Debt Dumpers 2026

[Tygerlilly]

How much is that relying on a stocked pantry vs only eating what you buy? I can't imagine how that works without a stocked pantry.

Interesting. I guess it's possible if your freezer and pantry are both well stocked going into the month. If not, and you have to buy groceries all month, seems too hard to do. You can't buy 2-3 days worth of groceries for that amount, lol.

Oh I'm sure she is stocked. The main takeaway from her post I got was that buying things that would stretch to several meals vs buying what you "feel" like is a massive savings.

We actually just did a big clean the freezer/pantry month so I no longer have a decent stock. However, I can still attempt to do an extreme low buy month just buy shopping smartly and planning off weekly sales and clearance finds.

 

[barkley]

How much is that relying on a stocked pantry vs only eating what you buy? I can't imagine how that works without a stocked pantry.

me thinks the same. I invantoried everything in my fridge, freezers and pantries at the end of December with the goal of buying as little as possible in coming months. I managed to reduce spending for groceries in january by about 40%. I just did an invantory for February and am working on my grocery list for the month. my goal is that anything that I am under in spending for groceries in a given month will roll over into the next month (I have a designated 'household goods' little bank account my budgeted amount goes into each month cuz it's easier for me to track spending vs. in my checking)-that way if there's a greater need in one month or a great sale I have those extra funds sitting there.

keep us posted on your progress tygerlilly-you are a VERY creative and resourceful person so I look forward to hearing how this goes for you

 

[Bellex917]

Oh I'm sure she is stocked. The main takeaway from her post I got was that buying things that would stretch to several meals vs buying what you "feel" like is a massive savings.

We actually just did a big clean the freezer/pantry month so I no longer have a decent stock. However, I can still attempt to do an extreme low buy month just buy shopping smartly and planning off weekly sales and clearance finds.

So I challenged myself to only spend $400 in January and I ended the month at about $430. I have four people at my house, 2 adults, a teenager, and a child with a very specific diet for medical reasons where I can't NOT have the food they eat bc it's the only food they can eat.

We have a stocked pantry and we had no trouble. I might try to go to $300 in February, which will def take more effort, but I think I can do it. That is def not the $29 or whatever your person spent, but we do value fresh produce and dairy, so it is what it is. I'll report back on if I can keep Feb super low!

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

So I challenged myself to only spend $400 in January and I ended the month at about $430. I have four people at my house, 2 adults, a teenager, and a child with a very specific diet for medical reasons where I can't NOT have the food they eat bc it's the only food they can eat.

We have a stocked pantry and we had no trouble. I might try to go to $300 in February, which will def take more effort, but I think I can do it. That is def not the $29 or whatever your person spent, but we do value fresh produce and dairy, so it is what it is. I'll report back on if I can keep Feb super low!

We budget $500/month for just the 2 of us. But that includes all toiletries, all paper products, all laundry detergents, etc. So it's kind of skewed. Also, we only buy what we need for the week. We dont buy in advance and free stuff. We don't freeze anything meats, cooked or raw. And DW doesn't eat veggies, either. We're also trying to cut down on processed foods.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

that's fantastic! we had a constant stream of new-hires, mostly younger so someone was constantly pregnant and then around the time I left it seemed like 'grandma showers' were becoming a thing

We had one of those and it was for a doctor and it was after we didn't have grandma showers for 3 techs. I excused myself from it because the doctors can throw each other showers too. Why is it on us? If we're going to do it for everyone that's fine but it felt strange. We love this particular doctor; she's kind of like a mom to everyone in our area but I felt it should either be all or none.

Newer trends in showers just feel so odd. Like sprinkles for people who have a 2 year old and have all the baby stuff they need.
wt_.

 

[barkley]

But that includes all toiletries, all paper products, all laundry detergents, etc. So it's kind of skewed.

my monthly 'household budget' also includes this stuff. it DOES get skewed spend wise when I find I'm in need of restocking esp. more than a single item in a given month. what helped me with this was making a tracking list with these items listed-

dish tabs
toilet paper
paper towels
tissue
laundry detergent.

as I bought a full new package of each I wrote down the date and when I replaced it (same size ideally) I noted that date. doing this over the course of 6 months gave me a good handle on how much we use per month of each so I now know well ahead of time how often I have to replace and can spread the purchases out to no more than 1 item per month (it's crazy but I know down to the roll how much toilet paper our household uses on a daily/monthly/yearly basis ).

