Who has second freezer to save on groceries?
varois83
We are considering buying a second side by side refrigerator/freezer
to take advantage of meat/fish/frozen veggies sales.
Also wife needs more fridge room.
I have calculated that it could pay for itself in 1 year(Including
electricity) as we can't take advantage of grocerie store sales right
now as we would want to.
Example chicken cutlets most of the time regular at $4.99 lb but they
do go on sale for $1.99 lb but we can't stock up.
To buy 30 lb of these would roughly be $150 at $4.99 lb and $60 at
$1.99 lb, that is a saving of $90 just on that.
A month ago the wife came home with packages of salmon on sale for
$1.99 lb regular was $8.99 lb, she bought 4 packages but she would
have stocked up if we had the freezer.
Frozen veggies do go on sale too.
We are looking at a Maytag, energy efficient with ice maker, 26 cub
feet.
Does anyone here do that and what has your experience/savings been?
Thanks a lot
Patrick
AllEmailDeletedImmediately
"varois83" <varo...@netzero.net> wrote in message
news:1194715500.1...@v2g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
i have an upright freezer. i buy my beef by the side.
George
Have you also considered what would happen if the power went off or the
freezer failed while you were away?
Also you might want to consider other stores that can't afford to spend
all of that money to tell you how good they are. For example in my area
there is a locally owned store that has really good meat that is cut in
house (not the Walmart embalmed stuff) and their prices are always good
so there isn't even a point to try and stock up.
varois83
I appreciate the 2 answers so far. We don't have any other grocery
stores that offers cheaper meats that I know off but I will ask
around, that's a good idea.
Buying another freezer is a big purchase so I don't want to make a
mistake.
Thanks a lot
Patrick
tom_sa...@yahoo.com
We have a second freezer, a chest freezer, that allows us to stock up
on during sales. In addition to the benefit on sales, it saves us
time/money on less frequent trips to the store.
Personally, we would not go with a side-by-side for a number of
reasons. One is the limited space on either side...some things are
just too large for a side-by-side. Second, we typically do not need
additional "refrigerator" space and a freezer alone is less expensive
than another combo unit (are you buying something from a yard sale or
a specific deal?). Typically, the higher-priced items that we would
want to buy in bulk are almost always freezable and if they're not,
they'd likely be too perishable to last additional time in a fridge.
You mentioned buying a side-by-side with an icemaker...why would you
need a unit with an icemaker?
We save quite a bit...we manage a spreadsheet of local grocers that
takes maybe 5 minutes/week to update (we only track what we buy
frequently) and we take advantage of the sales when they appear.
Interestingly, the spreadsheet has provided us with other information
such as trends in the cost of certain items so that if we see an item
historically rises during certain times of the year, we know when to
stock up or when to wait an extra week or two before buying it again.
The freezer that we bought was much larger than I had anticipated
buying, but it was a floor model that I could buy at the same price as
a much smaller unit so we did it and have not had any problems. When
not full, to maintain energy efficiency while we're waiting on a sale,
we simply fill plastic jugs with water and put them in the freezer to
maintain mass and lower the energy expenditure of the freezer itself.
People sometimes ask what happens if a storm knocks out power. In our
case, we lost power for 9 days last year following a early (and heavy)
snowstorm. Simply do not open the freezer more than necessary and the
mass of the contents should maintain temperature for at least a few
days, which should get you through most issues unless you're in a high-
risk zone like a hurricane path...in which case, just manage when you
might be likely to lose power and take the appropriate precautions.
In our case, we went 4 days before there was any indication of
temperature degradation on the surface of the freezer (we consumed
perishables first). The health resources were also commenting on the
radio that at that time, people had at least 3-4 days before they
needed to be concerned. Incidently, because we buy in bulk, the
actual cost of the contents was very low...surprisingly low. Keep in
mind that we buy frugally and if we do splurge, it is normally for a
treat that is consumed rather quickly. In your post, you indicated a
huge savings in salmon...but losing say, 10lbs, of salmon bought at
$1.99 is not as bad as 10lbs at $8.99.
It also depends on what your chances are of losing power for multiple
days vs. the benefits overall...or your insurance policy. A colleague
in the same storm reported to his insurance that he lost his freezer
contents and combined with his other loses (due to water damage), they
basically wrote him a check for the food.
Good Luck.
Ron Peterson
> Does anyone here do that and what has your experience/savings been?
I tried that, but lost my freezer contents due to an electrical
outage.
The electricity costs eliminate much of your savings. And then you
should consider the cost of the freezer, the interest costs on what
the freezer costs, and the space that the freezer takes.
Many times the meats on sale are lower quality, so you aren't coming
out ahead. Also, food deteriorates even if it is frozen. Many meats
are better if they are never frozen.
If you do get a freezer, consider storing flour in it to keep it
insect free.
--
Ron
hchi...@hotmail.com
wrote:
>On Nov 10, 11:25 am, varois83 <varoi...@netzero.net> wrote:
>
>> Does anyone here do that and what has your experience/savings been?
>
>I tried that, but lost my freezer contents due to an electrical
>outage.
>
>The electricity costs eliminate much of your savings. And then you
>should consider the cost of the freezer, the interest costs on what
>the freezer costs, and the space that the freezer takes.
