How are you DIY cutting costs?

[ken123]

This is off topic, but still do it yourself.
I just found out today that all exempt employees in my company are getting a 5% pay cut. :mad: The CEO is taking a 20% cut, nice of him even though he is still making over a mil + bonuses. Nice to still have my job!! I am going to shorten the time my DT lights are on and alternate days when some of the pumps for flow are on. In addition to making sure all cell phone power supplies, toasters etc are unplugged when not in use. And shutting computers down instead of sleep. Lowering the thermostat lower than I lower it now, etc. Not sure what else I can do to save money. Alimony doesn't help either.

So, what are you doing for yourself to cut down on your costs??

[JPReef]

Moving back in with my parents! Saved myself 600 bucks a month in bills! giving them a couple hundred a month for my financial burden im putting on their bills though. so its all good

[kgross]

Be careful turning off pumps. Your corals grow to the conditions of the tank, and if you cut back the flow you can cause die off.

A few things I am doing, changing from MH to T5HO less power for the same light. Also make sure all your water movement devices are as effecient as possible. Replace normal powerheads with prop type for lower power usuage. Replace power hungry return pumps with energy effeciant ones. Also if your using a chiller for cooling, install a couple of fans so your chiller does not come on as often.

There are lots of things you can do, but for many the payback can be many years (LED lighting), but some can be prettyy quick, Changing out a 200 watt pump for a 100 watt pump, might be paid back in a year after you sell the old pump....

Kim

[chrismunn]

as of 1/1/09 i got hit with a 10% pay cut so i thought i would celebrate by upgrading my 48w of PC to 150w of MH...

oh wait, i think ive got the wrong idea. :(

im thankfull i still have a job to go to, even if it is for only 4 days a week!

[Elite]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14434736#post14434736 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ken123
This is off topic, but still do it yourself.
I just found out today that all exempt employees in my company are getting a 5% pay cut. :mad: The CEO is taking a 20% cut, nice of him even though he is still making over a mil + bonuses. Nice to still have my job!! I am going to shorten the time my DT lights are on and alternate days when some of the pumps for flow are on. In addition to making sure all cell phone power supplies, toasters etc are unplugged when not in use. And shutting computers down instead of sleep. Lowering the thermostat lower than I lower it now, etc. Not sure what else I can do to save money. Alimony doesn't help either.

So, what are you doing for yourself to cut down on your costs??

Working for HP??

[91yota]

my boss was nice enough to give me a 100% pay cut a week before x-mas :(

my biggest drop in expenses, believe it or not, has been not driving back and forth to work or going out to eat (lunch, etc)... i also quit smoking- a nice side effect of not having a stressful job to go to... as far as the tank, i cut out buying any new stuff unless it's a necessity... i do run efficient pumps though and no actinics (only my mh) with fans instead of a chiller

[devgru]

well on 1/5/09 i lost my job of 2 yrs,losing 750-800 a week.im in florida and the jobs are non existent at the moment.i just went to a job fair that had 132 job openings...7200 people showed up!

i was a cble tech and had a company truck so when things started going bad i sold my personal vehicle.now im home 24/7,on unemployment which i receive the maximum(247)a week for a total of 7150 paid maximum.

thank god my wife has a great job and can pay the bills herself.but my tanks have suffered greatly.i had a 120 week allowance for my tank and now thats gone.

ive done a couple of DIY projects from what ive had laying around(DIY PS,DIY sulfur denitrator,DIY stand,drilled my own holes in tank).

im looking for anything for work,just want to get away from the house.things are not 'insane' yet,im not watching soaps,talk shows.(i told my wife that thats when she needs to worry about my sanity)

my tax return(2100) will help with setting my display tank back up.(i took it down 2 days before losing job to rebuild stand and redo plumbing)altho i cant spend all of it on the tank.

i tried to get a PT job at any LFS just for store credit.

ken123 i like your avatar.ive been a mac fanatic since 1984 and have 17 different macs.my newest one is a quicksilver tho,not all that new.i have my original apple IIgs and my first mac,a SE/30(still works) and have the first mac 'portable' the mac Lisa,size of a briafcase and weighs around 30#'s :)

[ken123]

devgru, Mac, way to go :thumbsup: Sorry to hear about your troubles, and everyone else. Like I said, I'm fortunate to still have a job. Too bad those old Macs are not worth anything except for as a keepsake. I always thought about still having my old Macs. As small as it was, loved my SE/30 and IIci and Imagewriter II. I worked for an Apple dealer for years around 86, just when the Plus came out I think.

