Bad Stuff General - Stuff that you should never go cheap on.

[Xarpho's Return]

Wood - 1, Never let the hardware stores pick your 2x4s. They'll give you the most warped, knotted boards they have.

Yeah, tell me about it, I've been working with my dad replacing the deck built less than a decade ago because of shoddy construction techniques that caused half the boards to rot and crack, and part of the reason they're in bad shape is poor-quality lumber. The little red/brown dots on lumber are where branches were and are as soft as rotten wood.

 

[Flat Web]

never ever buy the cheap versions of

Desk chair - in line with the philosophy others have outlined, don't cheap out on things that separate you from the ground, a good desk chair is vital. There's several good brands, obviously DXRacer or other meme gamer chairs are typically overpriced plastic trash, but you can't really go wrong if you're a competent consumer willing to spend $200+, maybe less if buying used.

Candles - If you're going to burn candles at all, don't let it be cheap ones, really horrible for you and often times smell not as good as when you hold them up to your nose in the store.

Tupperware/food storage containers - Cheap versions will stain easily if storing something acidic like pasta sauce, or warp, or won't be dishwasher safe. Plus the added risk of putting your food in a dirty China box.

Gaming controllers - may seem obvious, but in the 2000s, even up to the early 2010s, 3rd party controllers were commonly fine, nowadays the mega cheap 3rd party controllers are barely functional, or will break pretty quickly. I've had good luck with 8bitdo, although buying 1st party is almost always your best bet for standard use.

RAM - I've known a few people build PCs, and just buy the cheapest DDR4/5 on the part picking site they used just to have them shit out in hard-to-diagnose ways that weren't immediately obvious. This goes for all PC parts when building your own, RAM specifically seems to be one people commonly think doesn't matter, there's often times a good reason some brands are cheaper.

what food has a cheap version that is absolutely unacceptable to you?

Butter/Oils - the fats you cook with should not be cheap, avoiding boomer sperging about seed oils, even cheap versions of good oils (i.e. cheap olive oil) are a bad idea and should be avoided if your grocery budget allows

Juice - cheap juice is basically koolaid, dont drink it or feed it to white children, its often times worse than drinking a full sugar soda

Canned Fish/Meat - Nothing wrong with some of the higher end, well-canned meats and fish products, the cheap stuff is super mega cancer hell and sucks shit. Spam is great, to be clear.

 

[Yours Truly 2095]

If you have life saving equipment, get OEM spare parts now. Anything that wears out or just ages like rubber. Rubber seals and grommets in contact with fuel especially. Before they inevitably stop making them. I'm having such a fucking problem with cheap Chinese shit parts because Generac doesn't seem to make OEM parts anymore for this generator we inherited. I swear every grommet I've gotten is not the right size. They seem slightly smaller than videos I've seen, and I fear it'll leak, I'm going to have to go talk to a local dealer about my suspicions.

As for the flashlight discussion. The best budget flashlight I've used personally is the Powertac M5. So far they've worked well and I know others who have used them a lot too. Crazy brightness and candela for the price. I do personally dislike the mode change button. I prefer streamlights method. But for a novice it reduces risk of changing modes without meaning to. Definitely a good light to keep in your vehicle if nothing else.

Buy a good battery tender. I have a Genius5. Buy water leak detectors for your home, place them under sinks, dishwasher, etc.

Don't forget the transmission fluid and differential/transfer case fluid in your car is not actually lifetime fluid.

 

[Flatline]

Candles - If you're going to burn candles at all, don't let it be cheap ones, really horrible for you and often times smell not as good as when you hold them up to your nose in the store.

What are some recommended places to get good candles?

 

[Flat Web]

What are some recommended places to get good candles?

Generally, any scented candle is bad for you. The cheap ones are just bad faster, if that makes sense. While they disperse smell more quickly, they also spread more toxins at that same rate.

I get beeswax or 100% soy candles rarely, for holidays and such when the vibe is right, and when I do I’ll usually get them at Trader Joe’s, but you could likely find them at a higher end box store or grocery chain such as a Whole Foods.

Avoid soy/paraffin blends.