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runt23

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I recently started brewing my own beer. I am currently only working with extract kits, but am looking forward to customizing recipes and experimenting with ingredients etc.

So I was wondering, do you find yourself to be saving money or spending more money? I've only done a couple batches, but I recently just dropped $250 into building a kegerator (with one keg) and I already want to set up another keg!

I originally started making beer to save money, and then it became more than that. I would like to justify this hobby as a money saver, but can I?
 
Ive been down that road. I spent on new carboys, gadgets, bigger brewpots a kegerator. And yes there are still things I want for my home brewery. but for the most part I produce 5-6% beer at about 10 bucks a case. Alot cheaper than the same quality in stores. For those savings to add up to the money I spent on gear... that could take a lifetime brewing luckily I plan on brewing for that long. Now after I break down and build a keezer and acquire all the brew gadgets I want the saving may never materialize but that is why it a hobby.
 
when it comes to how much you would pay for materials to brew 50+ bottles of beer vice what you would pay in a store for it, yes it is a money saver...but when you look at equipment no it isnt...you will always try to upgrade or buy something to make your brew day more streamline.
 
Unless you buy minimal equipment and don't upgrade it your going to be spending more money. It is possible to save money but for most of us we consider this our hobby and saving money isn't the primary goal.
 
With the amount of money I spent this year I can break even once I make my 700th case of beer.
What started as a Mr Beer kit morphed into
  • A Kal Clone Electric Single Tier setup
  • A 14 gallon fermenator
  • An old freezer that is now a fermentation chamber
  • A 8.8 cu ft keezer
  • 6 new kegs

Home Brewing is not a great way to save money. It's a fun hobby with a fabulous end product!
 
Going all grain, purchasing hops by the pound, purchasing Grain in group buys, washing your yeast are all ways that will ensure that you are saving money with your beers.

Equipment is generally a one time purchase, except for Hydrometers for me. ;) Many of the equipment costs can be spread over time, I'm still doing gravity but future purchases to come include a pump and plate chiller. I have 10 corny kegs, they were purchased over a couple year period. I have the ability to Chill 5, and serve and carb 4 in my main kegerator (old converted kitchen fridge) and also have a true TDD-1 which can do 4 as well but serves as a fermentation chamber when needed too. I've grown to 5 Fermenters, have 4 going right now (20 gallons of Cherry Wheat for a Graduation Party and 50th Birthday Party), have three beers on tap (Roasted Jalapeno Pale Ale, Honey Black Lager, Bananas Foster Creamy Ale), had 5 last week (kicked the Pale Ale and Maibock). Brewing DFH90 clone this weekend and will do my last extract kit beer this week as well (American Pale Ale).

You can make really good beer and save money vs. buying them, but it's hard to compete against the BMC's on pricing alone on their basic beers.
 
I've been brewing for five years, but have managed to maintain a more or less K.I.S.S. approach to the whole thing. Mill with a Corona mill, brew over a propane burner, rotate my fermentations in three plastic buckets, and bottle in 12 oz. longnecks using Grandpa's prohibition-era bench capper. I think I figured out at one point that when all the bells and whistles are included (immersion chiller, refractometer, etc.) that I've got around $650-700 invested in the non-consumable end of homebrewing. I only do about 14-15 5 gal. batches a year, but I figure I may have reached the break-even point by now.

But, as someone mentioned, this pastime is so much fun, who's counting?
 
Clearly the per-batch cost is better than buying commercial. I brew 10-gallon batches (~4 cases). For a 6% IPA, let's say I'm spending $30 on grain, $20 on hops, and $10 on yeast. Add in sundries ($5 for propane, a few bucks for water, ice for my chiller [in the summer], electricity for my fermentation fridge), and I'm spending less than $80 for a batch. And that's one of my more expensive batches.

Compare that to the equivalent quantity of store-bought. 4 cases is 16 six-packs. Here in CA you can expect to spend at least $9 per six pack, and with tax and CRV, you're over $10. So each equivalent batch would cost me $160 or more commercially.

Brew a strong belgian, imperial stout, or a double IPA (beers usually bought in 22 oz bombers)? You'll save more money because those beers commercially are much more expensive, but homebrewing is not that much more expensive. Brew a more mild session beer, easier on the hops? You'll save more money, because those beers commercially are still in the $8+ range per sixer at the store.

