All grain brewing cost

[epistrummer]

For the record, homebrewing doesn't save you money. 95% of homebrewers admit this and the other 5% are probably lying.

I know that, but I've got to convince my wife that I NEED an all-grain setup so that it's cheaper.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

I know that, but I've got to convince my wife that I NEED an all-grain setup so that it's cheaper.

Tell her the cost of grain is less than extract. It may not always be the case if extract is being bought in bulk. You may have to go buy her some bling or a purse or something to help convince her if she is anything like my wife. If you start out with a rectangular cooler and stainless braid filter following something like this http://www.donosborn.com/homebrew/mashtun.htm like I did, you can get into all grain quick and without much money.
I used to live in C Falls and I really miss the summer weather there!

 

[TopherM]

Do you have a dog or a garden? Spent grain can also be recycled as dog biscuits, bread, or fertilizer! Tell her you need to do your part to save the planet! Al Gore commands you to go all grain!

 

[ak-71]

I am fermenting my first AG batch and I can see how it's cheaper than extract, but some good all grain kits (concentrated wort) like "Brewhouse" are not much more expensive if I add all equipment costs up. These kits are pre-hoped though
So I went to AG for a freedom to do anithing I choose to do to MY beer. More fun this way. Not sure beer will be better than kits yet...

PS. Yes and bragging rights too

 

[epistrummer]

Well, compared to the stories here I'm an exception to the rule...in that I spend WAY more overall for homebrew than I would, even if I only bought premium beers from the state run liquor store (Utah). I have a 15g Blichmann HLT and a 20g Blichmann boil kettle. I have 9 pepsi kegs. I have two 5.2cuft chest freezers, each with a Ranco temp controller for fermentation chambers. I have a 7.2cuft chest freezer with a 10lb CO2 tank and three Perlick taps, with micromatic primary regulator then dual secondary feeding a 2-way manifold and a 3-way manifold. I have 2 plate filters. I have a counter pressure bottle filler. I have a 50ft 1/2" wort chiller. it goes on and on.

I like gear! I spend more collecting gear than making beer.

I like the way you roll! I get the feeling that I will also acquire lots of cool beer making gear. I am pretty sure an all grain setup is next.

 

[corkybstewart]

Well, compared to the stories here I'm an exception to the rule...in that I spend WAY more overall for homebrew than I would, even if I only bought premium beers from the state run liquor store (Utah). I have a 15g Blichmann HLT and a 20g Blichmann boil kettle. I have 9 pepsi kegs. I have two 5.2cuft chest freezers, each with a Ranco temp controller for fermentation chambers. I have a 7.2cuft chest freezer with a 10lb CO2 tank and three Perlick taps, with micromatic primary regulator then dual secondary feeding a 2-way manifold and a 3-way manifold. I have 2 plate filters. I have a counter pressure bottle filler. I have a 50ft 1/2" wort chiller. it goes on and on.

I like gear! I spend more collecting gear than making beer.

There are cheap ways to collect homebrewing gear. I watch craigslist, there are always people getting out of the hobby and will sell cheap. I bought a guy's setup a few years ago for $200. It included 2 3 tap brass towers. a 6 way manifold, 3 regulators, a 5 pound steel CO2 tank, hoses, fittings, hops, dry yeast etc. I use my old kitchen fridge as one of my kegerators. I have 24 kegs and have actually only had to pay for 6 of them. Even then I bought the 6 kegs of craigslist and the guy threw in a 6 way coldplate and a big box of fittings including another manifold. A brewpub closed and the owner gave me 8 cornies, a 6 way manifold with a regulator for each keg, and an immersion chiller, all from his old days as a homebrewer. I use old kegs I bought at a junkyard for my 3 kettles(plus one for cooking). My biggest expense was the 12.2 gallon stainless conical my wife gave me for my birthday a few years ago, and the nice burners my kids gave me for Christmas years ago. I love collecting homebrew equipment more than most, and luckily I have room for it, but I don't really like spending money on it. Ilike to save that for beer travel.

 

[jbaysurfer]

For the record, homebrewing doesn't save you money. 95% of homebrewers admit this and the other 5% are probably lying.

That depends on a LOT of factors:

1. what quanity of beer do you normally consume

2. what was your total equipment costs

3. What kind of beer and at what price did you used to buy store bought brews? If the answer to this is "I only bought the $50/case imports before" then YES homebrewing will start saving you money in no time!

Craft beer in my area costs $15-18 for a 12-bottle case! That's $66 for 48 bottles! I can brew homebrew for $17-$30 for 50 bottles depending on style. The SWMBO and I drink about 48 bottles per month on average so I save about $42/month on beer cost. In just 1 year I save $504 on beer because I homebrew. I have invested about $500 in my equipment and the rest have been gifts. Once you have the main equipment you can get by without much more equipment cost for years. My up-front equipment cost will be saved in the first year of homebrewing. Score!

I can safely say that YES, homebrewing saves you money. :rockin:

^ Lying.