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

For many years now, I've been using less than half of the laudry detergent that the instructions say to use. Of course, they want you to use it up and buy more.
There are lines 1-4. Unless it's dh's work clothes (which he gets really dirty) I use line 2 for a full load. There are still so many suds you can't even see the clothes. I could probably use even less.

To help reduce static, I don't dry things as much. I do for towels because they get folded in a stack and I don't want them to get funky, but most of our clothes get hung in the closet so if the seams are a tiny bit damp, they'll dry out while they hang. For dh's jeans, I hang them over a chair in the dining room for a few hours.
I have found that overdrying makes them full of static coming out of the dryer and it then it's harder to get rid of it. I end up spraying thing with Static Guard but I don't like to have to do that.

 

[cheryllarsen]

Still going over my 2025 expenses but I will be adding to this thread! What a great idea.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

For many years now, I've been using less than half of the laudry detergent that the instructions say to use. Of course, they want you to use it up and buy more.
There are lines 1-4. Unless it's dh's work clothes (which he gets really dirty) I use line 2 for a full load. There are still so many suds you can't even see the clothes. I could probably use even less.

To help reduce static, I don't dry things as much. I do for towels because they get folded in a stack and I don't want them to get funky, but most of our clothes get hung in the closet so if the seams are a tiny bit damp, they'll dry out while they hang. For dh's jeans, I hang them over a chair in the dining room for a few hours.
I have found that overdrying makes them full of static coming out of the dryer and it then it's harder to get rid of it. I end up spraying thing with Static Guard but I don't like to have to do that.

I just use a capful. But we only do about 7-10 loads of laundry a week (2 of us). I will just buy the 150 load container. It doesn't last anywhere near 150 loads, but that's what it says anyway. We do laundry sanitizer and liquid fabric softener on just about every load, especially right now. Plus, we use dryer sheets on every dryer load as well. I notice you said you don't overdry. So do you folk your clothes while they're still damp/wet? Wouldn't that be worse for them?

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

my monthly 'household budget' also includes this stuff. it DOES get skewed spend wise when I find I'm in need of restocking esp. more than a single item in a given month. what helped me with this was making a tracking list with these items listed-

dish tabs
toilet paper
paper towels
tissue
laundry detergent.

as I bought a full new package of each I wrote down the date and when I replaced it (same size ideally) I noted that date. doing this over the course of 6 months gave me a good handle on how much we use per month of each so I now know well ahead of time how often I have to replace and can spread the purchases out to no more than 1 item per month (it's crazy but I know down to the roll how much toilet paper our household uses on a daily/monthly/yearly basis ).

We buy dish tabs on Amazon because they're cheaper there, we buy TP at Sam's (32 rolls for $32, and that lasts 2 of us about 3 weeks, then we'll buy any extra we need before budget reset at Walmart). We buy all kleenex, paper towels, paper/styrofoam plates, napkins at Walmart, and we buy the 150 load thing of Purez Free and Clear (I'm allergic to fragrances) as well as liquid fabric softener, laundry sanitizer and dryer sheets at Walmart as well.

 

[barkley]

For many years now, I've been using less than half of the laudry detergent that the instructions say to use. Of course, they want you to use it up and buy more.
There are lines 1-4. Unless it's dh's work clothes (which he gets really dirty) I use line 2 for a full load. There are still so many suds you can't even see the clothes. I could probably use even less.

To help reduce static, I don't dry things as much. I do for towels because they get folded in a stack and I don't want them to get funky, but most of our clothes get hung in the closet so if the seams are a tiny bit damp, they'll dry out while they hang. For dh's jeans, I hang them over a chair in the dining room for a few hours.
I have found that overdrying makes them full of static coming out of the dryer and it then it's harder to get rid of it. I end up spraying thing with Static Guard but I don't like to have to do that.

