Smart shopping

A great way to save money is making sure you only buy fruit and vegies that are in season. They taste better, are better quality and cost less.

Staples like apples and potatoes don't change too much but strawberries and other fruits can vary enormously in quality and price from season to season.

Check out this online guide to find out what's in season. Write a shopping list of ingredients for the week's meals, using what's in season. It's better variety for the family and it's also better for your budget.

Green cleaning

Australians spend about $700 million per year just on cleaning products! There are about 200 household cleaning products on the supermarket shelves. If you choose the average range of products required to clean your home, including kitchen, bathroom and floor cleaners, you'll pay about $70.

But if you buy white vinegar and bi-carb soda for about $5 instead, you can mix-and-match them with water (and each other) to create true all-purpose cleaners.

A one-to-one mix of water and white vinegar in a spray bottle can be used on every surface, from benchtops to the toilet, while two parts vinegar to four parts water will clean and shine all types of flooring.

To clean tile grout, mix four parts bi-carb to one part water into a paste and apply with a toothbrush.

No fuel fool

You may have noticed petrol prices can be cheaper on certain days. It makes sense then to watch out for those days and top up then. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, www.accc.gov.au, has general information to help you find the lowest prices in your city.

Another site, www.motormouth.com.au, lets you search for the best prices in your area or register for free email alerts.

Country dwellers can find petrol price information on websites operated by the Australian Institute of Petroleum, www.aip.com.au, the Australian Automobile Association, www.aaa.asn.au, and Caltex, http://www.caltex.com.au Note: not every town is listed on these sites.