[flash]

Rock bottom pricing is usually free or close to it, but only after you have a stockpile already built up. Dry pasta keeps almost indefinitely if you keep it dry, so a few extra boxes at a "good" price should tie you over until a great price comes along.

How many, it really depends -- for example, if your family eats three boxes a week, you might want more than 3, but if you eat three a year, it might not be the best use of your space or money.

Price books, well, quite a few people use them. I think it helps when you are getting started, for items that you buy all the time or that are expensive and you don't buy that often. After you have been saving and paying attention to prices for awhile, you will might find you know at a glance what a good price is.

Here's an example: Dreamfields pasta. Excellent. It's around $3 a box here. So...$2 a box seems like a good price. For a few. In a few weeks it might go on sale buy one get one free...so that would be $1.50 each. Better! Then comes the very rare double $1 coupon (for our location), and a $2 sale price, minus a $1 coupon doubled to $2 makes it free. Whoot! Stockpile! Unless I've already got 20 boxes I bought at $2 a box thinking that was a great price...and then I may not have room for more, or if we don't eat it often I may not need more.

If you don't want to keep a formal price book, you can save your shopping lists or mark up your cash register receipts when you get a good price that you will want to refer to again. Or, if you get a great price, take a sharpie pen and write the price on the box when you are putting it in your stockpile...then if you need to remember, just grab the box :)

Most products will have reasonable sale prices every three months, on average.

I'm working on writing up detailed information, but MrsPinecones starter thread in this forum is fantastic to start with!

HTH