# Confessions of super savers (article)



## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

I saw this article on CBC
http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/confessions-of-super-savers-how-they-hoard-their-cash-1.3189940

Some of this might be a bit... excessive. Still, interesting ideas:



> The Knights spend about $600 a week on all household costs for a family of five and, up until recently, saved up to 70 per cent of their net income.
> 
> To make their dollars stretch, the family has all sorts of money-saving techniques. They practice "deferred gratification." Any purchase over $20 requires a waiting period to decide if it's really worth it.


and I like these ones; I've gotten so many free items over the years due to the Scanning Code of Practice



> They also carefully monitor their groceries at the checkout. That's because many major retailers abide by the Scanner Price Accuracy Code. That means if a product scans in at a price higher than labelled, by pointing it out, the customer gets the item free, up to a maximum of $10.
> 
> The Knights also keep their eyes peeled for sales even after buying an item. Recently, two weeks after Knight installed a new pair of gutter guards, Canadian Tire discounted them by 40 per cent. So Knight brought his receipt and the sales ad to the store and says he got 40 per cent of his bill back.
> 
> "Canadian Tire has a policy but so do most retailers. [For a specified time], they'll do a price adjustment on any change in price," he says.


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## JordoR (Aug 20, 2013)

Yeah I'm all for saving... but sometimes people take it too far. A grace period on any purchase over $20 seems a bit excessive.


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## jargey3000 (Jan 25, 2011)

....never buy a napkin, mustard, ketchup, vinegar etc. - fast food places give them away free...
.... here, we have monthly specials at out (gov't.) liquor stores. Stock up on wines when on sale; bring them back for "exchange" on another item next month, get the full, reg. price on the return...
...pick up your daily newspaper off the reception desk at your neighborhood hotel...
there a million ways to save a buck


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## Ag Driver (Dec 13, 2012)

Deleted.


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## jargey3000 (Jan 25, 2011)

... "water-down" everything you can: dish suds, windex, liquid cleaners. they'll work just as well & go a lot further
... buy mostly "no-name" esp. in household staples
... buy what you can "almost-new" on kijiji
lots of ways to save a buck


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Ag Driver said:


> Price adjustments and scanning code practices are one thing. That is consumer protection.
> Your examples are at the expense of someone else. Theft and Fraud; Classic "Leech on Society" examples! I am disgusted with that type of leech approach. There is a big difference between saving a buck and ripping someone off.


^+1 Exactly!


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## JordoR (Aug 20, 2013)

Ag Driver said:


> Price adjustments and scanning code practices are one thing. That is consumer protection.
> 
> Your examples are at the expense of someone else. Theft and Fraud; Classic "Leech on Society" examples! I am disgusted with that type of leech approach. There is a big difference between saving a buck and ripping someone off.


Well put.

In addition, people have to consider the cost of their personal time and fuel, etc. while trying to save money. Sure, taking a free newspaper from a hotel or stealing ketchup packets can seem like a deal, when it takes you 30 mins to run these errands and burn a bit of fuel... that $3 bottle at the store doesn't seem so outrageous anymore.


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

> Scanning Code of Practice


 Never heard about this Code ... Which stores abide ? RCSS, Walmart?



> here, we have monthly specials at out (gov't.) liquor stores. Stock up on wines when on sale; bring them back for "exchange"


 You can exchange wine in LCBO?



> A grace period on any purchase over $20


 grace period to buy bottle of wisky or vodka?! Funny



> to consider the cost of their personal time and fuel


 True! many people , in order to save couple of bucks, driving 30-40 min to cheap gas station and wait in line


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## uptoolate (Oct 9, 2011)

In the original article, the idea of keep an eye to see if things go on sale after you bought them is a good idea but what kind of 'ultimate saver' ever, ever buys anything at full retail. Not me to be sure! (Maybe if it was an 'emergency' purchase - though I don't see how gutter guards could be in this category.)

And I agree with the sentiments expressed above that there is a difference between 'saving' and, well, 'stealing'!


