off of solar battery in summer. Was able to get 200 Watt bifacial , 288w, 1kw power station for $60 each, $80, $250.

Our power bill is $30-50, hopefully with solar battery is $0-10.

There so many ways to enjoy sports in-person and viewing.

A. OTA with $20 antenna within 50 miles. $11/mo on Peacock Premium (Spanish), $20/mo on FOX1 (English) 150 matches.

20 Minutes highlights on YouTube (Free). Team USA matches on Tubi (Free)

B. Big Screen Watching - 100 to 300 inch Projector $50-300

C. Public Fan Watch (Free)

D. Last Minute tickets $300-400.

F. Jersey $5-30. Closeout,Online, Used

Yecella, BTSella, Taylorella or Backstreet Boy nostalgia?

Acer Swift

14.5" 2560x1600 120Hz IPS Touchscreen Display

16GB LPDDR5X Memory 1TB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD

Backlit Keyboard Finger Print Reader

Ports: 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A 2x USB4

eBay via Acer

They still make them built to last it you know key features to look for. 15-25 years between repairs.

S Tier -

Whirlpool/Estate/Kenmore 3.5 cu ft Washer Direct Drive (1980-2012 $100 )

Whirlpool Commercial CAE72 ​Washer 3.3 cu ft Washer (2026 $1000)

Speed Queen TC5 3.5 cu ft Washer (2026 $1000-1800) Overpriced & Rough Washing

A Tier -

Whirlpool /Amana/ Estate WMV Washer 3.5 cu (2024 $300-600)

GE/Hotpoint 16-22 cu ft Top Freezer ​Fridge (2026 $600-800)

I own the 1990s Whirlpool and 2010s New Whirlpool & GE. Still good quality and lasts over 15-25 ​years for the money and new Gov regulations. Its not great quality like 1990s & 2000s for 25-35 years.

My 20 year old GE fridge is being promoted to the garage. Still chugging on.

Just ordered a new GE 22 cu ft from Costco for $850.

Saw a few good used ones for $100-300.

My favs are top freezer GE/Hotpoint 17-22 cu ft for $600-800. No ice maker. Frigidaire & Whirlpool good too.

Washers Whirlpool 3.5 cu ft top loading. GE/ Hotpoint run rough.

Stove Amanda/GE for $350-650

These simple and cheap apps seem to last 20 years. While friends LG and Samsung last barely 5 years.

No need to buy Speed Queen or Viking​