I never rely on those laundry detergent measuring cups as well. the machine manufacturers reccommend only 1-2 tablespoons for a standard machine/1-2 teaspoons for high efficiency machines so despite my container of arm & hammer saying it is good for 130 loads I get MANY more.

 

[barkley]

We buy dish tabs on Amazon because they're cheaper there, we buy TP at Sam's (32 rolls for $32, and that lasts 2 of us about 3 weeks, then we'll buy any extra we need before budget reset at Walmart). We buy all kleenex, paper towels, paper/styrofoam plates, napkins at Walmart, and we buy the 150 load thing of Purez Free and Clear (I'm allergic to fragrances) as well as liquid fabric softener, laundry sanitizer and dryer sheets at Walmart as well.

I get tp at target when it's on their 'gift card' sales (like it is right now)-the price is comparable to Sam's club (and elsewhere) but if you buy a multiple of 3 'household essentials' (so you can go down in size on a package or get your dishwasher tabs or tissues...) they send you an electronic gift card for $10 which I then save to use the NEXT time I need to stock up, again waiting for that same sale (so when I buy i'm paying say $90 for 3-30 packs but getting $10 off via my gift card and receiving another $10 gift card for my next purchase which reduces my cost to about $26 per pack). 30 mega rolls lasts in our house almost 2 months so I only end up buying 3 packs about 2x per year.

I get you on the fragrance issue-i get migraines from them so I go strictly with arm and hammer unscented detergent.

 

[focusondisney]

I just use a capful. But we only do about 7-10 loads of laundry a week (2 of us). I will just buy the 150 load container. It doesn't last anywhere near 150 loads, but that's what it says anyway. We do laundry sanitizer and liquid fabric softener on just about every load, especially right now. Plus, we use dryer sheets on every dryer load as well. I notice you said you don't overdry. So do you folk your clothes while they're still damp/wet? Wouldn't that be worse for them?

Are you using a full cap? That’s way too much detergent & actually worse for your clothes. It’s the agitation that cleans the clothes, not more detergent. Liquid fabric softener is actually very bad for fabric as well. Despite the name “softener” it actually makes fabric stiff & hard. Do you have sweatshirts that have the hard, little bits inside? That’s from liquid fabric softener. In fact, some high end sweatshirts & blankets specifically say no liquid fabric softener. I never knew either, but learned it about 6-7 years ago. I stopped using liquid softener all together. My clothes are much softer. I still use 1 sheet in the dryer and wool dryer balls. I’m in NY, the air in the winter is very dry & everything is prone to static. I find it’s no worse without liquid fabric softener. There is anti static spray I use once in awhile if something happens to get really staticky.

Over drying absolutely increases static. Towels I do fully dry with a sheet. But especially things that are prone to static, I take out when the edges at just a bit damp. I fold & just leave out for a little bit before I put them away in the dresser. Shirts or other things on hangers, I dry to remove wrinkles, again, take out & hang when slightly damp, & leave them hanging near the dryer until they’re fully dried before I put them in the closet. Jeans, I remove when the seams & waistband are still slightly damp. I fold in half & just leave them on top of the dryer or hang on the line until they’re fully dry.

I have older clothes from when I used fabric softener & newer things I never used it on. I can feel the difference. Especially in the winter, when my skin is dry anyway, I find myself avoiding the older clothes & preferring the softness of clothes that haven’t been washed with fabric softener. It takes some getting used to finding what works for you, but it’s worth it.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

Are you using a full cap? That’s way too much detergent & actually worse for your clothes. It’s the agitation that cleans the clothes, not more detergent. Liquid fabric softener is actually very bad for fabric as well. Despite the name “softener” it actually makes fabric stiff & hard. Do you have sweatshirts that have the hard, little bits inside? That’s from liquid fabric softener. In fact, some high end sweatshirts & blankets specifically say no liquid fabric softener. I never knew either, but learned it about 6-7 years ago. I stopped using liquid softener all together. My clothes are much softer. I still use 1 sheet in the dryer and wool dryer balls. I’m in NY, the air in the winter is very dry & everything is prone to static. I find it’s no worse without liquid fabric softener. There is anti static spray I use once in awhile if something happens to get really staticky.

