electric equipment start up costs

[wacko]

Ok minus the hardware that needs to be bought alongside the electric brew system like kettles and pumps and such.

What kind of costs will I be looking at for the elements, controllers, wires, fuses, contactors and box. mainly I'm wondering what the working control box and elements add up to? (ballpark of course)

I am not too worried about how it looks more worried that it works and I can pass the budget committee (aka swmbo)

 

[kklowell]

Or... sneak it all past SWMBO? That's the only thing that seems to work for me. Most of the time anyway.
I wish I had more to offer you in answer to your question, but I too am just starting to accumulate parts for a build and have no idea what it will end up costing (and in some ways I don't want to know).

 

[WAORGANY]

Ok minus the hardware that needs to be bought alongside the electric brew system like kettles and pumps and such.

What kind of costs will I be looking at for the elements, controllers, wires, fuses, contactors and box. mainly I'm wondering what the working control box and elements add up to? (ballpark of course)

I am not too worried about how it looks more worried that it works and I can pass the budget committee (aka swmbo)

I am not sure we want to know the answer!!!

Or... sneak it all past SWMBO? That's the only thing that seems to work for me. Most of the time anyway.
I wish I had more to offer you in answer to your question, but I too am just starting to accumulate parts for a build and have no idea what it will end up costing (and in some ways I don't want to know).

Yeah I am in the same ball park...know I am going to do it, know it will cost some $$$, not sure if I want to know what it will cost overall...kind of like my keggarator... when you add it all up, you like wow, I could buy alot of beer for that $$$. Good luck, I will be watching this for others comments on overall costs! Thanks all the best.

 

[kklowell]

So far...steel for stand..$80, pump (from eBay a couple years ago <$20, keg (couple of years ago too, I think ~$35, cooler I had already, spa disconnect $50, 4-wire dryer outlet $20ish, fifty feet of 10-3 wire-$30, ticket for expired inspection sticker I got while picking up the 10-3 from a craigslister-$50.
I think I'm going to buy the fittings to convert the cooler to a MT today.

 

[JayInJersey]

Depends on the details of the system...

But I'd say just for the Control Box on Kal's www.electricbrewery.com site you are estimating $500-1000 ($100 box, $400 electric components, $200 for the jacks, $100 HSink, $200 misc...yeah that's a good estimate)

Then there are the actual kettles pumps and hardware etc...I estimated around $2500-$3000 total project budget + cost of electrician for breakbox work)

 

[Walker]

Depends on the details of the system...

But I'd say just for the Control Box on Kal's www.electricbrewery.com site you are estimating $500-1000 ($100 box, $400 electric components, $200 for the jacks, $100 HSink, $200 misc...yeah that's a good estimate)

Then there are the actual kettles pumps and hardware etc...I estimated around $2500-$3000 total project budget + cost of electrician for breakbox work)

Kal's system not a good stick by which to measure the cost of an electric system.

It's like a Ferrari. I have a Honda.

It's a simple electric HERMS system capable of doing 10 gallon batches, using a single electric element. I did not keep every single receipt for every single thing, but the total cost was less than $500.

This included
- little giant pump
- stainless fittings and welding work on a keggle
- heater element
- control box and everything in it (PID + SSR + heatsink + outlets + power cables and distribution + switches + lights + etc + etc)
- hoses
- hard copper pipe for some of the plumbing (cause it was cheaper than the freaking silicon hose)
- ball valves
- 50A gfi breaker + an electrician to install it and an outlet in the garage

I did already have some things that became used in the system, like the keggles, a table to sit everything on, and a copper coil (my old chiller, convered to HERMS coil).

 

[kklowell]

I have to agree with Walker on this one..Kal's system is the ultimate. It's what you can do and can spend if you have a very large budget. On my budget (I drive a 95 Lumina I got for free) the goal is to make a decent system that makes good beer for the absolute minimum expenditure.

 

[JayInJersey]

It's all going to come down to what you want...or if budget is a concern, what your minimums are

Then you can build a cost from there...



This reminds me of a friend who used to give Auto-Body estimates of $50,000 to anyone who asked "How much would ____ cost?"
His reason..."if I don't see it I can't be certain, but chances are $50k will cover it"

 

[Walker]

Off the top of my head, just for the power work in the house and up to the control box (everything includes shipping):

$35 - steel enclosure
$30 - PID
$15 - 40A SSR w/ heatsink
$21 - Pt100 RTD in thermowell (temp probe)
$10 - panel mount quick disconnect for temp probe
$9 - 40A 2-pole contactor
$40 - primary power cable from wall
$35 - 50A GFI breaker
$100 - electrician to install breaker and outlet
$11 - outlets on control box for kettle and pump and outlet on the wall
$25 - power cable from panel to kettle element
$15 - heater element
$20 - stainless fittings for element + 2 couplings for e-kettle
$45 - welding work on kettle
$20 - switches, lights, little breakers/fuses, DIY pulse width modulator, power distribution inside box
$10 - misc wires and spade connectors for wiring work


That comes to a little less than $450, so I guess I am closer to $600 for the whole system when you add the pump and copper plumbing that I did.

Note, I went overboard on a few things (like that primary input power cable), but I also got great deals on a few things (like the enclosure and GFI breaker), so it all works out.

