On moving into my new house, Dad presented me with a beautiful antique wooden towel rack. Feeling pretty ashamed that the bank of Mum and Dad had forked out for me once again I asked him how much it had cost. £5. From the local tip.

You probably have some pretty interesting preconceptions of my Dad now and I don’t blame you. The thought of picking up finds at the local refuse centre conjures up images of Stig of the Dump, the dishevelled, grunting Neanderthal who scrounged the scrap heap to build a chimney out of tin cans. That or the weird tax-averse family on Wife Swap, who stole discarded food from Tesco bins. Dad is certainly neither of the above. In fact he’s a highly respected cardiac consultant, not short of a bob or two, with impeccable taste for great quality, beautiful home furnishings.  He just doesn’t put pride in the way of scooping up some amazing bargains at your, let’s say, less glamorous retail spots.

Dad has always been a frugaller of legendary proportions. A near-doomed trip to a wedding was dramatically saved when Dad replaced the dilapidated car fan belt with a pair of tights. When we were younger, disused pram wheels were revived and attached to our beloved go-kart and discarded shelves were reincarnated as dolls’ furniture. To this day, what us laymen see as guttering and cable ties, Dad sees as bike mud guards.  Dad’s frugalism reached dizzying heights of fame back in 2006, when his article on the re-use of the disposable medical implement, the laryngoscope as a paint tin opener, was published in the UK’s premier medical publication, the BMJ.

Eccentric? Yes. Oh yes.

That said Dad’s regenerative approach to household goods (and the occasional laryngoscope) actually has a financial and environmental point to it. Dad’s a believer in Braungart and McDonough’s Cradle to Cradle System. Objects made up of biological nutrients can decompose into the natural environment without harming it. Other objects made of, say inorganic or synthetic materials, can be used and re-used again staying in a continuous cycle without harming the environment or costing a packet in disposal. Dad’s a big downcycler, giving existing synthetic or inorganic materials a new lease of life as they are or in another guise, saving money and saving the environment.

The tip is a haven for any downcycler, where the opportunities to salvage unwanted items heading to landfill are endless.

I can imagine that there are still some readers who are squirming at the prospect of scrambling through squelch to retrieve the Nichrome wire from the inside of an abandoned toaster. Don’t worry. Bargain-hunting at your local tip doesn’t mean donning the wellies and rummaging around in scrap heaps. Many refuse centres across the country have dedicated sections for furniture or reusable items, designed for people to take peruse casually while they’re making a routine trip. It’s important to note that different centres run in different ways. Some refuse centres will donate the furniture to charity shops or re-use organisations. In others, such as Southampton, it’s all up for grabs, often for a tiny fee. A Google search of your local refuse centre will tell you what kind of system they’re running.

Not convinced? Well here are some of Dad’s top frugal finds from the tip:

1.       Classic ladies’ bicycle

My little sister’s mode of transport at university.

2.       Patio heater

After bagging a washing machine for absolutely nothing, Dad hacked it to pieces (incidentally a great means of father-daughter’s boyfriend bonding) to remove its stainless steel drum. Fill it up with garden scraps, drop in a match and ta-da! You have a patio heater.

3. Wooden trunk

Taken ‘on location’ (so to speak) on a shocking camera phone, so apologies everyone for the poor quality shot. Pristine condition wooden trunk salvaged from the trash.

Next time you make a tip trip, take a quick look for some frugal finds. Let me know how it goes!

Miss Moneypenniless x

{Photo: Kiryna}