Frugal Canadian Living

Bell Satellite TV Discount

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:00:00 +0000

Bell Canada offers existing customers discounts to keep you as a customer. The basic satellite package cost $39/month.

Even if you are on a contract, call Bell. Explain to them that the current recession has impacted your financial situation and you were looking to cut back on some expenses. The Bell CSR is authorized to offer you incentives to keep you as a customer, without locking you into a longer contact. The discounts offered are 10%-20% off programming (works out to $16 per month) depending on the package you have. You could also get a Bell 9242 HD PVR for $299 (after credits applied to bill).

Unboxing the Antra AT-MB04 UHF 4 Bay Outdoor Antenna

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 01:27:00 +0000

The Antra AT-MB04 UHF 4 bay outdoor antenna at $20 is the cheapest available outdoor antenna. It is a clone of the Channel Master CM4221 which sells for over $50.

The manufacturer states that the antenna has the following features:

High gain across UHF CH20-69
Up to 45 miles reception range (typical range)
Easy to install (all elements are preinstalled)
Strong ALL SOLID aluminums design, very light (less than 3lb)
Transformer pre-installed with 75 Ohm output
Dimensions: 34" x 21" x 3"
Weight: 4lb

At $20 the Antra AT-MB04 antenna is almost as cheap as building your own antenna.

The antenna comes with an instruction booklet and a warning flyer. The warning flyer states:

Warning. Antenna is folded in the box!! Please fully unfold the elements before an assembly work is proceeded. Please read instructions included for safety and installation guide.

Though the warning flyer states that the antenna is folded in the box. It is not. When removed from the box the antenna is fully assembled.

The instruction booklet is 14 pages. The first 7 has instructions in English and the last 7 has instructions in French. It also has decent black and white pictures on the assembly of the antenna. Since the antenna was made in China, expect the usually spelling and grammatical errors. Some have been corrected here.

The first thing that you will notice when you remove the antenna from the box is that it is light weight. Weighing a little over 4 lbs it looks sturdy enough to be mounted outside. There was a small rattling sound coming from the main bar of the frame. This was probably from a piece of metal that went inside the main bar when the elements were screwed in. Manufacturers to reduce cost don't pre-drill mounting holes. The 4 bays and the 4 reflectors on the antenna are not adjustable. So if you want to point the entire antenna has to point in the same direction.

The transformer is located in the middle of the antenna. The antenna does not come with any cables. In the plastic bag with the instructions there is a weather boot to protect the terminal end to the transformer when you would connect the cable. Slip the weather boot over the cable, screw the cable on to the transformer end and then move the weather boot to cover the connection.

The instructions has an extensive section on how to assemble the mounting clamp. However you will be pleasantly surprised to find the clamp has been pre-assembled. The mounting clamp can be used to attach the antenna to either a satellite dish arm or an antenna mast. The clamp is adjustable and will fit both.

The antenna has a 90 day manufacturer's warranty. The warranty does not cover removal and shipping to the dealer or manufacturer. It also does not cover weather related damage.

Installation Instructions for AT-MB04

DANGER!
Watch for wires!
Never Install an Antenna too close to Electric Power Lines.

SAFETY WARNING!!
Installation of this antenna near power lines is EXTREMELY dangerous.
Make sure the installation spot has a SAFE DISTANCE from the Electric Power Line.
For your safety, please follow the installation instructions.

Safety Instructions:

1. Antenna Assembly should be complete on Ground.
2. Check for power lines around the building.
Always maintain a safe distance to power lines!! Safe distance >=2 * (height of mast assembly + height of antenna)
3. Never use a metal ladder.
4. Do no install this antenna during an icy or windy day.
5. Never touch the electric power in any way!!
6. Have a friend as a spotter when you're on the roof. They can see things you can't.
7. Mast, lead-in and metal guy wires are excellent conductors of electrical current - keep them away from power lines too.
8. Be sure your family and friends understand the danger of touching an overhead power line. Tell them never to try to remove any objects in contact with a power line - CB, TV antenna or anything else.
9. Ground the mast and antenna before the installation is finished.