How many batches will it take to amortize the equipment costs? Depends how balls-out you go on your equipment. My brew rig is pretty stable, cost-wise. But I just dropped $600 or so in total cost to outfit my 6-tap keezer, and thus it'll probably take me most of a year to amortize that cost in brewing savings. But since I do ~12 batches a year, at a savings of $80+ per batch, and I've been brewing 6 1/2 years, I'd say I've probably broken even by now.
 
I drink more beer than ever, so comparing the cost of commercial to homebrew doesn't really work. I used to drink maybe 2 "good" beers a night, because they are expensive in Michigan where I live. But with homebrew, I drink a lot more than two beers a night.

I have a ton of money invested into my all-electric HERMS with tippy dump. Between that and the bulk grain and hops, the two kegerators, all of the kegs, the grain mill and so on, I don't even want to think about the actual $$$$ I spent.

Some of my 10 gallon batches are under $20, though. So, my per batch cost has gone way down.

It's a hobby, and it's cheaper than owning a plane as a hobby.
 
If I paid 40$ per case and each 10gal batch was 5 cases and did that 5 times I could cover all my gear, grain and hops. BUT, I give beer away all the time. So I am wastful. It's not about the money, it's about the journey.
 
You can save money brewing your own beer....

You will have to stop buying new equipment, probably brew all grain, and buy bulk grains.

........eventually...........

I was at that point, then I added a utility sink on my porch for cleaning my gear. Next up is a 4-5 carboy sized fermentation chamber. Maybe two zoned so I can do lagers and ales at the same time. Well, there goes the savings.:rolleyes:
 
I try to keep my brewing costs down if possible, but I'm really not concerned about the bottom line when everything is considered. I don't buy much commercial beer anymore though, so I guess no longer dropping ~$10 a 6 pack or ~$8 a 750ml helps things quite a bit.
 
Great input guys! Thanks. I'm not about to stop because I will probably spend more on equipment. I think it's nice to know that I COULD save money if I were to stop buying equipment. If I am running low on money, its nice to know I could spend less than a case of beer and be set for a few weeks after.

Luckily I am getting a freezer from my sister for free to make a keezer. I will try not to buy equipment unless I need it and just keep my eyes open for deals.

Thanks for the imput
 
I figured out the other day that I can buy a case of Ruination directly from Stone for $60. On the other hand, I can brew two cases of a clone for about $35 in materials. That's pretty damn awesome. I try not to think about how much I've put into equipment. I just write all that off as "sunk costs."
 
It's a hobby, and it's cheaper than owning a plane as a hobby.

Or vintage motorcycles, I stopped keeping track of what I spend on those!:eek:
I think if you stay bare bones on the equipment, only bottle, (with recycled bottles), you can totally save money and drink really good beer.
But as a hobby, ain't no way your going to save money, but you'll have a lot of fun, and drink good beer too:tank:
 
I'm like that. I've got a couple hudred in equipment & can do 2 5-6 Gallon batches at a time. An IPA with 6oz of hops runs about .57c per bottle. That's pretty frugal. An average pale ale about 45c per bottle. I use recycled bottles Wit o2 barrier caps I get good beer without all the bells & whistels.
 
My goal has always been to brew good beer for cheaper than I can buy it. I have a basic set up and about 6 fermenters. I have been brewing for 3 years and I believe that I have spent about $300 of my own money. I brew all grain, buy grain and hops in bulk, re-use yeast as much as I can (get about 3-4 brews from one packet of yeast usually). I ask for money or brew related item for my birthday and Christmas and use the money for the grain, hops and yeast. So basically every homebrew I drink is a birthday or Christmas present!

I realize that I am not typical, but you can save money if you want to.
 
I make almost every piece of equipment I use, so I try saving money everywhere possible, especially equipment upgrades. My MLT cost me about $15. My 50' 1/2" IC set me back about $60. My mill was a gift and the housing for everything cost about $5. Bought 150# of grain in a group buy for $100 and a bunch of hops in bulk for $20. I also rinse and reuse my yeast. My last 5gal batch cost me $8.50 (not including propane). Even after looking at all the small DYI and bulk ingredient purchases, I think I'm still breaking even. Then again, most 6packs are going for more than what I paid to brew 5gallons. I guess it all comes down to this; for what I drink, I pay less brewing and drinking my homebrew than if I were to just drink commercial beer. Cheers!
 
