10 Money Saving Tips - Wishing You ALL a Very Happy New Year!

We at Culligan ZeroWater are aware that many people have taken a financial blow during Covid-19 with so many out of work, combined with the financially draining festive period. So we want to give you a practical list of top tips on how you can save more money in 2021.

Culligan ZeroWater's Top 10 Money Saving Tips for 2021!

1. Write a Weekly/Monthly Family Budget

By writing a budget you will be able to visualise how much your necessities and amenities cost. This will help your family manage and save more money. It help you understand your spending and saving habits better. More, it can help you plan and make better financial strategies. Additionally, it makes all expenditures more tangible and helps to make all of your family members more aware and accountable for the money they can spend. A Practical Money Saving Solution: A simple shoe box with envelopes pre-filled with money for all important monthly expenditures such as utilities, food, rent, holidays, mortgage, pension, clothes, savings and membership fees can help your family to visualise which part of your monthly income needs to be reserved to ensure you are not building up debts or overspend as a family. This will immediately show how much is left as disposal money or what could be set aside for saving. Saving money will ensure your family can overcome those rainy days or any future financial problems such as unemployment or sickness. Maintaining sustainable expenditure levels will help your family to secure a healthier financial future and improve your quality of life. A healthy family budget will help your family to stay mindful of your income and expenses. With a family budget, you will know exactly how much you can spend in any category each month, how much you have to work with, what spending areas need to be evaluated, among other things. There are many free budgeting tools available like Mint and Wally. You can use Excel or Google Docs to make a budgeting spreadsheet for yourself. Even pen and paper will do to track money in and out. However, we recommend our simple and practical money saving solution mentioned before, which can be implemented by all families today.

2. Shop Around Online to Ensure You’re Getting the Best Price & Discounts!

If You must Spend Money, make sure You Shop Around to Make Sure You’re getting the Best Price!

There are countless websites online specifically designed to save you money that can be found easily through google! These websites track and compare prices in thousands of different shops, and provide you with helpful and insightful reviews to help you make informed decisions. These websites help your family to find the cheapest, most cost effective prices with just a few clicks of a button! Getting the best deal has never been easier. More, online shopping helps you to stay safe at home! Another handy way to save money on your online shopping is by joining Honey. Honey is a free browser extension that will scan the internet for relevant discount vouchers, and will apply them to your cart, saving you money instantly! “Never search for voucher codes again. With one click, Honey’s smart shopping assistant will automatically apply every discount to your cart – in seconds.”

3. Sell Your Unwanted Belongings - Reclaim & De-clutter Your Living Space - Donations

During the lock downs many of us have had a good old spring clean! During your time isolating and decluttering, you may have stumbled across items you no longer want. Do not let these unwanted items linger in your already crowded home. You can sell these items to get them out of your home and make some extra cash at the same time. You can sell your items easily on Depop, eBay and even Instagram and Facebook Market Place! Last, but not least you could consider donating any unwanted items if you have no time to sell them.

Some More Extreme Money Saving Solutions are:

4. Simplify Your Life & Give Minimalism A Go

During de-cluttering you may have been shocked by the excess of items you have accumulated over the years. Each item which is now unused and forgotten will have a cost associated with it, as you feel inclined to safeguard the initial investment you made in it. Over time assets de-valuate and this can impact on your family's budget reducing the disposable amount of money your family has. Therefore, once you have exorcised your home of excess clutter, it could be time to give minimalism a go.

There are Many Advantages to Minimalism such as:

• You Will Spend Less. Choosing to accumulate only the essentials often results in more financial freedom. Spending less on things you don’t really need will cut your financial expenses and can increase your savings.
• A minimalist home is significantly less stressful as you are able to freely move around and enjoy your home more.
• Your Home Will Be Easier to Clean - The fewer things in our home, the fewer things there are to clean. This makes cleaning a significantly easier chore.
• The sense of freedom that comes from minimalism is truly refreshing. You will no longer feel tied to the material possessions in your home and you’ll feel a new sense of independence.
• Minimalism is Good for the Environment, as the less we consume and buy, the less damage we do to the environment and thus the more sustainable we become.

5. Plan/Do a No Spend Month

Overspending in December can lead to a painful January. Therefore, why not try your best to stop the spending and reset your money habits with a no-spend month. Here’s is an informative article on how your family can implement a 'no spend month' in your family's financial calendar. You could even try a 'no-spend week' for a lighter challenge if a month is too long, and gradually build it up. Every little helps when it comes to saving money.

More Useful Saving Tips Include:

6. Claim Any Benefits That You Are Entitled To

You could be entitled to financial support from the government during this trying and unprecedented time, but it’s down to you to research, chase it up and claim the money you need. Benefits are available for a variety of different personal extenuating circumstances such as: statutory sick pay, employment and support allowance, jobseekers' allowance, and universal credit.