Choose Best Site to Install Your Antenna

1. Make sure to keep enough safe distance from the site to Power lines. Minimum 2*(Height of mast assembly+height of antenna). The larger the safe distance the safer. If you are unable to maintain this safe distance, stop! Get professional help.
2. Try to keep antenna as far as possible from high trees or other obstructions to get better performance without compromising the safety distance. The far the antenna from obstructions the better it performs.
3. The antenna should be 5-10 feet higher than the rooftop to get its top performance. The higher the antenna the better it can receive signals.

Note: This Antenna Elements is folded in the box. Make sure the antenna is on its fully unfolded position before any further assembly steps.

Installation The Antenna

Assembly the antenna in accordance with the instructions included on Page 6 and Page 7. Be sure do this job on the ground for your safety. If no rotor is used for the antenna. Do not tighten the mast until the antenna has the best direction and reception.

Roof Mounting

Tripod Mounting
Tripod mount must be anchored to the roof securely. Guy wires are required if the master is 10 feet or more.

Guy Wire Mounting
One clamp brackets should be anchored to the roof securely, the mast should be surrounded by 3-4 buy wires, equally spaced and securely anchored on the roof.

Side Wall Mounting
Use two brackets 2-3 feet spaced vertically, anchored to the wall securely. Put the mast between the two brackets.

Signal Tuning Procedures
For all the above mounting type with a rotor, skip to step 4
For all the above mounting type without a rotor

1. Connect the transmission line to signal meter or a test TV (on a known local over the air channel)
2. Turn the mast and fine tune the antenna while monitoring signal changes.
3. Tighten the mast when the best antenna position is found
4. Tighten all screws to make sure the antenna mast is tightened.

Assembly Instructions

Technical Data
Frequency 470-862 Mhz
Channel 21-69
Imped 75 Ohm
No. of elements 16
Gain 10-13dB
Front-back ratio 22dB
Beam width Honz/vertical 60" / 32"
Length 840mm

Antenna Structure

Note: I: Reflector II: V Type Elements III: Clamp IV: Transformer Box V:Antenna Carrier
Operation Instructions

V type Elements should be pulled all the way from Reflector as shown in the picture

A "click" sound will occur when the elements is on its fully unfolded position.

Clamp Parts

1. Wing Nuts
2. Clamp Part A
3. U Type Bolt
4. Bolts and Washers
5. Clamp Part B
6. Clamp Part C

Clamp Installation

Step 1: Pull the Elements from reflector as Operation Instructions shows. Put 6 between IV and V (Antenna Structure See Page 6)

Step 2: Insert 3 into 5

Step 3: Place Assembly 3&5 on Antenna Carrier V make sure holes on 5 and 6 are aligned properly.

Step 4: Attach 5 and 6 with bolts washers should be applied on top of 5.

Step 5: Assembly 2 to U Type Bolts 3.

Step 6: Apply Wing Nuts 1 onto U Type Bolts 3.

Step 7: Secure Antenna Mast with Antenna by tightening U Type Bolts 3.

This Antenna can be tilted up to 30 Degrees for flexibility.

F Type Weather Boot Installation

F Type weather boot
Assembly onto the cable
Connect Cable to the F connect on the transformer box.

Cost for Marriage Licence Varies by City

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:24:00 +0000

Are you planning on getting married? The cost of the same provincial marriage licence is different for each town and city.

A marriage licence is valid for use anywhere in Ontario for three months after its issue date. So for example you can buy a licence in Pickering for $100 and use it to get married in Toronto. This would save you $30. So before you buy your marriage licence call around to this cities that are close to you. You might save yourself a few dollars.

If you plan to marry outside of the province or the country, be sure to verify the requirements for the appropriate jurisdiction.

Ontario

Toronto - $130
Richmond Hill - $125
Pickering - $100
Barrie - $140.60
Vaughan - $125
Markham - $129.50
Mississauga - $135
Guelph - $125

How Much is a Pop Can Worth?

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 05:36:00 +0000

Aluminum cans are the most expensive item in your blue box. One pound of aluminum makes approximately 29.51 cans. At June 2009 prices that works out to $0.023 per can.