$7-$9 sixpacks
$3-$5 16-22oz singles

5 gallons of that is a lot more than ingredients for 5 gallons.
When you add in equipment,,, hell,, don't add in equipment . We'd have bought all those toys anyways.:mug:
 
Gotta love the topic. Reminds me of the whole fishing thing. I've amassed over $5K in fly rods and reels and a couple of kilobucks of materials and a bazillion kinds of fly hooks, a 20' sport fishing boat and a couple of canoes over ~45 years in the sport - and I'm a catch and release flyfisher, which makes the per-fish-kept cost roughly...infinite.

I was about to cobble up a spreadsheet of my brew gear cost over ~10 years of home brewing and amortize that across an average of 150 gallons per year. Then I remembered the fishing thing, and decided to skip the whole exercise ;)

Cheers!
 
It's a hobby, and it's cheaper than owning a plane as a hobby.

This made me laugh out loud. I haven't done a price breakdown - its my hobby, and I enjoy sharing GOOD beer with people no matter the $'s (or lack thereof) involved.

That being said, I refuse to spend a couple hundred bucks on equipment when I can purchase the parts separately, read some 'how-to's' and put it together myself for a third of the cost.

I'm handy like that... :D
 
Most of the replies are missing one crucial fact. The original poster is from Canada, and we pay more for beer than you lucky Americans do.

A sixpack of a craft type beer is going to be at least $12-15, so if you can brew at 50 cents a beer you're saving at least $1.50/beer. Multiply that by say 60 beers in a batch and that's a savings of at least $90 per batch.

I'm new to this, but I think I have enough equipment now to BIAB and bottle without buying anything else. My total costs with a starter kit ($70), kettle ($80), and other misc items (at least under $100), mean I could be saving money after 3 batches.

Of course that's probably not the reason to get into this as a hobby. You should do it because you love beer and you find the idea of making it yourself really interesting.
 
day_trippr said:
Gotta love the topic. Reminds me of the whole fishing thing. I've amassed over $5K in fly rods and reels and a couple of kilobucks of materials and a bazillion kinds of fly hooks, a 20' sport fishing boat and a couple of canoes over ~45 years in the sport - and I'm a catch and release flyfisher, which makes the per-fish-kept cost roughly...infinite.

I was about to cobble up a spreadsheet of my brew gear cost over ~10 years of home brewing and amortize that across an average of 150 gallons per year. Then I remembered the fishing thing, and decided to skip the whole exercise ;)

Cheers!

I gave up my guitar/band hobby many years back. This hobby is cheap by comparison and I have a decent brewing setup. I still have all the kilobucks of music gear. I just can't sell it. My 7yo son is interested in guitar now. He will have a good start!
 
bwarbiany said:
Clearly the per-batch cost is better than buying commercial. I brew 10-gallon batches (~4 cases). For a 6% IPA, let's say I'm spending $30 on grain, $20 on hops, and $10 on yeast. Add in sundries ($5 for propane, a few bucks for water, ice for my chiller [in the summer], electricity for my fermentation fridge), and I'm spending less than $80 for a batch. And that's one of my more expensive batches.

Compare that to the equivalent quantity of store-bought. 4 cases is 16 six-packs. Here in CA you can expect to spend at least $9 per six pack, and with tax and CRV, you're over $10. So each equivalent batch would cost me $160 or more commercially.

Brew a strong belgian, imperial stout, or a double IPA (beers usually bought in 22 oz bombers)? You'll save more money because those beers commercially are much more expensive, but homebrewing is not that much more expensive. Brew a more mild session beer, easier on the hops? You'll save more money, because those beers commercially are still in the $8+ range per sixer at the store.

How many batches will it take to amortize the equipment costs? Depends how balls-out you go on your equipment. My brew rig is pretty stable, cost-wise. But I just dropped $600 or so in total cost to outfit my 6-tap keezer, and thus it'll probably take me most of a year to amortize that cost in brewing savings. But since I do ~12 batches a year, at a savings of $80+ per batch, and I've been brewing 6 1/2 years, I'd say I've probably broken even by now.

+1 to this. Most of the beers I buy are like $10 a 4 pack. It cost me less than $50 to make 60 or so bottles of 7-9% beer. No doubt in my mind I'm saving $$ since I've started brewing. But I agree in the start it seems like a lot of spending to get everything set up.
 
