okie, questions for seasoned melbournites here,
1. is it advisable for vege to be frozen? we bought cauliflower
and other vege and had trouble consuming them! they are just too
big! in the fridge, they don't seems to last as long as after
2/3 days, you can tell the freshness gone. how to manage this
well?
2. where are the salvo stores that sell used furniture? the ones
i been to are small stores and i don't see any furniture on sale.
maybe i have been to the wrong stores. (i noticed furniture prices
here are really expensive).
3. are weekend fresh farm markets worth visiting? can
recommend where? i drove past some but did not take note of its
locations.
4. where to get the best prices for fishes and seafood? it's
just out of this world in coles and safeways. we drove to dandenong
market last week and the price are half on those we saw in
vermont/forest hill but i don't think i want to drive to dandenong
ever so often.
i am currently on a short term lease in boxhill south and will
permanently move to blackburn south mid-dec. hence any tips on
value buys around those area will be appreciated as i will need to
stock up for my new crib.
thanks!
(1) Vegies can be frozen and use later. But when you thaw
it, you will have to use it on the same day. Best to just buy
enough for the week and store it in the crisper.
(2) http://www.salvationarmy.org.au/SALV/STANDARD/PC_61106.html
You can always ring ahead to ask if they have furniture
Yes furniture can be expensive but it all depends where you
look. There are many furniture shops on Maroondah highway in
Nunawading and Blackburn. And it might be worth having a look
at this place http://www.funkyfurniture.com.au/index.html
We bought our dining set from there years ago and not badly
price.
(3) Farmers market are quite nice to visit. You can get
fresh produce at cheaper price. Have a look at this website
to know the when the farmers market near your area is on each month
http://www.farmersmarkets.org.au/finder/vic.jsp.
I think Croydon, Heathmont and Whitehorse are probably the closest
to you.
(4) Unfortunately seafood is not the cheapest in
Melbourne. You can get pretty cheap ones in markets like QVM,
Footscray, South Melbourne.... but just not around where you
live. Coles and Safeway are definitely not the best place to
get seafood. If you do need fresh seafood, you can go to the
fish pier at the shopping centre.... there's one in Forest Hill
Chase, Box Hill Central or you can go to Glen Waverley. They
are not the cheapest but at least fresher than Coles and
Safeway.
Have you shopped at Aldi before? So if you're not fuss
with unfamiliar brand, it's quite cheap shopping at Aldi as
compared to Safeway and Coles. Also, you get junk mail
delivered to your letter box so look at them for the weekly
specials. Try to stock up on the stuffs that don't expire
when they are on special. We usually do a meat shopping in
Box Hill once a month and I just freeze them.
As for your dryer question, it depends on how often you need to
do your washing. If you do washing in small load, you can
probably hang in on the cloth frame inside the house over the
ducted heating vent (i assumed you had ducted heating) during rainy
days. But if you're doing in big load, it might be worth
getting one as it's handy in Winter.
We only just got it this year after living without one for the
past 3 years. Because it's getting very difficult to not be able to
do my washing until the weather is good. I only do my washing
in big load to save water.
If you are planning to get a dryer, then you need to know the
size of your laundry. Whether you want a separate washer and
dryer or combined. If you get a combined one, please get one
that doesn't use lots of water considering our drought problem at
the moment. It's silly to know you need water for
drying!!!! Miele products are generally pretty good but they
are also expensive. We are using a Hoover Top Loader washing
machine and a Westinghouse dryer. It works fine for us.
We have the dryer installed on the wall.
For electronics and white goods..... try to look around Clive
Peeters (Maroondah Hwy, Ringwood), Harvey Norman (Maroondah Hwy,
Nunawading), Myer in Eastland, Ringwood (don't be surprise... they
sometimes have better price than other stores) and Good Guys (Home
HQ next to Harvey Norman in Nunawading). If you're planning
to get some white goods at the same time, just look around to see
what you want and then go to each store to get them to price out
for you. Usually you can get them to do a bundle deal which
might work out to be cheaper for you.
Good luck. Any questions, please ask!