Ontario has no return/refund program for aluminum cans and the cost of collecting your aluminum cans and taking it to the scrap metal recycler might not be worth it. However every aluminum can should be recycled.

It takes 95% less energy to make a new aluminum can from a recycled aluminum can. Throwing away a single aluminum can is like pouring out 0.03 liters of gasoline.

In Toronto the Knox United Church collects aluminum cans and sells it to a scrap metal recycler. The proceeds are given to habitat for humanity. This might be a better cause than helping your local municipality make money from your

As for 2L pop bottles each bottle is make of 0.114640 pounds of PET plastic. The amount of plastic in a 2L pop bottle is $0.039.

Prices for Recyclables

What recyclable commodities sell for:

-Aluminum Cans

High $2,209 a tonne in July;

Low $1,089 in January.

-Plastic bottles

High $434 a tonne in March; Low of $53 a tonne in November ($66 in January).

-Newspapers

High $169 a tonne in August; Low $38 a tonne in January.

-Boxboard

High $77 a tonne in March; Low $3 a tonne in January.

-Steel Cans

High $416 a tonne in July; Low $31 a tonne in November ($44 in January).

-Plastic Tubs and Lids

High $295 a tonne in September; Low $6 a tonne in January.

Source: CSR Composite Index, Ontario Spot Market Price Trends for January 2009

Ontario's Eco Fee Charge

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 02:46:00 +0000

Look carefully at a retail receipt and you might notice a ECOFFE charge. This is a new environmental charge in Ontario that went into effect on July 1, 2008. Retailers have been legislated by the government of Ontario to charge this fee on behalf on the Stewardship Ontario. Which is an organization which has been established to implement environmental recycling programs, such as the blue bin program.

The organization expects to collect at least $28 million per year from consumers under the eco fee program.

The 2008 annual report states that Stewardship Ontario collected the following amounts from a combination of retail eco fees and municipal taxes in the years 2004-2008.

2004 $40,923,863
2005 $63,504,052
2006 $65,147,760
2007 $61,564,749
2008 $70,695,695

Stewardship Ontario spent $2.8 million in administrative costs in 2008.

Retailers can either charge the fee to consumers as a separate charge, which is what Canadian Tire does with its eco fee, or can hide the charge in the price of the item.

Under Ontario's current retail sales tax law if the fee is hidden you will be charged PST on the fee. If the fee is separate then you will be not be charged PST on the fee because according to the government of Ontario "RST does not apply to the fee payable to Stewardship Ontario as the organization is not providing taxable goods or taxable services. "

If you were charged PST on your eco fee you should ask for you money back. Check the government of Ontario's website on the RST law.

Stewardship Ontario has applied for a GST ruling and is waiting for the government of Canada is decide if GST applies to the eco fee fee. Until a ruling is made GST will be charged on the eco fee fee.

If the government of Canada decides that the GST does not apply to the eco fee then it raises the question, how are you going to get your GST money back?

The fee is now being charged on Phase 1 products. The eco fee will be charged on paints and coatings and their containers, solvents such as thinners for paint, lacquer and contact cement, paint strippers and degreasers, used oil filters, oil containers of 30 litres or less, single-use batteries, antifreeze, propane tanks, fertilizers, herbicides, insecticides and pesticides.

The second phase will include aerosol containers, fluorescent light bulbs and tubes, switches that contain mercury, thermostats, thermometers, barometers, pharmaceuticals and syringes.

A final phase will include items like contact cement, corrosive cleaners such as ammonia, and pool and photo chemicals.

The fee schedule for the period July 1, 2008 to December 31, 2009. The fee is revised every year. The 2008 annual report stated that since the price of recyclables has reduced and with the introduction of new harder to recycle plastics there will be an increase of 18% in the July 2009 to December 2010 fee schedule.

Related Posts
Toronto 5 Cent Plastic Shopping Bag Tax
Electronics Recycling Fees

Stupid Rogers Savings Tip

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Fri, 15 May 2009 04:27:00 +0000

Although I am hesitant to call any money saving tip stupid, I got an email from Rogers that made me exclaim, what!?! This is your corporation's idea of adding savings and value to the service that you provide.