Over drying absolutely increases static. Towels I do fully dry with a sheet. But especially things that are prone to static, I take out when the edges at just a bit damp. I fold & just leave out for a little bit before I put them away in the dresser. Shirts or other things on hangers, I dry to remove wrinkles, again, take out & hang when slightly damp, & leave them hanging near the dryer until they’re fully dried before I put them in the closet. Jeans, I remove when the seams & waistband are still slightly damp. I fold in half & just leave them on top of the dryer or hang on the line until they’re fully dry.

I have older clothes from when I used fabric softener & newer things I never used it on. I can feel the difference. Especially in the winter, when my skin is dry anyway, I find myself avoiding the older clothes & preferring the softness of clothes that haven’t been washed with fabric softener. It takes some getting used to finding what works for you, but it’s worth it.

Interesting. Thanks.

Yes, I use a full cup. I've looked up and down the bottle, and I couldn't find anywhere where it said not to do that. So I thought it was safest. Plus, we fill out washer like half full sometimes (not my idea). We don't have a stick thing in the middle, so that helps. But DW says it's a high efficiency. And then the softener, we don't use to make it softer. We use it to try and cut the static. It's awful. I'll walk by and shock every single thing I touch some days. So crazy. DW has mentioned anti-static spray, so I think she's going to get on Amazon and get some of that and give it a try.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I just use a capful. But we only do about 7-10 loads of laundry a week (2 of us). I will just buy the 150 load container. It doesn't last anywhere near 150 loads, but that's what it says anyway. We do laundry sanitizer and liquid fabric softener on just about every load, especially right now. Plus, we use dryer sheets on every dryer load as well. I notice you said you don't overdry. So do you folk your clothes while they're still damp/wet? Wouldn't that be worse for them?

Most clothes get hung up on a hanger.
Only towels and dh’s jeans get folded so towels I dry all the way and jeans are only 1-2 pair each week so i drape them over a chair to dry the rest of the way. It’s only the thick seams still damp.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I've been hang drying/lay flat to dry my clothes since IDK something like maybe 30 years now?? My mom hung dry clothes and it's whenever I started doing my own laundry I just followed.

The only things that get in the dryer of mine (clothes-wise) are most socks (except certain ones that are better to not dry), underwear (except a few that are more like shapewear), and pjs. Literally everything else hung up or laid flat to dry. Clothes used to take around a day to a day in a half depending on what they were when I had a top loader. With a front loader they come out less wet to begin with and don't take as long to air dry.

It's not about reduction in static but that your clothes will last longer this way. Coincidentally a lot of my stuff are "gentle wash" "delicate cycle" to which I wash in a delicate bag and often though not always those will say "lay flat to dry". My husband didn't believe me about my clothes until I rattled off the care instructions and he's like "why buy all that" lol. I do wash in a delicate bag things that don't explicitly call for it but things like tank tops, jackets, etc which help shaping but also wear and tear on other clothes for the jackets especially after years of certain jackets being used the zipper will not stay zipped during the wash cycle without a delicate bag. Most things are washed inside out.

On topic of how much detergent I've reduced years ago and haven't followed the line for a long time. I quit using fabric softener, which I just used because that's what my mom did, when we got our front loader (which we started using that in 2014). Before I would use the downy ball with a top loader. I don't use dryer sheets but my husband insists on using them for his stuff including athletic wear/quick drying/heat/cool type clothing where you should not use fabric softener nor sheets (it will say not to either).

With respects to stiffness normally items that would get that way can be popped in the dryer for just a few mins low heat once it's been air dried.

 

[focusondisney]

Interesting. Thanks.

Yes, I use a full cup. I've looked up and down the bottle, and I couldn't find anywhere where it said not to do that. So I thought it was safest. Plus, we fill out washer like half full sometimes (not my idea). We don't have a stick thing in the middle, so that helps. But DW says it's a high efficiency. And then the softener, we don't use to make it softer. We use it to try and cut the static. It's awful. I'll walk by and shock every single thing I touch some days. So crazy. DW has mentioned anti-static spray, so I think she's going to get on Amazon and get some of that and give it a try.