Oh man...where do I start? I still have engine parts new since the 70's,including a crower injector scoup,a cobraII hood scoop,A holley street dominator intake,tires,& other misc tuner parts... I'm in trouble for the parts I haven't got to yet,grease stains on my hands,& I don't know where I've been. Am I here because of your humility...or your stupidity?...ooops,got away from myself there. I have a whole stack of guitars,& a half stack Fender rock pro 1000,stomp boxes,pedal boards,Now all my brewing gear. A lot of tools too. I'm not sure anymore if I'm a pack rat or a rennesance man.Still like to get back to playin guitar,brew more,put the parts in my lil tuner I have layin around....Maybe I need help...?:drunk:
 
Back when all I drank was Sierra Nevada pale ale, I think I did calculations including the Gas/water bill and think I broke even, back when I would just buy extract or kits.

I haven't bothered with calulating it now that I have an all grain system, mostly because I look at the prices of Stone or Russian River and can't say that I enjoy paying what they charge. Not saying it's not worth it, just not really up my alley to spend what they want.

Paintball was the one hobby I got into and could not believe how much money I had invested in it in such a short time. When I sold my gear bag I was in it 3 grand, $200+ speedball days, just for fun. Where the **** did all my income go?

Oh ya, girlfriend + kid. Wouldn't trade them for the world though.
 
I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned the largest cost of making beer... time.

I started brewing over twenty years ago because good beer was difficult to find and expensive, but stopped after a couple of years because it just took too much time. I dug out my equipment last year when I retired. It seems that my time is not as valuable now (supply and demand) and with the exception of a few updates (temp controller, stir plate, etc) my equipment was paid for so long ago that it doesn't count. So in answer to the OP's question, yes I do save money.

Bob
 
yrewerb said:
I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned the largest cost of making beer... time.

I started brewing over twenty years ago because good beer was difficult to find and expensive, but stopped after a couple of years because it just took too much time. I dug out my equipment last year when I retired. It seems that my time is not as valuable now (supply and demand) and with the exception of a few updates (temp controller, stir plate, etc) my equipment was paid for so long ago that it doesn't count. So in answer to the OP's question, yes I do save money.

Bob

It's a hobby so it's hard to put a value on time. When I have no time I have no beer (like now) and probably like all those years for you.

For me, the time spent brewing is the reward. The (mostly) good beer is a nice bonus. The money spent along the way is really not that important.
 
Apart from the constant upgrading and "beer-jewelry" as I like to call it, I was on my way to saving money, but then I decided to open a brewery...
 
Ask a golfer what he spends on his hobby. I think this is probably cheaper for most. I find it relaxing, and have the benefit of beer that is better than most I buy. I laugh when someone tells me they brew to save money. I'm sure a couple of folks pull it off, but my per bottle cost is pretty high if I include equipment cost. I guess I need to brew more to get that average down...:mug:
 
A big difference between homebrew and most other hobbies is when you are done, you go for a beer... so for homebrew you don't pay for the beer when you are done, but after a round of golf, a motercycle ride, a day fishing, etc, you get some beer.

So in this case it is hobby cost (beer included) in the others, it is hobby cost plus beer.

Does it save me money? I don't know. I drink more beer now that I make what I like.
 
Besides brewing what we like causing more drinking,I think it's also the fact that so much more beer is on hand. Complicated by knowing exactly how to make more of it...
 
Trying to save money on a hobby is a fools errand

Or a hobby in itself. Check out http://slickdeals.net/ . I swear people buy stuff just because it's a good deal. We brag in our signatures about the awesome beers we made; they brag about the awesome deals they got.

Besides brewing what we like causing more drinking,I think it's also the fact that so much more beer is on hand. Complicated by knowing exactly how to make more of it...

I try to do things on the cheap. For me, that's a little bit part of the fun. I go DIY as much as possible, try not to buy lots of gear, bulk grain, wash yeast, use only a few strains of yeast, and whatever else I can think of to lower costs. I've probably spent about $500, but I've got a lot of bulk ingredients put back, and have had plenty of beer and applewine to drink this past year. I haven't bought a single beer (except from bars) in the last year. Part of my savings include using the gas stove (included in rent!) and only brewing small batches, but I get a good variety and really enjoy the process. That said, I drink a lot more than I would if I were not brewing my own and didn't have a few cases lying around.

P.S. SlickDeals can be a great resource. I got a free handheld foodsaver from Target for repackaging bulk hops. It saves money on other stuff, too.
 
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