Saving Tip

Save the weekday minutes in your voice plan by waiting until your evening calling period starts to make calls!

Try a FREE small Tim Hortons Iced Coffee!

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 14 May 2009 04:21:00 +0000

Drop by your local participating Tim Hortons store on May 21, 2009, and enjoy a new small Iced Coffee for FREE!*

It's a creamy, sweet blend of Tim Hortons coffee on ice. It's a refreshing way to enjoy your Tim Hortons coffee!

May 21, 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm
*No purchase necessary. Limit one small Iced Coffee per customer. Offer valid in Canada only, excluding British Columbia and Manitoba.

Miami Singles

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 05:20:00 +0000

If you are looking for a life partner and living in Miami then check out the Miami dating scene at Miamisingles.com. It is the premier website for guys and girls living in Miami who are looking for love. Their site has thousands of members and features, photos, instant messages, forums, audio/video chatrooms. They even have 100% real verified profiles.

Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2008

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 13:40:00 +0000

The Insurance Bureau of Canada has released the list of the top 10 cars stolen in Canada for 2008.

Honda again tops the list - the 2000 two-door Civic is the hottest car out there.

Number seven is the 2001 Audi II Quattro Roadster.

The bottom two cars are both Dodge Neons - the 1996 two and four-doors.

The IBC says the Neon is popular with thieves because it's incredibly easy to get into and usually doesn't have an anti-theft device.

In most cases, stolen cars are used as getaway vehicles in other crimes.

The Top Ten Stolen Vehicles are:

1. 2000 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
2. 1999 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
3. 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX/WRX STi 4-door AWD
4. 1995 Dodge/Plymouth Grand Caravan/Voyager
5. 1995 Dodge/Plymouth Caravan/Voyager
6. 2002 Acura RSX Type S 2-door
7. 2001 Audi TT Quattro Roadster
8. 1995 Acura Integra 2-door
9. 1996 Dodge/Plymouth Neon 2-door
10. 1996 Dodge/Plymouth Neon 4-door

Related Posts
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2007
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2006
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2005

Find a Local Dentist

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 04:25:00 +0000

If you have benefits use them. Most companies pay for your dental and health coverage. These are part of your annual compensation package. The company pays a portion of the premium, usually 80% and when every you use your benefits you co-pay the remaining 20%.

The fact that you have to pay 20% should never prevent you from using your benefits. Maximize the use of your benefits every year. Regular dental checkups will prevent catastrophic dental surgery in the future.

If you are looking for a local dentist in your area that offers all aspects of dentistry including cosmetic, general and family dentistry, you might want to check out Katy Cosmetic Dentist.

Installing a Pop Up Sprinkler System

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 01:33:00 +0000

Having a lawn sprinkler systems has many advantages. You don't have to drag a garden hose all over your yard and straighten out all all of the kinks and twists. You don't have to constant adjust the sprinkler head to prevent the water from hitting you house or watering your driveway. You don't have to remember to turn off the water, drag the garden hose back in and roll it up.

The irrigation system is more efficient and your water bills are often lower. It is better to water once a week for a long time than to water every day for a little bit. It is best you water your lawn early in the morning (3am- 8am). This time frame is good because it is the coolest temperature with the least amount of wind.

This DIY project will save your time and money. It will also be hundreds of dollars cheaper than hiring a professional.

Materials

These were purchased at Home Depot. The materials should be cheaper at Canadian Tire but usually Canadian Tire has less of a selection. Make sure that flex pipe is tough enough to be buried but flexible enough to be curved. You don't want to have to dig up a broken flex pipe after the winter.

Lawn Edger or flat shovel.
1 Utility knife.
1/2" x 50' Riser Flex Pipe. Cost $21.99
4" Pop up Sprinkler with Nozzle. Cost $4.49 (x3)
1/2" Barb Tee. Cost $0.89 (x2)
1/2" Barb Elbow. Cost $0.89
1/2" pipe connector. Cost $1.20
1 Roll of pipe thread PVC tape. Cost $1.99

The sprinkler system was installed using 3 pop up sprinklers, 2 barb tees and 1 barb elbow. The total cost of the system was $41.