Did you say you use Purex Free & Clear? I googled that. I couldn’t get images of the bottle clear enough. But the instructions on the Walmart listing gives the amount to use. It says there are lines inside the cap, just like I’ve seen on other detergents. My screen shot wasn’t readable, so I copied it:

“Directions​

Instructions​

For Tough Stains: Pretreat by applying some detergent directly to stain and rub into fabric. Allow formula to sit on stains for 5 minutes. For added power, use ¾ cap of detergent in wash. For best results: Follow washing machine instructions for adding detergent. For medium loads, fill cap to just below line 1 (1.3oz). Use more for heavily soiled or large loads.”


It sounds like you wash medium loads, so only fill to below line 1. For static, it’s not just your clothes. It’s the dry air. Try to increase the humidity in the house, with a humidifier or boiling a pot of water. Make sure you don’t have a dehumidifier going. Those are sometimes running in a basement. Also, moisturize your skin & especially your hands too.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Interesting. Thanks.

Yes, I use a full cup. I've looked up and down the bottle, and I couldn't find anywhere where it said not to do that. So I thought it was safest. Plus, we fill out washer like half full sometimes (not my idea). We don't have a stick thing in the middle, so that helps. But DW says it's a high efficiency. And then the softener, we don't use to make it softer. We use it to try and cut the static. It's awful. I'll walk by and shock every single thing I touch some days. So crazy. DW has mentioned anti-static spray, so I think she's going to get on Amazon and get some of that and give it a try.

A front loader has it's cons but a pro to me is that it doesn't matter nearly as much if you have a small load of laundry. With a top loader balancing the washer was a necessity but it's not the same issue with a front loader. I do still have to do some thinking because I use delicate bags which means the clothes in them aren't being bounced around the same but if you're not using delicate bags and you have a front loader small loads are fine to do.

A thing about static, again I can't remember if you're in an apartment or not but try a humidifier. I am one who grew up with static as a norm, getting shocked a lot in winter (pumping gas takes on a new risk when you want to discharge the build up static) but adjusting the humidity level in your place can help a lot (increase the humidity during times of the year with less humidity). It's remarkable the amount of less shocks I have had since moving into our house with a whole house humidifier, we can also adjust (like we did the other day) when we noticed more static in the air....courtesy of our cat poor thing just trying to make biscuits getting shocked.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Did you say you use Purex Free & Clear? I googled that. I couldn’t get images of the bottle clear enough. But the instructions on the Walmart listing gives the amount to use. It says there are lines inside the cap, just like I’ve seen on other detergents. My screen shot wasn’t readable, so I copied it:

“Directions​

Instructions​

For Tough Stains: Pretreat by applying some detergent directly to stain and rub into fabric. Allow formula to sit on stains for 5 minutes. For added power, use ¾ cap of detergent in wash. For best results: Follow washing machine instructions for adding detergent. For medium loads, fill cap to just below line 1 (1.3oz). Use more for heavily soiled or large loads.”


It sounds like you wash medium loads, so only fill to below line 1. For static, it’s not just your clothes. It’s the dry air. Try to increase the humidity in the house, with a humidifier or boiling a pot of water. Make sure you don’t have a dehumidifier going. Those are sometimes running in a basement. Also, moisturize your skin & especially your hands too.

I promise I was typing my response before you posted

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

It sounds like you wash medium loads, so only fill to below line 1. For static, it’s not just your clothes. It’s the dry air. Try to increase the humidity in the house, with a humidifier or boiling a pot of water. Make sure you don’t have a dehumidifier going. Those are sometimes running in a basement. Also, moisturize your skin & especially your hands too.

What do mean lines? I've never seen any lines marked on my caps. But I want to make sure everything gets cleaned and all bacteria/germs are gone. So we use a capful, wash on the hottest setting with laundry sanitizer and use liquid fabric softener. Then when we dry clothes, we also use a dryer sheet.