There are so many ways that you can conserve what you have and make your dollar stretch farther just by making some adjustments to the things that you do at home. Chances are that you have at least heard of energy efficient appliances and light bulbs, but you may not realize just how much you can save by upgrading. Today's best air conditioners use 30% to 50% less energy to produce the same amount of cooling as air conditioners made in the mid 1970s. Even if your air conditioner is only 10 years old, you may save 20% to 40% of your cooling energy costs by replacing it with a newer, more efficient model. In most cases the cost of replacing an old cooling system will pay for itself in savings in just a few months. Of course cooling your home is just one expense that you can reduce, think of the money that you can save if you simply turned off the heated dry feature on your dishwasher or bought 1-ply toilet tissue instead of 2-ply. You may be surprised at just how comfortably you can live on less.

Being a penny pincher at work

There are two huge costs that a penny pincher learns how to minimize or completely avoid when traveling to and spending time at work. These costs are the cost of food and snacks and the cost of driving. If you do not think that the occasional treat from the vending machine is going to make that much of a dent in your pocket book, think again. By 2010 it is estimated that total annual vended sales volume will exceed approximately $35 billion and some analysts estimate the growth to lead to annual sales of up to $56 billion! Makes you think twice about spending your money on over-priced over-processed foods doesn't it? With gas prices at historic highs many people are looking for ways to make their gasoline dollar go further. Did you know that maintaining proper tire pressure can increase fuel efficiency by about a mile per gallon? In addition you can also avoid the cost of having to replace your tires more often as proper tire pressure improves the life of your tires and the overall ride. Under-inflation of tires is considered the most common car problem on the road today.

Being a penny pincher while shopping

There are so many things that you can do to reduce your grocery bill that it is hard to know where to start. There are dozens of great suggestions for preparing to go to the store such as making a list ahead of time and sticking to that list once you are at the store. You may have been told of the dangers of grocery shopping while hungry or seeing something indulgent that you just have to have. One suggestion that you may not yet know about has to do with coupon clipping, but not just any coupon clipping, online coupon clipping. There is a whole world of money saving opportunities when you look for manufacturer's coupons for the things that you buy most. You can often find more valuable coupons online than even in your Sunday paper. You must also learn how to be a penny pincher on large purchases. Everything is negotiable. Haggling is not rude nor is it cheap if you are looking to buy a car, home, boat, or anything else that would be considered a large investment.