Planning

Call your local utility companies before you dig. This is a free service and it will identify where utility lines are buried. Some housing developments have utility lines buried only 6-8 inches below the ground.

Measure and draw the area of your yard that needs to be watered. At this stage you can figure out the length of flex pipe, the number of pop up sprinkler heads, elbow and tee joints needed.

Each pop up sprinkler will cover a circular area of 6 feet from the center where the sprinkler head is located. As you add more sprinkler heads to the same flex pipe the pressure in flex pipe will drop. After adding three sprinkler heads the area of coverage had reduced to about 5 feet.

You have to take into account the drop in pressure when you plan out the system.

Installation

End of the sprinkler system. Buried sprinkler head and L joint.

Burying the flex pipe to the second sprinkler head.

Digging the hole for the T joint and the second sprinkler head.

A completed 3 head sprinkler system. An extra flex pipe is lying beside the buried system. This hose was used to add a second sprinkler system on the other side of the lawn.

Lay out the 1/2" x 50' Riser Flex Pipe along the path where the sprinkler system will be installed. Starting from the end of your sprinkler system, using a lawn edger or flat shovel cut your lawn where the flex pipe will be buried. You don't have a dig a trench. You only have to cut a path 2 inches wide.

Now dig a hole 5" by 5" and 6 inches deep. This is where the sprinkler head will be buried. Ensure that the sprinkler head is half an inch below the ground. If your sprinkler head stick up too far it will be beheaded by your lawn mower.

Connect the 1/2" pipe connector to the end of your flex pipe and connector to your water tap.

Wrap two turns of the pipe thread PVC tape around the connector end of the L joint and attach the sprinkler head. The pipe thread tape will secure a tight fit and help prevent future leaks. Attach the other end of the L joint to the flex pipe and test out the sprinkler head. Level the sprinkler head and tightly pack soil around it.

Bury the flex pipe down to the next point of the next sprinkler head. Cut the flex pipe using your utility knife. Attach the T joint to the two ends of the flex pipe. Again wrap two turns of the pipe thread PVC tape around the top of the T connector and attach the sprinkler head. Now bury and tightly pack soil around it.

Timers and fertilizer attachments can be added to your sprinkler system. Grass will grow over the cuts and holes on your lawn where the sprinkler system was installed.

Cruiser Community

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:04:00 +0000

Motorcycles are a cheap and effective mode of transportation. They are built as a one or two person mode of transportation. Motorcycles are also cheap on gas and actually cheaper on insurance than cars. While they cannot transport as much as a car most people use cars only to transport themselves.

If you have always wanted a bike but do not know where to start check out this forum on the biker community. You can post your questions, read others discussions. The website users have posted pictures of this bikes, riding videos, and personal stories. This will give you a better understand of the bike enthusiast.

The site also sells factory and custom motorcycle parts and accessories.

ING Could Doubles Your Tax Refund

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 16:51:00 +0000

ING has a contest where if you have your tax refund deposited into your savings account you could double it. I would imagine that only a few people have their ING savings account linked with Revenue Canada. This contest should have better chances of winning than most.

The catch is your winnings will only be equal to your refund. But for the Frugal Canadian every dollar counts.

Don’t forget to have your 2008 tax refund deposited directly into any one of your ING DIRECT Accounts. When your refund comes into your ING DIRECT Account; you’ll be automatically entered to win cash equal to your refund, up to $5,000.

The tax filing deadline is April 30th, so be sure to provide the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) with the following details: Transit (“Branch”) number 00152, institution number 614, plus your ING DIRECT Account number.

Please note that Quebec residents can only have their federal tax return direct deposited. This means, the federal amount will be used for the contest.

The ING DIRECT “Double your Tax Refund Contest” runs until October 31, 2009 and we’ll announce 10 lucky winners of up to $5,000 each in November. Don’t miss your chance to be one of them. Enter and turn your tax refund into a ‘refund refund’!

