The Money Saving Continues

As our conversation continues on way to eliminate the fat in our spending, Jordan and I took on our Fishtank. We have been maintaining a 90 gallon tank (pictured) for the last three or four years. Prior, both Jordan and I had smaller tanks growing up.

I expressed to Jordan that I felt like the fish tank had become my hobby rather than our hobby. I knew he was on board when it came to buying plants and fish – and I’ve always known he’s wanted to move from freshwater to saltwater – but lately when it comes to the muck work (cleaning the tank) – it felt like a chore rather than a part of a hobby we enjoy together.

Jordan expressed that he wasn’t enjoying it as much either – the placement in the house (our office) isn’t ideal and we don’t have the money to invest in making it amazing (the tank pictured is not what it currently looks like – it’s what it looked like a few years ago).

So, we decided to decommission the tank.

We sold some fish as part of our the project to fund the new couch, and donated the last few to a pet store in the city. On Monday night we drained all the water, cleaned the tank, and cleaned the filtration system. It’s a lot of work – but the hardest part will actually be moving the tank into the basement as an empty tank weighs about 160 lbs. Jordan and I have moved it by ourselves before but I’m just not as strong as I used to be – so hopefully we can get a friend or two to help out.

We’re not going to sell the tank/stand because when we develop the basement in a few years, we’re going to set up a salt water environment instead. We will however for the time being save on electricity from the heat/light/filtration system as well as water (evaporation, regular cleaning-water changes). I’m not sure exactly how much – but it will be interesting to compare our bills from last year to this year.

We Sold Our Truck

Yup, that's right.  We are officially a one vehicle household again.



You were with us when we bought the truck at the end of 2008 - lack of past credit history led to me co-signing a loan for Jordan for $4,500.  It was scary then - we weren't married, just newly living together and everyone in the PF world say's 'never co-sign'...but I did and it worked out.  We successfully paid off the truck in May, 2010 - way ahead of the 24 month amortization on the loan - through lump sum and increased bi-weekly payments.



It was a lesson for Jordan and I - a big lesson on how to manage money as a couple and the power of duel income when paying down debt.  We really became a partnership then when it come to managing money.



So, what does this mean?



The truck sold for $850 (high kms...over 400K) - $250 of which was the last chunk to pay off the line of credit for the new couch. Jordan and I carpool every day to work - so while there may be a couple times of year when it's a headache to have one vehicle - the longer term savings will be well worth it.



We originally intended for the remaining $600 to go towards the house/back yard pool of money - however; Jordan would like to use some of it to buy some work clothes for me.  I really do need another pair of pants and a blazer - so that might work out to split it up some.



My mom, who comments here often, has always said to dress for the job you want - not for the job you have.  So, in that case, I do need to step up my game a bit in the clothing department.



The longer term implication of selling the truck however, is a reduction in our insurance premiums/registration fees.  Jordan made those phone calls and found out that with two vehicles we were receiving a 15% multi-vehicle discount which, of course, we lost.



In addition to that, now that we don't have second cheap vehicle, my name has to go on the Escape as on occasional driver and I have a crappy driving record.





So. Our premium only went down by $9.38/month or $112.56/year.



We also stopped in the Registry office.  In the province of Alberta in Canada your insurance and your vehicle registration are separate.  We had just recently renewed and so when we returned the licence plate, we were informed that we would be eligible for a refund.  So, that said, in the next two to six weeks we'll receive a cheque for $64.50.

Saving on annual registry fees and insurance means an approximate total annual savings of about $200.  Not too mention that thing was a gas guzzler.  Even though we didn't drive it often, it will be interesting to see if our 2013 gas expenditure trends down.