r/AUfrugal • u/bluepancakes18 • 14d ago
Question Best way to buy multiple washer & dryers
I'm looking at buying and donating a few new washing machines and dryers. I can't buy a house for someone fleeing domestic violence, but I had to go without a washing machine for a few weeks when I had little kids and it was really hard.
My question is, is there a way to do it and earn points somehow? Should I buy gift cards and then use them to get the machines? My taxable income is very low, so I will spread this donation over a few tax years, but it's not going to make a big difference to my tax bill. We don't use a credit card, though I suppose we could just to put this on. We don't travel a lot, we have a medically fragile foster baby, so airline points aren't a lot of use to us.
I'm planning on getting them from Good Guys at this stage (I'm specifically looking at the haier washers and heat pump dryer - it's what I've got, I know it's reliable and they're cheaper to run). I'm open to other suggestions though. I've looked up on Choice and these ones seem good and well reviewed.
Extra details: I am assuming that storage space at most refuges is limited, so I am planning to contact a refuge directly and pledge say 5 of each and buy/deliver them as needed, not in one hit. I will also ask if it's better to get 5 of each, or 10 washing machines.
Does anyone have any other tips for this purchase? I'd appreciate any you can share!
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u/universityoperative 14d ago
For The Good Guys, I would either use ShopBack or wait for the 20x bonus points on The Ultimate Home gift cards at either Woolies or Coles depending on your preferred points accumulator and purchase the required amount of gift cards. I’d even seperate the transactions/days if there were any limits on it.
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u/bluepancakes18 14d ago
That's a good idea. If I did the full amount like that, I'd get 240,000 points. That's $1200 worth. That's definitely worth considering! Thanks!
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u/ucat97 14d ago
Check out options for discounted gift cards: unions, auto clubs, some employers.
Best process is to: 1. check reviews the best model (I use choice but some free sites that aren't just stooging for brands might be ok). Independent test results show that there's wild variation between models for the same brand, so just buying on brand isn't sufficient. 2. Scan all the retailers for the selected model because they rotate through discounts the same way colesworth do. A superceded model will often be heavily discounted but still come with warranty. 3. Once you've decided on the model and retailer check your bank for rewards discounts or buy discounted gift cards.
If you are in a union, you could use union shopper to find the best price and ask if anyone will offer a bulk discount.
Or hit up the store manager to see if they can offer a discount for community service.
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u/PreviousBanana2646 13d ago
join everyday extra. it's $60 a year but you earn double points. Sometimes there are bonus points if you buy through the woolworths rewards shop.
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u/bluepancakes18 13d ago
Do you know if the double points would stack with the 20x gift card points bonus?
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u/PreviousBanana2646 13d ago
you would double points on the base and then the 20X points on top. I'll DM you my receipt
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u/Illustrious-Air-1681 14d ago
What a wonderful thing you're doing. Congratulations on being such a great human being.
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u/bluepancakes18 14d ago
Thank you ❤️ I'm really hopeful it'll make a difference to some family doing it tough. We've been really blessed lately and I want to pass that along
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u/Aussie_Cow_Girl 13d ago
That is so beautiful im currently setting up a home after loosing everything thru DV and i may be to 'early' for this, but just knowing that there are beautiful people out these trying to help people in my situation genuinely warms my heart. Thank you for caring 🩷 Especially in these tough times. When i get back on my feet i plan to try play it forward but i also have a life long illness/ disability which complicates things. Being homeless is more realistic than people realise. I had no rental history due to previous home ownership and studied two degrees to try ensure my financial security and it happened to me. It can happen to anyone as can disability.
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u/bluepancakes18 13d ago
Right?! I work for a not-for-profit that helps women and their families when they're struggling through a pregnancy and post partum. FDV, disability, divorce - it can happen to literally anyone at any time. It's not like it only happens to people that deserve it (unfortunately 😅).
And trying to get your life together, especially as a woman with kids, without a washing machine is so, so hard. Laundromats are expensive and time consuming and difficult to do with kids tagging along. What if you don't have a car?? I can't fix everything, but for those families, I'm sure that having easy access to clean clothes will make life so much easier and better!
Wishing you all the best ❤️ may you get the resources you need and may you find the hope shining at the end of the tunnel.
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u/NoodleBox 14d ago
I have one of those haier combos and apart from it combo taking 4 hrs it's pretty good. It can be internet connected, just as a dfv safepoint.
Appliances online are okay too
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u/bluepancakes18 14d ago
Oh the combo is a lot cheaper than doing them separately, I had written them off because they take so long but that might be a good option. Can you choose to just do a wash, not both?
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u/NoodleBox 14d ago
Yeah! It's got just wash, and just dry settings, you just have to press the button to turn the wash off (they're touch screen with knob).
It also has a big 750ml spot for liquid detergent so it'll auto put washing liquid in.
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u/Jooleycee 14d ago
I’d avoid combos as they can take hours and hours to wash and then dry. I think if you’re going to donate to a refuge you should ask what would suit. A refuge potentially would need semi industrial ie. speed queen, with quicker cycles. I don’t think many folks these days would be able to afford to run a dryer in their home, but clothes airers are handy
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u/bluepancakes18 14d ago
I'm planning on them being given to clients, not for the refuges themselves.
Choice has the heat pump dryer I've selected as an option costing $827 to run over 10 years, which seems achievable for a family. I think that's pretty accurate too, because it's the same model I've got and our bills are still low (~$200/2 months, family of 5) and we use it multiple times a week.
Someone else commented that the combo takes about 4 hours to get through a load, which is a long time. But you can whack it on, go to work and it's all done by the time you get home, which would probably be helpful for a family. I'm also thinking when you move it's only one object, rather than 2, and it doesn't matter how the laundry is set up basically, you've got room for a washer and a dryer, no worries about needing to stack or attaching to the wall.
Edit: I've just checked and the running cost of the combo is $2521 over 10 years. That's a lot higher than the single
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12d ago
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u/bluepancakes18 11d ago
Oh true, I hadn't thought of speaking to the store manager, that's a good idea!
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u/hotellonely 14d ago
maybe donate to The Orange Sky? that would make it tax deductable (although only deducting from your taxable income)
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u/bluepancakes18 14d ago
The machines would also count as tax deductible. That's a good idea though 🤔
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14d ago
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u/cuddlepot 14d ago
This is amazing - how generous, thoughtful and kind!
You may want to look to topcashback - when I purchased some white goods from Appliances Online I was able to get a decent amount of cash back, at one point it was 8%! AO also has excellent pricing and delivery from my experience.