Toronto Movers

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 04:59:00 +0000

A few years back, when I moved out of my parents house into my own place it was quick and easy. I had a friend of mine borrow his step-dad truck. In a thirty minutes we loaded all of my stuff in the back drove an hour to my new place and unloaded everything in twenty minutes.

In a total of two hours we were done and drinking beers.

A few years later if I had to do the same thing again, I couldn't. My "stuff" will not fit in back of a pickup truck. My friend can no longer help me because he has a wife and child. Also if anything was to happen to the furniture I will never hear the end from my wife.

I would have to hire professional movers. Toronto Movers is a company committed to providing fast and careful services. Call them for a competitive rate, references and a stress free move.

Bell Canada Paperless Billing

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 04:16:00 +0000

Bell Canada has been sending out letters saying that they are going green and will be automatically discontinuing your paper bill and switching you to electronic billing.

The letter reads as follows:

We're going green.

Dear [insert name]

We are wring to notify you about an important change in our eBill program.

You are currently receiving a per invoice, along with a monthly email notification advising you that your online bull can be viewed by logging in at the Bell Web site. Following your next bill, we will be discontinuing your paper invoice to help reduce paper waste and protect our forests.

If you would prefer to continue receiving a paper bill in the mail, you have the option of keeping this arrangement now and in the future. Simply log in to bell.ca/staypaper and click on "I wish to keep receiving paper bills".

Thank you for choosing Bell.

Sincerely,
Jim Myers,
Senior Vice-President, Customer Experience

This program is very similar to negative option billing. In negative option billing companies sign you up without asking you and then make it your responsibility to contact them to opt out. This method of business is immoral.

It took over 20 minutes of my time to opt out of ebilling and retain paper billing. Bell Canada's ebilling does not benefit you at all. Under the guise of protecting the environment Bell Canada is trying to cut costs and increase profits at your expense.

Top 5 Reasons NOT To Go Paperless.

Paper bills printed by Bell Canada are receipts. You purchased a product or service and they are your proof of purchase. Paper bills are needed for tax purposes. If your are claiming your phone bill on your taxes Revenue Canada will require proof. You can print your ebills but that will cost you money.
Paper bills drive the economy. You are saving hundreds of jobs by asking for paper bills. Lumber workers, paper mill workers, Bell Canada billing workers, Bell Canada mail room workers, Canada Post sorters and letter carriers, even your blue bin recycling collector are depending on your paper bills.
Paper is environmentally friendly. It is recyclable, reusable, renewable and biodegradable. Ebills are viewed on computers which use electricity (nuclear waste) and are full of heavy metals. The computer servers that your ebills are stored end up in landfills as ewaste.
Computers crash, data gets erased. If Bell Canada's computers were to lose your ebills you will have no proof of purchase. If a billing dispute was to arise you do not want the company you are arguing with to hold all the evidence.
Checking your ebills cost bandwidth. Since Bell Canada or your ISP is charging you for bandwidth usage it will cost you your usage allowance to check your bills.

Paper bills are easy to manage. File the bill in a folder, and when you feel that you don't need it any more recycle it.

Payday Loan

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 20:57:00 +0000

Poor credit, no credit, need money fast then you have the option of applying for a payday loan.

Apex Pay Day loans in a online company that will give you a quick cash loan nationwide. They don't perform a credit check, so you don't have to worry about whether your credit is good enough or not. If you can show proof of current employment and income they won't even contact your employer.

You can get a loan of up to $1500. Your application can be completed within minutes using Apex Pay Day Loan's secure online application and have money wire transferred within one business day. Click to apply online for a No Fax Pay Day Loan.

GPSs, Garage Door Openers and Burglary

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 19:43:00 +0000

A couple of months ago friends of ours had their home broken into. The thieves stole everything in the house except the furniture.

The thieves broken into one of the cars which was parked in the driveway on a Sunday night and stole the garage door opener. They then returned on Monday morning after the home owners had left for work. Using the stolen garage door opener the thieves opened the garage door and parked a van in the garage. The door leading to the house from the garage was then kicked in, and the home alarm was disabled. Then they spent a couple of hours loading up the van with everything from the house.

