Roger Cook

August 8, 2022

With the costs of living rising each month (those interest rates definitely aren't dropping), it is getting harder and harder to stay under budget at the grocery store each week.

A trip to the grocery store could be up to 20% more expensive than it was a year ago! Beef has increased over 12% and lamb over 7%. The price of coffee has soared 7.4%, while vegetables have increased over 15% in some cases. Has anyone seen the price of potatoes lately? Not to mention fuel, education and housing have all skyrocketed to historic highs. With interest rates increasing, Aussie families are struggling more than ever to stay under budget each week.

When it comes to doing the laundry there are several ways you can save money, so that you can save up for that end of year trip, or even just to put money towards other unexpected bills. 

Our number one tip to save money in the laundry is to air dry your clothes! If you are using a dryer this will be adding a significant amount to your quarterly electricity bill. Try and hang your clothes outside on a clothesline, or, if it is wet grab a cheap portable clothesline to put inside. An average family who is doing a few loads a week can save over $100 per year by eliminating their dryer.

Our second tip is to use pre-measured laundry detergent. Did you know that other detergent companies intentionally make their measuring caps for their liquid detergent much larger than is necessary? This is so that their customers use more detergent, so they get good results on their wash but also, so they buy more often. This is a trick that is very common, even in a lot of the powdered detergents. Lucent Globe laundry sheets work out to be as little as $0.30 per load and will allow you to map out exactly how many washes you will get, and it will also save you money. When using laundry liquids and powders you could be paying up to $1 or more per load. For a typical Aussie family doing 1 load per day this would save you up to $260 per year.

Our third tip is to use a cold wash setting on your washing machine. You might also have an eco-mode on your washing machine which is also great to turn on. By running a cold wash you can save up to $200 per year for a typical Aussie family running 1 load per day.

Try these changes and start saving. With the cost of living rising it is a good idea to start thinking about how you can be smarter around the home to save money for the things that matter most.