Extreme Couponing Tip: Buy Reduced Products to Save

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Extreme Couponing Tip: Buy Reduced Products to Save

This week’s Extreme Couponing Tip is on taking advantage of reduced items for quick sale at your local grocery stores!  While grocery shopping, I love casually browsing the clearance or reduced end cap to see what goodies I can snag for a great price!  This is a great, easy way to save and most of the time you don’t even need coupons to score a great deal!

I was at ShopRite the other day and picked up a bunch of ShopRite Brand beans that I like to have in the house for making traditional chili and white chicken chili (so good!) for only $0.44 each without any coupons!  I also love stocking up on tomato paste, canned tomatoes and tomato sauce from the reduced section to make homemade sauce.  I recently stocked up on some ShopRite Brand evaporated milk for $0.25 each.

Often some of the products in the clearance section of your store are damaged or dented.  I’ve just recently discovered that some dented cans can in fact be dangerous if eaten.  Please take this into consideration when buying reduced items for quick sale.  There are signs you can look for when buying dented cans as to which ones to avoid, which I’ve borrowed from NewLifeonaHomestead:

  • The most obvious way to tell if a can of food has spoiled is by pushing on the top and bottom of the can. If the top or the bottom of the can moves, or pops, the seal has been broken and it is not safe to eat.
  • If the can is bulging in any way, discard it. This is a sign that dangerous bacteria has been growing inside of the can, and the gases it is giving off is causing the can to swell. DO NOT open a can which is bulging. Breathing the gases inside is toxic.
  • If there is rust on the can it probably isn’t safe to eat out of. Rust can be a sign that air has penetrated the can, which will cause bacteria to grow inside.
  • When buying dented cans try to avoid the ones with dents along the seem of the top or bottom of the can.
  • If when you open the can it sprays out, spurts, or somewhat explodes, this is a bad sign.
  • And most obviously, if it’s leaking, it’s not safe.

If you follow these precautions, I’m sure most dented cans are safe.  I’ve been buying them for many years and have never suffered any ill-effects! 😉

Another benefit to browsing the clearance section often is seeing what brand name products are on clearance so you can stack with a coupon for a very good deal.  If you don’t carry a coupon binder with you and can’t stack the clearance item with a coupon right away, take a picture of the item or write down what’s on clearance so you can check the LRWC Coupon Database when you get home to locate the matching coupon, clip or print it, and then head back to the store to score a sweet deal!

This simple yet effective tip will hopefully help you to continue in your journey of Living Rich with Coupons!

Do you have an idea for an Extreme Couponing tip you’d like to see addressed?  Leave your ideas in the comments!


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