One great way to save money is to avoid major expenses. Regularly maintaining the high-cost items you own can significantly increase their lives. This means servicing your car regularly, having the furnace and lawn mower cleaned seasonally, and vacuuming refrigerator coils monthly. Check owner’s manuals for maintenance specifics. Maintaining your possessions can keep them running more efficiently and lasting longer saving thousands over the years on utilities, repair bills, and, of course, replacement costs.
Jodi D. of St. Petersburg, Florida has reaped the benefits from this practice. "My last refrigerator and washing machine each survived 20 years and a move to Europe because I took care of them regularly,” she comments with pride. “It took some extra time and effort, but I even performed preventative maintenance. And the appliances repaid me by lasting much longer than I expected.”
I totally agree with this. My great aunt had a sewing machine from 1970. It runs like a dream, because she took such good care of it. She's gone now, but the sewing machine is still in use. It can also be helpful to learn how to do minor servicing yourself, to save money. I know someone who does the routine maintenance on his cars, which can save a lot over time.
Posted by: annab | April 20, 2006 at 10:29 AM
A great reminder. A friend of mine had her washing machine hose burst,it created a nightmare of a mess,there is nothing worse than WATER DAMAGE. She had to replace all the downstairs carpet due to the stink, her furniture was damaged too from 2-3 inches of water. Turn the water off after you use the machine, do not leave it turned on when not in use. Install the mesh hoses, stay away from the rubber ones, they tend to expand with heat and water pressure.
Posted by: Brian | July 31, 2006 at 02:12 PM