The support is out there, you just have to look for it and ask for help if you need it!

The following organisations can give you relevant information, guide you and set you off on your path to financial support:

• Turn2Us is a national charity that offers benefits information, grants and support.
• Citizens Advice help with benefits, consumer issues and other work and financial matters.
• Credit unions are locally based, regulated loan and savings membership organisations.

7. Re-Evaluate Your ‘Rainy Day’ Savings

The current financial, health and social crisis we are currently facing definitely counts as the rainy day you’ve been saving for. Now is a great time to look into your savings account, check to see if the bank or building society you’re with will give you the best return and interest rates. After this crisis has passed remember to keep saving. Put aside even just a little bit of money each month and it could make a life saving difference when you need it most! If you do not have any savings, now is the best time to start scrimping and saving just in case another financial crisis arises in the future! Ms Bowes from comparison service Savings Champion says that "this situation illustrates the need for everyone to try and put away something.”

You Can Be More Sustainable & Save More Money in 2021:

8. Meal Plans and Prep

Brits, on average, spend around £3,000 a year on lunches. That is a mix of eating out and eating in when at work. That is a lot of money. And, if you’re not careful and aware of your spending, that’s an area that can creep up on you and lead to something disastrous, such as credit card debt. And, that’s the thing about buying lunch at work– it’s a small purchase that doesn’t seem like it would add up to much. But, by planning and prepping your meals at home – simply by making a little bit extra food every evening you have a cost-effective lunch to bring to work the next day, thus saving you money! This simple change has the potential to save the average person at least £100 a month.

9. Go to Weigh and Save/Zero Waste Shop

Weigh and Save or Zero Waste shops are on the up. They can mean that you save money when restocking your cupboards. Simply take old empty jars to the shop and refill them with your cupboard essentials such as pasta, rice, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices. You can even get shampoo and washing up liquid. Anything you can think of, these shops probably stock it! This means that there is less plastic waste when you constantly buy new jars and tubs of the same product over and over, so you are more sustainable. Moreover, it will save you money as these shops are cheaper than your regular super market!

10. Invest in a Water Filter Jug

Hydration is absolutely key to your physical and mental health – especially during the ongoing Covid-19 health crisis. It’s important to drink the recommended 2 litres of water to ensure your body is hydrated and you are performing at optimally at all times. According to The Water Project, the average person in the UK spends around £100 per year on bottled water. Thus bottled water is not only expensive but detrimental to our environment and planet. So, to ensure that you are consuming only the purest tasting, contaminant free water, without buying expensive, unsustainable bottled water, investing in a Culligan ZeroWater water filter jug becomes a no-brainer? It is true, sometimes, in order to save money, you may have to spend a little more. However, investing in a Culligan ZeroWater jug will not just help you to save money later, but also helps to reduce your carbon & water foot print.

Culligan ZeroWater Recommends the Purchase of a Water Filter Jug, a Worthwhile & Long Term Investment Proven to Save You Money in 2021!

What are the Long Term Economic Benefits of Water Filter Jugs?

Our jugs will filter an average of 123 litres, which works out to 16p a litre per filter, generating a big saving for your family over the long term. So if you want cost effective ‘totally pure water’ in 2021, Culligan ZeroWater filters or jugs will provide you with the purest tasting and economically beneficial water. For further information on more benefits of owning a water filter, alongside the economic benefits, read our previous article, answering your frequently asked questions about water filters and jugs.

We at Culligan ZeroWater Want to Keep You Healthy AND help You Save More Money!

We at Culligan ZeroWater want to ensure not only that your family stays healthy and hydrated, but we also want to help you save money during this health and economic crisis! We provide the most effective water filters on the market! Our filters outperform all other 2-stage filters such as Brita Filters. While simplistic 2-stage filters are only able to remove half of all dissolved solids, our Premium 5-Stage Ion Exchange Water Filtration System successfully remove what other filters leave behind. Our filters are guaranteed to drastically reduce the amount of ‘Total Dissolved Solids’ and contaminants in your water. When tested in accordance with the NSF's protocol based on a 40 gallon filtration (double the rated usage), Culligan ZeroWater reduces 97% of Lead and 99.9% of Chromium from your tap water. They are also third party tested to reduce 96% of Mercury, 93% of Arsenic and 99% of Copper, among many other contaminants. Our prices start as low as just £14.99 and our best-selling 7 cup jug filter costs only £24.99!

Invest in Your Families Health by Investing in Cost Effective Culligan ZeroWater Filter Jug.