Revision as of 10:54, 25 February 2010

This page is for detailing and brainstorming ideas for clever home-made moneyboxen.

First, let us define a money box, and try to discover what makes one usefull.

Now, what properties of a moneybox make it usefull?

• Principle of "out of sight, out of mind".
• Principle of "easy in, hard out".

Now a simple moneybox may implement either or both of these to a varying degree. The normal kids money pig hides the money, but usually is relatively easy to get money out. A "cookie jar" on the shelf may implement neither factor. The more cliche money pig will not have an exit hole, fulfilling the second principle, but being rather un-reusable. Of course, you only tend to see those in movies and bank commercials.

Ultimately, a moneybox is an aid to self-control. Afterall, if we had perfect self-control, then an open container would be sufficient. (and indeed, I've seen people with this system - but almost always it's been implemented for small coins only - making it inconvenient to use any significant amount of the available money.

There is also the question of the SIZE of the moneybox. Most commercial moneyboxes seem to be rather toy-sized. A holding capacity of half a litre or so at largest. On the other hand, I think a litre size should be minimum. I'm thinking long-term money storage. The thrill of counting out $20 when you were 7... doesn't exist when you are 27. But counting out $200 (or more) in silver coins... now that's a nice buzz.

Note that in my own estimates, a litre filled with assorted shrapnel (australian slang for coinage, especially the silvers (5c, 10c, 20c and 50c coins)) is likely to be around the $150 mark. Filled with assorted gold coins ($1 and $2), I estimate getting close to $1000. (for a more complete breakdown... MoneyBox/DensityAnalysis]

Some ideas for moneyboxen...

• Mac classic case. Many have been turned into fishtanks, but with a gutted interior and a money-slot behind the handle, this could be a very nice 8+litre box. Turn the display into a picture frame...
  • Out of sight score: 7/10
  • Withdrawal difficulty: 7/10
• (mini)tower computer case: This proved easier than anticipated to accomplish. A case with a 3.5" floppy slot, and some plumbing pipes to connect together internally. Also, one plastic container to turn into a coin slide, and some duct tape.

http://www.nut.house.cx/~nemo/albums/CaseNonMod/P1003333.thumb.jpg http://www.nut.house.cx/~nemo/gallery/CaseNonMod Note that my estimate on this is that it contains 2-3 litres.

• • Out of sight score: 9.5/10
  • Withdrawal difficulty: 7/10 (the case can be taken from the rack, cover removed and money withdrawn without effecting the continued operation of the computer. This is due to my making sure that the power, network and other cables were of adequate length)
  • This was in use circa 2003 for some time.
• Office Water cooler bottle: This is a nice 15litre sized behemoth. However, it is transparent and has an easy handle, so loses counts on both "Out of sight" and "difficulty" scores.
  • Out of sight score: 4/10 (higher if covered)
  • Withdrawal difficulty: 5/10 (higher if secured down)
  • This has been in use since... 2008? Maybe earlier? As of early 2010 it has had 1litre of 20c filtered, and is an estimated 10kilo. The structure may not hold for a full bottle!

So, how the hell do you go about filling a moneybox that big?!

• Time...

Rules of the MoneyBox!

Informal summary

Alot of people I know will try and avoid breaking a note if they can pay for an item with small change. I'll sometimes do the reverse. I might break an note even if I CAN already pay for the item in change. This is increasingly true for smaller values of coins that I have. Where I woulnd't hesitate to spend a single $1 coin, I'd probably not spend 10x 10c coins for the same item, but break a $5 instead. I picked this up from a friend with a strict personal policy that he didn't actually /own/ any 5c or 10c coins he recieved in change. They belonged to his moneybox, and were NOT for his personal spending. In this way, it's not hard to add a few coins every day... over a year or more, it can REALLY add up. (a measly 30c a day is still over $100 after a year, or, for americans, a quarter a day... is $90 at the end of a year).

Note of course that this can get bulky on the pockets, so is usually only practiced when I'll be back at work or home to empty pockets relatively quickly...

Formally

Out and about

• Silver coins are, if not specifically sought after, then at least not specifically used to minimise them.

Returning home

• Once home, all shrapnel (silver coins: 5c,10c,20c50c) goes into the moneybox. no exception.
• Gold ($1 $2) may also enter, but is optional. These usually stay in the car for parking and emergency lunch.

Filtering

• Occasionally I will pull a 1litre container of a single type of coin out of the moneybox and store seperately.
  • 2009: 1litre of 20c coins. Kept in the freezer = Cold Hard Cash
  • 2010 planned: 1litre of 50c coins. To keep in the freezer as Frozen Assets

Raiding

• In an emergency, I may raid for 50c coins for a few bucks...

Banking

• When you turn up to the bankteller with $100 or more in 5c and 10c coins, etc; you apologise, and leave quickly. :)