Money Sense Tips

Cleaning is a necessary chore if we want our homes to look presentable. In your monthly budget you can save money on cleaning supplies with a few simple tips.

All those television commercials tout the latest and greatest cleaning solution. “If you want to remove tough stains fast, try this product.” “If you want to stop grease sticking to your kitchen surfaces, spray with this product first.”

The advertisements are everywhere. But before you go out and spend your hard-earned money on something that may or not prove worthy of your time and elbow grease, here are some suggestions for you.

* Buy in bulk – Stores usually give you a discount when you buy more than one of a product. If you have a cleaning solution that you have used for years and it still works for you, then you know that you will always need it. Stocking up saves money in the long run.

* Do a little research – Just what is in those cleaning products? This is as much for you to save money as it is for the environment. Cleaners with bleach are expensive. Why not just use the bleach yourself? Lots of ingredients are just for smell or to help bind together the other compounds.

* Make your own household cleaners – This is not as hard as it sounds. You will not be Doctor Frankenstein cooking up something dangerous in the lab. Do you have a bottle of bleach? Mixing it with four parts water to one part bleach can make an excellent disinfectant for cleaning your shower curtains and your tub. Add a little to dish water to remove tough, baked-on stains in pans.

What about lemon juice? It is citric acid and can be used to cut grease. Simply squeeze some juice concentrated onto grease stains or mix it with warm water in a spray bottle and apply. Let sit and you can then use a sponge or damp sponge to remove that grease.

Don’t stop now. There is also white vinegar. It has many uses, which includes taking foul odors out of rugs and furniture where you have spills. It can also be mixed with warm water to clean your linoleum flooring. Mix it with water in a spray bottle and use it to clean your windows. You can also use ammonia and water. Dry with a piece of newspaper.

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* Clean regularly – An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure as they say. Cleaning surfaces when spills occur or keeping to a set schedule for weekly chores prevents the build-up of hard water stains, soap scum, grease and the like. Milder cleaning products, like homemade ones, can be quite effective for regular cleaning without all the blood, sweat and tears.

Are you looking to save money on cleaning? Don’t go get a maid service. Create your own cleaning products, clean often and buy store cleaners in bulk.

aving money on cruise does not require you to be a cheapskate. In fact, there are many ways you can save money a cruise holiday and still enjoy yourself very much.Great savings can be had both on booking the cruise and what we spend on-board by considering a few guidelines.

Below are 10 ways which do not require you to save include stiffing the crew to avoid tipping, smuggling booze on to save on the bar bill or otherwise trying to outsmart the system which pretty much makes you a cheapskate.

1. Be realistic- Often we get all caught up in the price of the cruise, what we pay for the cruise fare, that we don’t pay near enough attention to the other expenses that go along with it. Yes, a cruise vacation does offer a lot for the money. But a cruise vacation is far from all-inclusive as some want to believe. That’s nothing to be scared of, just something to investigate and consider first.

2. Shop for travel insurance- As unexpected chaos from weather or politically-related sources continues to play a bigger role in travel plans, affecting more than ever before, travel insurance of some sort is becoming more of a smart move than in the past. Look beyond the cruise line for options, starting with your personal life/home/auto insurance agent.

3. Beverage packages- do the math. Most lines offer soda packages that can be a good value. It all depends on how much you will drink though. The idea of “unlimited” sodas for one set price may be appealing but you may need to drink far more than you might anticipate for it to pay out.

4. Shore excursions- These too may or may not be a good value. Packages that include the word “beach” in them are often more expensive than grabbing a cab and heading to the beach on your own. Almost anything the cruise line offers you can do on your own. Should you? Maybe if its a simple trip to the beach. If your interests take you far from the ship and are more complex, maybe not, especially if it is a port you have never been to before.

5. Tipping- It’s not required but most cruise lines make it easy by automatically adding it on to your shipboard account each day. The easy way out is to accept that and be done with it. Greater value can be gained by opting out of the automatic tips and taking care of that, in cash, with each individual personally IF you let them know that at the beginning of your voyage.

6. Bribe people- Some call this pre-tipping” and it involves slipping your cabin steward and headwaiter or Maitre ‘d $20 on the very first day saying the words “Take good care of us and we will take good care of you”. You’re banking on the fact that most other guests on the ship do not do this so you will stand out from the crowd and get better service. Better service = a better overall experience and that means value.

7. Watch pricing- Most people consider the day they put down a deposit the day they have locked in to a price. That’s true but other opportunities may come along down the road that will get you the exact same cruise for less money or the same money but you get more with it. Again, “value” rather than “lowest price” is king here.

8. Budget on-board purchases- Simply making a budget and sticking to it works wonders. Casino freaks often bring along an envelope for each day of the cruise, each with the amount of cash they will have to gamble with each day. Once that is gone, that is that. No more gambling until tomorrow. Winnings are often not considered for the most successful gamblers, placing those elsewhere or having win money applied to their on-board account.

9. Try to use a Cruise Travel Agent. I say “try” because travel agents are not all created equally. A general travel agent that books everything from land tours to airline tickets is often a waste of time. One that specializes in cruise vacations may save you time, money and make for an overall better experience. This is a must-do for first-timers. Seasoned cruisers either swear by travel agents or swear at travel agents. The difference is if they have a good one or not.

10. Pick the right line in the first place. I saved this for last because it is one of the very most important ways to save money on a cruise without being cheap. You can have a good time, whatever that may mean to you, on any cruise line. Booking with a cruise line with a standard experience that will let you have your good time without having to spend extra to make that happen is the key. A friend who knows you and has cruised a number of lines can help with that as can a good Cruise Travel Agent.

Along those lines, consider this example. Our first 8 sailings were on Carnival Cruise Lines. We found that our family of four did well with the Carnival product and we had no reason to look elsewhere. Carnival has their fleet of “fun ships” and that is not just a catchy slogan: these people know how to have fun. Better yet, they know how to make it possible for anyone to have fun. When we first started sailing with Carnival our two girls were pre-teens and did well with the on-board programming.