The insurance company still has not paid out. The adjuster wanted receipts, photos, and proof of ownership for everything that was stolen. The adjuster also depriciated all of their items 50%- 100%. Proving what they owned is turning out to be difficult, because the thieves stolen even the DVDs and computers containing all of the photos. They even stole their diplomas.

GPS Burglary

Now there is a variation of the stolen garage door opener burglary. Thieves are breaking to your car at transit or work parking lots to steal your GPS unit and garage door opener. Since your car was at a work or transit parking lot the thieves know that you will be away from your home for hours.

Most GPS units are programmed with your home address. Looking up your home address in the phone book (or Canada411.com) they call your house using a pay phone or disposable cell phone. If no one answers then they can be almost sure that no one is home.

They then use your GPS to drive to you home, in their vehicle. Once at the house another quick phone call to make sure that no one has returned and they pull into the garage using your garage door opener.

The first things to be stolen would be everything in the garage. Snow blowers, lawn mowers, bicycles, and tools. These items are easy pickings and there are no alarms to deal with. They then break the door leading to the house and steal everything that they can carry. Even if there is an alarm that cannot be disabled it will take time for the police to respond. The average response time for police to a home alarm in 2007 in Toronto is 20 minutes to half an hour. By this time the thieves can easily be gone with thousands of dollars worth of property.

Protecting Yourself

Get a car alarm. Most newer model cars have RDIF chips in the key. This makes it almost impossible to hot wire a car and steal it. However thieves can still steal everything in the car. An alarm will be an extra deterrent.

Hide your GPS. Don't leave it in the open. Remove the suction cup because that indicates that you have a GPS in the car. Even take the time to wipe off the suction cup marks. Thieves have been known to look for these marks on the windshield.

Don't program your home address as Home. You can list it as a favourite but just as an address. If your GPS does not allow you to do this then program the address of a place down the street. Once your are in your neighbourhood you should know how to reach your house. Just make sure that the address you program is far enough away from your house so the the thieves don't just activate the garage door opener and look for the house with the open garage door.

Remove the garage door opener from the visor. This is the first place a thieves will look. Place it in the glove box or somewhere else in the car. If you are upgrading your garage door opener get one with a potable remote. Potable remotes can be carried on your key chain.

Related Posts:
Home Alarms do They Provide Security

The Weather in Arizona

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 04:08:00 +0000

Living in Canada has some advantages and some disadvantages. One of the disadvantages of being a Canadian is the weather. Our winters are very cold and for the Frugal Canadian winters cost a lot of money. It costs money to heat your home. It also cost more money to drive in winter. Your car burns more gas and your tires slip more often.

That is who those people living in a southern climate have it better off. It is cheaper to live in a warmer, temperate area such as Arizona. Scottsdale Arizona's weather today is 80 degrees. If you are thinking of moving check out these new home developments.

Invoice Price of a 2009 Toyota Corolla - Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:38:00 +0000

When buying a new car it is usually difficult to negotiate the price with a dealer because you don't know by how much the dealer is inflating the price. There are a couple of pay sites that cut out this guess work. You know exactly what the dealer paid for the car and what the manufacturer to dealer incentives are.

Most dealers will sell at $200-$500 over the invoice price.

The invoice price is as follows:
This price is accurate until March 31, 2009. After which time Toyota might offer more or different dealer incentives. Currently Toyota is offering 0% financing for 36 months.

Toyota Corolla CE, Automatic - $14,922.00

Freight - $1,270.00

CONVENIENCE PKG -inc: air cond w/deodorizing dust & pollen air filter, body-coloured exterior door handles, pwr door locks w/shifter activated auto lock, keyless entry, tire pressure monitoring system (B__) - $1,704.00

Total Invoice Price - $17,996.00

MSRP - $19,110.00

Free Caller ID Spoofing

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 03:46:00 +0000

Did you think that your caller ID always showed the number of the person calling. Well, not necessarily. There are services out there that can spoof the number that shows up on your caller ID. So you might think that its your Aunt May calling but instead it could be someone sending Aunt May's phone number to your caller ID.

