A THRIFTY dad has shared how he saved thousands of pounds, including reusing tea bags and diluting milk.
Anyone who likes a good cup of coffee can shudder to the extreme cost reduction measures.
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But Al Baker of Aldershot says it’s one of the ways he’s saved more than £10,000 in two years.
The 48-year-old was plunged into £300,000 in corporate debt in 2017 and was forced to file for bankruptcy.
Since then, the father of two has been on a mission to cut costs.
Previously revealed to The Sun how to get up to 90% discount on your groceries with yellow sticker bargains.
And those aren’t his only tips for being frugal, though some may enjoy reusing toilet paper, perhaps not for the faint of heart.
Al — who shares money-saving tips on his blog The Penny Pincher — has revealed some of the other ways he saves money that can help others cut corners, too.
Reuse your tea bags
It’s safe to say that as a nation we all love a cup of tea, but would we all go as far as reusing our tea bags to save that extra bit of money?
Described by Al as the ‘most un-British thing you could do’, drying used tea bags to reuse for a second brew is a tip for frugal folks.
Al said, “I’ve tried it, and it’s kinda OK… it’s obviously a weaker cup of tea than the first cup of tea, but more or less decent.
“I think it’s better to make iced tea because you don’t need as much flavor, and based on that, it’s back on the list as an extremely frugal contender!”
So if you’re happy with a slightly weaker cup of tea, this extremely cost-effective hack might be for you.
The the price of tea bags has skyrocketed in recent months.
The price of a pack of Twinings tea went from £5.25 to £6 in tescowhile in Morrisons the price rose from £5.30 to £5.99.
A 20-pack of Twinings Camomile tea bags shot up 32% from £1.70 to £2.25 in Sainsbury’s.
But as always it depends where you shop. According to price comparison site Trolley.co.uk you can buy the same package in asda for £1.69.
It always pays to shop around, and switching from branded tea bags to your own grocery store can also cut costs.
The Sun has put tea bags to the test and found a £1.20 supermarket version that beat Tetley and PG Tips.
water your milk
To save money on milk, Al recommends buying a full carton of whole milk and having it half used up once, then refilling it with water – the idea being that you get double the amount of milk for your money. gets.
Al said, “The logic is reasonable. I’ve tried it, and it’s not something I’d want in my cup of tea, but it works great for making sauces or puddings.
“It’s a bit extreme, but if used for the right thing, it’s a yes from me!”
Milk prices have shot up along with other grocery items while inflation rises to 9.4%.
Farmers have said it now costs about 44 pence to produce a liter of milk, compared to 28 pence a year ago.
Shopping can save money again, as can own brand milk instead of branded milk.
Parents with young children can get free milk from supermarkets such as Iceland and Tesco through a little known scheme.
Flush your toilet once a day
Al advises you to flush your toilet to only once a day.
This tip may not be for everyone, but there are other ways to save on every flush.
He said: “If you want to flush normally, invest in a hippo bag that will fill the space in your water tank, meaning your toilet will use less water to fill the tank.
“You might also consider filling a larger fizzy drink bottle with water and putting that in your cistern, which does the same job as the hippo bag.”
You could get one of these bags for free along with other water-saving devices that will shave pounds off your bills.
Contact your supplier or check out savewatersavemoney.co.uk.
You may also be eligible for a cash grant of up to £800 – check out all the water bill help you can get here.
Use leftover vegetables to grow more
Growing your own fruits and vegetables from leftovers can save you quite a few bucks on your food bill.
Al said: “This is very achievable and is something I’m already doing.
“Take a spring onion, for example, cut the root and put it in water or soil, and it will grow again, which you can then use for food, and grow again!”
You can do the same with onions, garlic, leeks and shallots, cabbage, beet leaves (as long as the root ends are still attached), fennel bulbs, carrots, turnips and radishes.
Simply place them in a shallow dish of water with the root sections submerged at the bottom and leave them on a sunlit windowsill, changing the water every two days.
When fresh roots begin to grow, plant them in soil with their new green shoots in the air.
For potatoes, drill holes in the bottom of an old container and fill it halfway with compost.
Plant one or two dried pieces of sprouted potatoes, no more.
Point the sprout upwards. When green shoots emerge, cover with some more compost and continue until the bin is full.
With regular watering, your potatoes will be ready in ten to twenty weeks.
Green-fingered gardener Lucy Taylor told The Sun how she saves £300 a year growing her own food — and shared her top tips so you can too.
Reuse toilet roll
Although Al himself thinks reusing toilet paper is a step too far, he said people have been known to use this trick to save money.
Some frugal people use instead of toilet paper scraps of cloth, which are cleaned by placing them in a container of bleach and water and then putting them in the washing machine.
Al said: “It’s not even a million miles from washing baby diapers, but I suspect the contents might be a little worse, and I understand that toilet roll is expensive, but I think there are other things I like would like to lose before losing the toilet roll, still thousands of people are doing this now, and if money is tight then that’s fair enough!”
However, with the added cost of extra bleach, plus the electricity and water used to wash the cloths, it could be argued that this extreme tip may not save you as much as you think.
Mother of two Kelsey Leverton told The Sun how her family uses homemade, reusable toilet tissues for years.
More ways to save
Al also recommends tips like freezing leftovers, canceling subscriptions, and avoiding dining out to cut costs.
Canceling subscriptions and old direct debits can save you €1,000 per year. And our top tips for getting the most out of leftovers can prevent food waste.
It’s always worth keeping an eye out for freebies too.
Al said, “If you are going to stay in a hotel, make sure you get the free tea and coffee from the room, as well as the shampoo and soap for the guests.”
You might like deals sites like . can view hotukdeals.com and Facebook groups like Extreme Coupons and Bargains UK where people share discounts and freebies they’ve seen.
We spoke to a bargain expert who explained five freebies and discounts that could save you £466.