Electricity costs on the newer freezers has become inconsequential.
Our new 20+ cu ft. freezer has an energy rating that gives average
yearly electric costs as less than $50/yr. With proper use, it is
possible to recoup the cost of a unit within a year.
>Many times the meats on sale are lower quality, so you aren't coming
>out ahead. Also, food deteriorates even if it is frozen. Many meats
>are better if they are never frozen.
True but - water packing fish and tightly wrapping products can
minimize the damage.
>If you do get a freezer, consider storing flour in it to keep it
>insect free.
Most freezer interiors are insect free already. :)
Meghan Noecker
wrote:
>
>Have you also considered what would happen if the power went off or the
>freezer failed while you were away?
>
We have a generator that can power these when we have power outages.
We had a 3 day outage last year, and we have a fridge/freezer, a jumbo
freezer, a chest freezer, and I have a medium freezer. We ran each
regualr freezer one hour per day and kept them shut. They did just
fine. The fridge/freezer got to run most of the day along with the
heating system. At night, we turned the generator off.
We didn't lose a single thing. And we stock up on sales, saving in the
long run. Why pay $5 a pound for chicken when you have it in the
freezer from when it was $2 a pound?
Meghan Noecker
wrote:
I have a 14 cubic foot upright freezer that I bought used 3 years ago
for $115. My sister has a full sized freezer that she got a couple
years ago for free. Both were found on craigslist and both have worked
fine with no problems at all.
Logan Shaw
> We didn't lose a single thing. And we stock up on sales, saving in the
> long run. Why pay $5 a pound for chicken when you have it in the
> freezer from when it was $2 a pound?
OK, new question: how do you find out about these sales where the
grocery stores are selling meat for more than half off? Are these
specials in the circular that comes with the newspaper[1], are they
just things you see at the store, or something else?
- Logan
[1] Not that I take a newspaper...
Meghan Noecker
Most of it has been regular sales. Skinless boneless chicken breasts
are usually $4.99 a pound, but every 4- 6 weeks, there is a sale for
$1.99 a pound. If I buy enough then, I never have to buy it when it
isn't on sale. It will be on sale again starting this coming
Wednesday.
I like to buy roasts and london broil when it goes on sale for $1.99 a
pound.
I don't usually buy more expensive meats, but sometimes, I find them
in the clearance section. I work in a grocery store, but I work
evenings, so I don't shop until 10:30 at night. So, everything is
pretty much picked over by then.
I bought my freezer 4 years ago because there was a high risk of
strike, and I wanted to have a good stash of meat saved up. I also
stocked up on dry and canned goods, so I knew I would be fine if we
went on strike. Since then, I have been using it to take advantage of
good prices.
I love fish, and I rarely find a really awesome price. But I have
found that Costco has a decent price, and it is more fresh since they
go through it fast. I will not buy it from the store where I work
since I had some bad experiences with fish that was already stinky
when I opened it the same day it was supposedly packed.
So, I get my salmon for $4.99 a pound for filleted and skinned salmon.
I buy it in larger packs and freeze them in smaller portions. This
way, I get the fish I like at a decent price, and I only hav eto go
to Costco once every few months.
jo...@phred.org
use...@austin.rr.com says...
> OK, new question: how do you find out about these sales where the
> grocery stores are selling meat for more than half off? Are these
> specials in the circular that comes with the newspaper[1], are they
> just things you see at the store, or something else?
We have a full sized freezer and a full sized refrigerator with no
freezer compartment, and a smaller freezer that is used only for chicken
and photographic film.
We buy some things every week, like milk and fresh fruit/vegetables, so
I walk the meat department for specials while I'm shopping. Last week
chicken was $1.90/lb so I filled the small freezer.
That's enough to feed our cats for a couple of months -- healthier than
just cat food, they like it better, and the litter box doesn't smell
nearly as bad as it does with commercial cat food.
--
jo...@phred.org is Joshua Putnam
<http://www.phred.org/~josh/>
Braze your own bicycle frames. See
<http://www.phred.org/~josh/build/build.html>
varois83
tom_sa...@yahoo.com wrote
>>Personally, we would not go with a side-by-side for a number of
reasons.
Tom we want a side by side because we also need extra fridge space. We
want to place all drinks and bottled sauces that take a lot of room in
the extra fridge.
>>are you buying something from a yard sale or a specific deal?.
We wanted to buy new but posts here made us change our mind. We are
going to be looking at used.
>>You mentioned buying a side-by-side with an icemaker...why would you
need a unit with an icemaker?
Our old side by side would go in the basement as the spare unit and
the new one would go in our kitchen this is why we need an ice maker.
Thanks for all the answers!
Patrick
val189
It might be helpful to know a few facts:
how many in your household? Have you kept accurate records on your
annual food costs?
Distance from your primary grocery store?
How likely are power outages?
As to freezers, I wouldn't have one. I live in a hurricane zone,
don't like 'freezer taste, don't have the room for a freezer, don't
want to stockpile food, don't live far from the store and would rather
find other areas in which to be frugal about food, like eschewing
convenience junk and cooking as close to scratch as I can.