123Spoof.com is a free service that allows you to caller ID spoof someone.

Don't want your spouse to know that you are at your local bar with your buddies, no problem, just use Free Spoofing from 123Spoof.com. You can enter your office work number and your spouse will think that you are hard at work earning money for family.

Trillions of Dollars in Bail Out Money

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:58:00 +0000

What does a trillion dollars look like? Well it looks like a lot of paper. So someone has done a comparative model of a trillion dollars using Google Sketchup.

Check it out the full article here.

The Better Choice RRSP or TFSA

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 23:17:00 +0000

RRSP season is here. The deadline for contributing to your 2008 RRSP is March 2, 2009. The government of Canada has also introduced Tax Free Savings Account this year. In a TFSA you can invest up to $5000 and any capital gains from your investment is not taxed.

Your best option is to always contribute the maximum allowable RRSP limit. Ensure that you also contribute the maximum $2000 lifetime over contribution limit. Then contribute your $5000 maximum to your TFSA.

If you expect your tax rate after retirement to be the same as it is now, TFSAs and RRSPs will produce the same net result.

If you expect your tax rate after retirement to be less than it is now, top up your RRSP before opening a TFSA.

If you expect your tax rate after retirement to be higher than it is now, saving in a TFSA will produce a better return than making an RRSP contribution. That is your investments will yield more income that your current earnings, saving in a TFSA will produce a better return than making an RRSP contribution.

Cash Back Rebates With Ebates

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 14:19:00 +0000

If you do a lot of shopping online you should consider becoming a member of Ebates.com. Over 1000 online stores pay Ebates a commission for a listing. Ebates splits that commission with you. Think of it is a cash back rewards. Check out the enterprise coupon which gives you 2% cash back on a car rental.

Reduce Your Microwave's Power Waste

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 14:01:00 +0000

Your microwave uses more power waiting on standby mode than is does heating your food. The average household uses the microwave for 10 minutes a day, the rest of the day the microwave is powering the little clock, and other internal electronic components while waiting to be used.

ON: 10 minutes x 1000 watts = 167 watt-hours
OFF: 23 hours, 50 minutes x 7 watts = 167 watt-hours

You could unplug your microwave when ever it is not in use but constantly plugging and unplugging your microwave can get tiresome. To solve this problem install a receptacle with a switch.

The switch controls the receptacle into which the microwave can be plugged in. When the microwave is not in use just turn off the switch and the microwave will no longer be on standby wasting electricity.

A Leviton 15 Amp Combination Switch-receptacle from Canadian Tire costs $8.00. Installation of the receptacle is easy. Just make sure to wire the receptacle so that the switch controls the receptacle. Follow the diagram. The jumper wire is only needed if the switched receptacle does not have a metal jumper plate.

Cardfish Phone Call Service

noreply@blogger.com (FCL) — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 23:04:00 +0000

If you like to send ecards and prank telephone messages to your friends you should check out Cardfish. They have set up a free discount code for people to try the service out. You just enter the word FREE as the coupon code.

Cardfish Phone call messages include Santa's elves, The Ring (scary movie), and even president Obama.

The Ring card is quite scary. The ecard will tell your friend that something awful will happen whenever the phone is answered. At the same time their phone rings. No it won't be a telemarketer offering a free cruise. It will be Cardfish's The Ring caller trying to scare your friend.

Saw IV had a feature on their website where you could enter the phone number of your friends and the killer from the movie would call your friend. This feature was so popular and scary that people actually called the police believing that a serial killer was calling them.

The news reports about this feature on their website was great promotional material for the movie.

I get scary phone calls almost every day. The telephone rings and a voice says "Hello, Mr. Frugal Canadian I am going to send you on a free cruise. I don't care if you hate boats, get sea sick, can't swim and are paranoid about drowning in your bathtub. You have won a free cruise and you are taking it...." At this point I hang up, crawl into the little space under the stairs, rock back and forth and think of my happy place.