11 Household Storage Ideas For People Who Buy In Bulk

We are always ‘banging on’ about buying items on sale and in bulk to save money in the long term.

And it’s a great idea – if you have the room.  Storage is a huge consideration before forking out coin to buy in bulk.  So we thought we’d discuss storage ideas and utilising the home.

The best place to find storage is by sorting the through the areas you already have. I know — boring! But you will  be surprised by the amount of space you can find if you sort through cupboards and draws and condense them down. Last time I did this I didn’t even throw anything out just stacked and stored it better. I managed to take 2 shelves in a cupboard and condense it into one. Then I was able to use that space for other things that needed a home.

1. Toys & Games

For Christmas and birthdays your kids get an influx of toys and games –  and the more kids you have the more stuff there is. The place to start again is with sorting. All of the broken toys need to go, the cheap toys they played with for a week can go. If there is anything they have outgrown give it away. Anything they still like but haven’t played with in a while put into a plastic storage tub and put it up on top of their wardrobe. Then when they are bored with the current toys get it down and rotate. They will think it is Christmas all over again.

2. Linen Cupboard

I don’t know about yours but mine it fine where I can reach but the top shelves are a wasted space. I put things up forget about them and never use it again. The solution, seasonal clothing storage. Place clothes in boxes that will not be use until next year and put them in those upper shelves. When sorting clothes anything that fits now on the children will not fit in 9 months so give it away or keep for a younger child. It if you will have no use for it then get it out of the house. Only keep things you know will get used.

3. Pantry

If you are like most sometimes you buy things out of habit. If you have 6 tins of tomato soup don’t buy more. It is worth cleaning your pantry out every 3 months. Use any food near its use by date first and work from there. This will allow you more storage space for those specials you might not buy because where will I put it.

4. Sneaky Storage Spots

• Above the fridge, I don’t use these and they are mostly empty as I can’t reach. If you need to stock up on toiletries or other non perishables this would be a great option. You won’t need it every day and once every couple of weeks it’s not hard to grab a chair and get some tooth paste out.
• The corner cupboard. The one that is too far in to use every day. I use this to store my cup cake stand and thing I use for birthdays and special occasions. This way I only need to get in there once every couple of months.
• Coffee table. Well I was smart there when we got a bigger house I also got a new coffee table and invested in on with draws. Kids toys and books can be popped in there for easy access and the kids love it.
• Above wardrobes, under beds a rack in the gable of the shed, all of these places might not be easy to access but if it is long term storage then go for it. If it is empty fill it.

You might be wondering where the advantage is in buying your essential items in bulk, but there are some practical reasons why this works. First, you need not worry about running out of an essential item – you will always have your items at hand. Purchasing items in large quantities almost always guarantees a lower unit price, you pay less per “piece” than you would buying them in “singles” – check the prices carefully before buying bulk items and make sure you’re getting what you’re paying for.

Buying items in bulk not only helps ensure you won’t run out, but you’re going to save more money than you might have thought since you’ll make fewer trips to the store to buy them than if you were buying in singles. All of these things combined with saving money on the items allows you to watch your savings grow even faster.

5. Practical Matters of Bulk Purchases

Not every item is sensible to purchase in bulk, but there are some very easy ways to decide what you should and should not buy in bulk. Those items that you do buy in bulk will help you save money, but if you fail to properly plan you can wind up costing yourself more money.

6. Toilet Paper – Bulk Money Savings

via money.howstuffworks.com

We all know that our families are going to use toilet paper daily. Buying toilet paper in bulk is sensible regardless of whether you’re going to use one roll a day or one roll a week. In the long run, the savings from buying bulk sized toilet paper will help you grow your house down payment savings even faster.

7. Save Money on Paper Towels

Paper towels are always an expendable item when you’re working on saving money towards your mortgage. While buying them in bulk will help you save more money towards your house down payment, there are many ways to replace paper towels in your home and save even more money. Consider items such as microfibre cloths that can also be purchased in bulk but can be rinsed out and re-used. However, if you must buy paper towels, simply purchasing them in bulk will help you save money.

8. Frugal Savings on Rubbish Bags

via twitter.com

Rubbish bags are another expendable item when you’re trying to save money for your first house This is even more true if you are using paper grocery sacks (which help the environment) and then re-use them for getting rid of trash. This would allow you to save even more money towards your home down payment without contributing to environmental concerns. Want more tips on saving money and helping the environment. You may wish to check out our article all about saving money the green way.

9. Shampoo Money Savings

Many manufacturers offer bulk sized shampoos and conditioners that can be bought in containers that range from 50 grams through to 2 litres sizes. By using a pump or even saving a smaller bottle you can easily purchase shampoo in bulk sizes and save a lot of money.

10. Bath Soap

www.washpoolfarm.com.au

Even if you and your family only use one or two bars of soap on a weekly basis, buying larger packages (18 or 24 bars) can save you a lot of money over time that can be put towards your home down payment. Consider the possibility of opening up one end of the bar packaging as well since a harder bar of soap will last longer in the bath and shower – amplifying your savings even more.

There are hundreds of more products that you can consider purchasing in bulk to save money. Look around your house for every day items such as bath soap, shampoo, dish soap, tissues and more. Since all of our families use these items on a regular basis, they’re a great option for items to purchase in bulk and the added benefit of being able to save for your first house.

11. Storing Bulk Items

So you’re making bulk purchases for savings purposes and now the big question is where to store all these bulk purchases? This can be an issue for those of us who live in apartments and often have little “extra” space for storing. There are some easy fixes to these problems though that can help protect your bulk items from water, dampness and even from your pets!

There are hundreds of various ways that you can make bulk purchases work for you and your family. When you decide to purchase in bulk, price out the size of the product you normally buy and determine how many you’d have to purchase to equal your bulk size purchase and see what the savings really is and add that to your home loan savings account. You might be surprised to see how quickly these savings will add up!

How do you organise the stuff that you buy in bulk?