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## uptoolate (Oct 9, 2011)

The Scanning Code is commonly followed. Scored many freebies at the grocery store with this as well as some $10 bills.


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

uptoolate said:


> The Scanning Code is commonly followed. Scored many freebies at the grocery store with this as well as some $10 bills.


Ususally we buy groceries for several hundreds $, so it's practically impossible to follow every scan .... Once or twice when scanned price was too much off labeled and and said it cashier , I got answer that "this item was misplaced and lable shows incorrect one"


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## FrugalTrader (Oct 13, 2008)

@Gibor, best thing to do is not ask the cashier about the mispricing. Take your receipt to the customer service desk and they will do the adjustment.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

Ag Driver said:


> Price adjustments and scanning code practices are one thing. That is consumer protection.
> 
> Your examples are at the expense of someone else. Theft and Fraud; Classic "Leech on Society" examples! I am disgusted with that type of leech approach. There is a big difference between saving a buck and ripping someone off.




ag you always have such good strong values. Your parents did a great job raising you.

a few years ago i posted that my frugalliest effort of all is to grow additional green-leafed plants from the cut-off tops of beets, turnips & radishes. I wrote how i had grown the most beautiful of flowering radishes from radish tops, how their 15" high leafy green shoots & pale pink flowers had graced a series of salads all summer long.

i must have jinxed the setup with that post. Or else maybe that year was an exceptional year for the compost in which i always pot up new plants. Because never again. 

never again would the compost allow new fully-rooted plants. All i'm ever able to grow now from a cutoff beet or turnip top are primary sets of green leaves - enough for one tiny salad - but the cut-off top itself fails to root, therefore after its final leaf growth it promptly dies., 

i keep trying, though. Maybe one year i'll get another Super Compost.


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## Ag Driver (Dec 13, 2012)

Deleted.


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## uptoolate (Oct 9, 2011)

Ag I still remember a bit in awe our amazing cold cellar with all manner of amazing jarred things. My favourites were the dill pickles and the peaches. I thought the little pickled corns were cool but didn't really like them. Never could tolerate pickled eggs and only stewed tomatoes if they were in Nan's spaghetti sauce or the like.


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## jargey3000 (Jan 25, 2011)

gibor
You can exchange wine in LCBO? :)[/QUOTE said:


> gabor - this may come as a shock to you, but SOME of us actually do NOT live in Ontario. And yes, the "NLC" will return wine.


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## jargey3000 (Jan 25, 2011)

.... oh, and creamers, always ask for extras at timmies or stardollars...


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## jargey3000 (Jan 25, 2011)

ag ... were you speaking to reporters after a Harper rally in Toronto today? ...just askin'.....


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## Ag Driver (Dec 13, 2012)

Deleted.


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## humble_pie (Jun 7, 2009)

i'm with you on the beet greens, right down to their dark red edible stems, exactly like their cousins swiss chard. Spinach, too. An avalanche of taste, vitamins, minerals & enzymes packed into those dark green leaves.

greens, chard, spinach, onions, grated cheese, cream, eggs. The best quiches. Would you say a light dusting, only a mere suspicion, of nutmeg over the top, before it goes in the oven?


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

Scanning Code of Practice is great. All the major stores follow it; you just have to look at your receipts.

If you suspect a price is wrong and are not 100% sure, go back to the aisle and check it. Make sure you look at the barcode on the item and the shelf to make sure it just isn't a matter of a misplaced price tag. I do this because I don't want to waste their time unless I'm positive.

I've used this to get free items at Canadian Tire, Superstore, Loblaws, Shopper's Drug Mart. For a while my local Loblaws had bags of avocadoes mispriced. Over several days - always giving them a day to fix it - I got 2 or 3 free bags of avocadoes until they eventually fixed the price.


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## tk826 (Oct 19, 2015)

*7 Ways to Create Wealth*

Here's an interesting video about creating wealth:
https://champion.ca/2015/06/15/7-ways-create-wealth/


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