Everyday Cheapskate: A Savvy Shopper's Secrets for Buying in Bulk

-- Outshop your space. Yes, you'll eventually use up all the toilet tissue, but 48 rolls stored on the basement floor is an open invitation to all manner of nasties from floods to creepy crawlies. By the way, don't even think of adding on to hold all of your "wise" buys. The idea is saving money, remember?

-- Buy perishable or fashionable. No one can eat an entire case of prune yogurt in two weeks. Period.

-- Forget to comparison-shop to be sure you're getting the best deals in your area. Bring along your last grocery or discount store's itemized cash register receipts to check against bulk prices.

-- Buy before you try. If you've not tried a product before, for heaven's sake don't buy 50 of them. Most warehouse stores offer samples or single items.

-- Buy more than you can store safely. Large quantities of flour, soup and biscuit mixes can host insects and their eggs. If you live in a damp climate or store your goods in a moist place, buy realistic amounts so you don't have to deal with bugs.

-- Buy food that others may have inadvertently contaminated. If you buy from a bin, do so only in stores where there's a lid on each bin, a tethered scoop for each product and plenty of bags.

Buying in bulk can be an amazing way to cut the cost of food and household items. And it takes a savvy shopper to know how to make that work. Hopefully, these guidelines will help you to stay on the straight and narrow path without falling into a ditch!

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Mary invites you to visit her at EverydayCheapskate.com, where this column is archived complete with links and resources for all recommended products and services. Mary invites questions and comments at https://www.everydaycheapskate.com/contact/, "Ask Mary." This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually. Mary Hunt is the founder of EverydayCheapskate.com, a frugal living blog, and the author of the book "Debt-Proof Living."

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