Well, it's getting to be that time of year again, when winter will be sneaking up on many of us. It's already cold in some places, but for those of us who are still enjoying mild weather, it's hard to think about bitter cold. It's important though, so that we can be prepared when Old Man Winter shows his face, instead of waiting until the last minute. So, what are you best tips for saving money while getting prepared for winter? I'll start. Buy extra blankets at thrift stores and yard sales and get them laundered and ready to go. You can never have too many blankets if you're without heat (and you won't care if they are the prettiest ones or not, if the power goes out).
Purchase bulk food items when they go on a sale at the grocery store. You can get some excellent deals and have a fully stocked food supply on the event you get snowed in. I also like to make sure I have a large supply of batteries and candles in case the power goes out.
That's a good idea to start early so you can get all the supplies and necessities for winter. Here in Hawaii we are weather prepared for hurricanes & tropical storms. We stock up throughout the year with food, medications, water, toiletries, pet needs and furnishing and transportation if in the case we need to evacuate and don't have cars. TheBus.org has evacuation help for all of us who don't have cars:Log In site for evacuation for people without transportation. Stocking up for winter and disasters are a very good idea especially if you take medications and need to stock up on them.
I'm already starting to look around for sales on winter boots for my kids. I've already been to the Columbia outlet and bought my kids new snow pants and winter coats. Next on my list is to stock up on thick winter thermal socks, neck warmers and mittens. Costco is already selling great mittens and gloves. My oldest wants to learn to ski so I'm looking at getting some used ski equipment for him. I've already started to pack up the summer clothes and will bring out the winter pajamas, sweaters and coats soon.
Since the rainy season is the equivalent of winter here, our main concern during this period are umbrellas and raincoats. Our garage has a rack for umbrellas so any time we need there would be one for everyone. What's good here is that stores hold a sale of umbrellas and raincoats when the rainy season is already showing signs. The price is usually 50% discounted.
Pretty much just buy everything you think you'll need during the off season. It's harder to find some of the essentials - gloves, coats, snow shovels, etc. - during the spring and summer, but if you're willing to do some digging you can find some excellent deals at surplus and thrift stores. My wife got her winter coat three months early this year, in the dead of winter, for a little over 50% off the normal price. Good quality coat, too. Should come in handy when the snow hits.
Even though winter is still some way off where I live - as our seasons generally change almost overnight - without much warning - and we tend to go from one extreme to another and can often land being totally cut off when the weather gets bad. As I live in the middle of nowhere and have got into the habit of making sure that I always have stocks of everything I need for every eventuality and generally replace anything that is used regularly throughout the year - as well as replace any items that need renewing at the end of each season when most things are on sale - other than putting the rugs down - which I always do - as it helps make my tiled floors feel a touch warmer underfoot during our extremely cold winters - there really isn't much more I need to do - as I'm already well set up and ready to go - not that I'm looking forward to it at all I might add.
I also pack supplies in my car in the event that I get stuck in a major traffic back up or something. I learned this the hard way 8 years ago when I was pregnant with my son. There was an ice storm and traffic was at a standstill for 6 hours. I had no food or water, but luckily had gas in the tank. Keep your gas tank full and carry snacks, water, and a blanket.
I just do the usual outdoor tasks - checking the lagging on the pipes, ensuring the guttering is tidy and the garden chores. Other than that, I just make sure I've got enough woolens and that my winter boots are in good order.
I would say to be prepared for winter, have doors and windows sealed up. My family usually finds huge sheets of plastic and we tape it around the windows. If you can find all the cracks and seal it, you spend less on heating the house. Also wearing more layers in the house. You shouldn't have the heat cranked up to make it feel like summer so you can walk around the house with nothing but a tank top and shorts.
Ha! It's funny that you wrote that last line. It sounds like you quoted me talking to one of my daughters. That's what she seems to think, but no. That isn't going to work. I like layering clothes to keep warm better than cranking the heat up anyway. When the furnace is turned up too high, I feel like it gets stuffy. I feel like I don't breathe as well. Thanks for all of these great tips, everyone. The bus thing is really cool, @Krissttina Isobe. I'm glad there's something available to help those who are without their own form of transportation.
My parents go bonkers with preparing theirs and our cars for the winter. I'll stop by to visit, and without me knowing, my dad will sneak a whole bunch of stuff into the trunk of my car - like 10 bottles of de-icer, 2-3 ice scrapers, lock de-icers, traction mats, portable battery charges, you name it. I appreciate them doing this, but they often go overboard and my entire trunk is so full I can't use it for anything else. Even if you have your car prepared, you still need to check all of your supplies from time to time to make sure they are still usable. Especially things like portable chargers, which can lose all their power pretty quickly if not re-charged regularly - especially in the cold. At home, thankfully, one of the perks of living in an apartment is there is less to do to be prepared for the winter, aside from a fully stocked fridge and pantry at all times, in addition to lots of candles, electric heaters and some warm blankets. Fortunately there really aren't many power outages in the winter months, aside from the occasional person crashing into a telephone pole, or some ice covered branches brake off and take down some power lines. In fact, I never worry about keeping my apartment at a minimum of 59 degrees to keep the pipes from bursting, because my buildings were already plenty warm to begin with. Not only are the commons areas and hallways already heated by default, but so are all my neighbors apartments. Couple that with the natural heat given off by all my lamps, lights, my oven, my dishwasher, etc... my apartment is already plenty warm without even having to run the heat very often. Keeping bottled waters in the car can also be tricky - generally I don't leave them in the car since they will just freeze up and be solid. Instead I will grab one or two as I am leaving. I always leave a few lighters and matches in my glove compartment - you never know what situation you might be in where you may need them. The Dollar Tree also carries those air activated heat packets which are fairly cheap, so it's nice to keep a bunch of those in the glove compartment too in case you get stranded.
I always buy my hoodies during the mid year or even just after Christmas because those are when the big sales go for items they want to get rid of. Usually, during this time, stores will want to get rid of their jackets and hoodies, and this is when I like buying those the most. The only problem is that I don't get to use them for a year after I buy them, but at least I don't spend as much and I'm not too much in a hurry to use them anyway. Additionally, I could use them on trips to cold places so I don't just use them during the winter so I get a lot of use out of them.
We're going into the summer and the mercury soars up to the upper 30's, as high as 39 C! But I use this time to shop for winter bedding, not that I need much really. Botswana winter lasts 2 months at most. -and although it can get bitterly cold, we can cope with just one light duvet. Sometimes it's so cold we need a light throw over the duvet. I like very nice, good quality bedding and as such, I'm always on the lookout for nice stuff. So I usually stock up on winter bedding over the summer, as it works out cheaper
I'm considering covering my windows with the film that was posted here on the forum a while ago, I believe by @ohiotom76. I've got a couple of different types in my Amazon wish list, so I can look them over when I get some time. I just noticed a while ago that I need to put some more foam along the back door jamb, because there's a gap. Like @Zyni, I often will purchase inexpensive towels/blankets/beach blankets at the thrift stores, but I use them for the stray cats and also to cover up the plants during the nights when we have frosts.
Those blankets can be a life saver when it comes to covering windows or other drafty places, if you find yourself without power. A lot of cold also comes up from the floor, so they work well there too. If you have a generator, you can use a heater in one space and block off doorways and such to help keep heat in that space. This is quite helpful if you can't generate enough power to run the furnace if you want to run anything else. You can just run a space heater and still have light, for example. Ah, the joys of surviving ice storms....