I drive an hour ride each way. Work from home every Thurs. Going to have to WFH more often to save on gas, another way to cut expenses.

Elite, yes I work for HP, or ahem, EDS\HP. We all had gripes when we were sold out by the company we worked and transferred to EDS. Guess it's downhill from there. At least I still have an income, but I still groan about it.

Not sure what else can be done to save more. Unplugged and scaled back what I could so far. Was running pretty lean as it was.

[91yota]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14438196#post14438196 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by devgru
...on unemployment which i receive the maximum(247)a week for a total of 7150 paid maximum....

OUCH!!! im glad NC's max is more than that... i get $439/week (minus 15% for taxes- voluntary)

[Elite]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14439068#post14439068 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ken123
..
Elite, yes I work for HP, or ahem, EDS\HP. We all had gripes when we were sold out by the company we worked and transferred to EDS. Guess it's downhill from there. At least I still have an income, but I still groan about it.



:wave: I work for EDS too.. EDS - an HP company ..

We lost about 70% in our group..:(

[CHOMPERS MFK]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14438196#post14438196 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by devgru
i was a cble tech and ...
Keep an eye on craigslist.com. There are frequent openings for cabling (TV and satellite).

By the way, just to get off topic in the off topic thread, I'm in Longwood. If you are interested, I get together with some freshwater hobbiests to go fishing at Wekiva every now and then. If you have heard of the 15 thousand gallon fish tank, we are involved with that too.

[CHOMPERS MFK]

How I have been cutting costs:

DIY Skimmer, cost so far $14 but will take another $15ish to finish.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/181270resized_skimmer.jpg

DIY HOB overflow (floodproof and 100% silent), cost $8
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/181270resized_front.jpg
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/181270resized_back.jpg

Video of the overflow:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7y_VGZpibg&layer_token=26665d11a24fc63b

[CHOMPERS MFK]

Oh, I also did a DIY ozone system a while back. I had all the parts, except for $6 worth of fittings.

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=149898

[ken123]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14440315#post14440315 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Elite
:wave: I work for EDS too.. EDS - an HP company ..

We lost about 70% in our group..:(

Double ouch!!!

[ken123]

I am working on a DIY ATO system. Will save me time manually filling of course. Not saving any money except not having to pay for a commercial one, saving on building it myself. Details yet to come... stay posted on it. Shhh

[Brandan]

I went from MH to T-5s, and I shut down my CL and went to Tunze 6045s.

[devgru]

91yota--wow $439wk!i would think that it would be lower.i lived in NC for a stint and still have property there.i was making $22.75hr installing low voltage.when i went up there the best i could find was $10.25hr.

..of course i lived in the sticks.'back swamp'NC(richlands mailing address tho).ended up getting a job on base doing framing for $17.00hr.

ken,i remember the IIci.i also have my dads old business Mac IIfx,cost $9,999.00 w/o monitor.i bought mine from Shreve systems for $79.00(my dad got jipped)

[RedEDGE2k1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14438196#post14438196 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by devgru
my tax return(2100) will help with setting my display tank back up.(i took it down 2 days before losing job to rebuild stand and redo plumbing)altho i cant spend all of it on the tank.

With your wife working and you sitting at home, I don't think you should spend ANY of it on the tank. But that's just my opinion.

Put that money in a savings account.

[91yota]

devgru- it's definitely rough around here now... my latest job prospect, which i have an interview for next week, has a starting pay of $13-14/hour for the first 90 days (after that it's $16-18), is second shift, and is a 44 mile drive one-way from home :( even with all that, i'm praying i get it... the up side is that there is a ton of opportunity for overtime (i was told to expect 50-70 hours per week, every week) so in the end it could be good money