The cost of living crisis has affected us all, meaning there's a real need to be smarter when it comes to saving money.

One way is to make sure you aren't wasting money by throwing out food too early - but sadly, this mistake is all too easy to make.

Storing food and drinks in the wrong places, even in the fridge, can cause them to go bad quicker than usual, which is never ideal - as it really does feel like throwing money in the bin.

However, Scott Evans, storage expert and owner of self-storage company Pink Storage, has revealed the best fridge hacks to keep your food fresher for longer and save money in the process.

He says you should rethink where you keep your milk, as the fridge door - a popular area for storage - may not be the best way to keep it fresh.

The door of the fridge is one of the warmest parts of the fridge, so it shouldn’t be used for fresh juices or milk.

Instead, the advice is to store items such as bottled water, ketchup, mayonnaise and soft drinks as they can stand up to the changing temperature.

Scott said: "The door of the fridge seems the perfect place to keep your eggs, milk and juices as they often have compartments for them, but due to the fridge door being the warmest in temperature it will cause them to spoil quicker."

Instead of keeping your fresh juices or milk here, you can store other items such as butter, salad dressings, jams and fizzy drinks.

Milk stored in the fridge door can last four to five days, but milk stored on the bottom shelf at the back can last up to seven days.

This is because the coolest part of the fridge is at the back of the bottom shelf - therefore, this is the best place to store your milk.

Scott said: "When placing your food in the fridge try not to put anything too tall at the back as it could block the fridge's vents.

"You also don't want to overfill your fridge as you will stop the air circulating as much and cause your food to spoil quicker."

Similarly, storing butter at the bottom of the fridge can seem like a controversial choice but according to the expert, it can make it last a lot longer longer.

Scott added: "If you like your butter to be at room temperature then cut a section off and leave it in a butter dish in the cupboard, then put the rest in the fridge to make it last a little longer.