 

[JayInJersey]

Damn I must have got rooked on some of my stuff...hell shipping was more expensive than $20 for all my switches and stuff

Ah well...I'll just overcharge someone on an install or something

 

[Walker]

Damn I must have got rooked on some of my stuff...hell shipping was more expensive than $20 for all my switches and stuff

Well, what I saved in money, I paid for in manual labor. I bought all of my small electronics from mouser.com, and shipping was only about $8 for the box of breakers, switches, and some other misc things. There are only a a few switches on the box, and they were about $1 each. They were small rectangles (0.5" x .075"). Cutting those little fvcking rectangular holes in the steel enclosure I got was a royal PITA. If I had bought round switches, I would have paid more for the switches, but could have quickly and easily drilled a hole in the panel to install them.

 

[Sparky]

Kal said his estimate was $5K for everything: stands, electronics, kettles, the hood, and (including) the kitchen sink! I think that is a super hot screaming deal and peanuts for what you get.

FYI, we run an electrical contracting company and bill $110/hr in labor. Give us a call and we'll be happy to wire your system

 

[Walker]

we run an electrical contracting company and bill $110/hr in labor. Give us a call and we'll be happy to wire your system

That's cool. Where are you located, anyway?

 

[Sparky]

That's cool. Where are you located, anyway?

San Francisco Bay Area. We do electrical and solar (photovoltaic) work.
synapseelectric.com

For those folks out there running their own business, these projects are a great write-off for the material!

Walker, lover your avi

 

[coffeediver]

I went the lazy way. I just went down Kal's list and ordered everything through his links. All except for one converted yet still unused keggle that I had gotten from Sabco about 4 years ago. I am using that as my HLT. I also just bought a 60" sink base with 72" counter top from Loews. Although I did try to find some things cheaper, sometimes not worth the hassle. Now I just have to keep the credit card statement away from SWMBO. Also I let her buy a new horse on my birthday a month ago to help sweeten the deal.

Barry

 

[Scut_Monkey]

I agree, Kal's setup is quite elaborate. All that bling costs money but it sure looks perdy!

 

[Sparky]

I went the lazy way. Now I just have to keep the credit card statement away from SWMBO.
Barry

Barry, sounds like you went the wise-way! Since we're talkin' moolah, approx. what did your purchases total?
Sparky

PS - Oh ya, just brew your SWMBO her favorite batch and that should take care of those credit card bills. Works for me:cross:

 

[jasonsbeer]

Well, what I saved in money, I paid for in manual labor. I bought all of my small electronics from mouser.com, and shipping was only about $8 for the box of breakers, switches, and some other misc things. There are only a a few switches on the box, and they were about $1 each. They were small rectangles (0.5" x .075"). Cutting those little fvcking rectangular holes in the steel enclosure I got was a royal PITA. If I had bought round switches, I would have paid more for the switches, but could have quickly and easily drilled a hole in the panel to install them.

I'm currently piecing together a RIMS setup and thought about ordering some rocker switches because they look neater than toggle switches. Your post confirms my final decision to stick with "round things" is correct. The only rectangles I should have to cut will be for 2 PIDS.

 

[Walker]

I'm currently piecing together a RIMS setup and thought about ordering some rocker switches because they look neater than toggle switches. Your post confirms my final decision to stick with "round things" is correct. The only rectangles I should have to cut will be for 2 PIDS.

it is possible to find illuminated rocker switches that fit through round holes in a panel. i could have bought those on mouser.com, but i was trying to keep costs as low as possible and went for the rectangular rockers. big mistake.

 

[coffeediver]

Barry, sounds like you went the wise-way! Since we're talkin' moolah, approx. what did your purchases total?
Sparky

PS - Oh ya, just brew your SWMBO her favorite batch and that should take care of those credit card bills. Works for me:cross:

I have yet to add up the total but I did go through Kal's list one day and counted up everything but one Blichmann kettle and the brew stand and a few odds and ends that I already had I came up with about $3900+.

And my SWMBO does not even like beer.

Barry

 

[MarkInOhio]

My motto with this sort of thing: "It's easier to get forgiveness than permission."

 

[JayInJersey]

Personally I refuse to keep the receipts and do a total...it will just make me cry.

I've been buying Kal's system a vendore at a time (like all the Morebeer stuff, all the bliochmann etc) and those make me feel a little less sad.

Now that it's all there...I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by it all.

It's gonna be a fun weekend!

 

[EuBrew]

I'm with Jay! If I had to guess I'll be into mine about 2.5 to 3K.

That's with 3 pumps, brewtroller, stainless hard plumbing with swageloks, keggles, 3 elements, and the associated wire/breakers/misc.

It makes me wanna cry too

 

[coffeediver]

Yes, cry into the beer I am going to make with it.

 

[JayInJersey]

That's why they make those little umbrellas...

 

[jfkriege]

Ok minus the hardware that needs to be bought alongside the electric brew system like kettles and pumps and such.

What kind of costs will I be looking at for the elements, controllers, wires, fuses, contactors and box. mainly I'm wondering what the working control box and elements add up to? (ballpark of course)

I am not too worried about how it looks more worried that it works and I can pass the budget committee (aka swmbo)

My brewery is in the signature (go down to post 2). I ended up spending about $350 on the control box and elements. It is a basic setup that controls 1 element and two pumps, and can be reconfigured to run 2x 120V elements as well. For a single element brewery, I think you could do $300 pretty happily. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me, or I will watch this thread.

Joshua

 

[kal]

Depends on the details of the system...

But I'd say just for the Control Box on Kal's www.electricbrewery.com site you are estimating $500-1000 ($100 box, $400 electric components, $200 for the jacks, $100 HSink, $200 misc...yeah that's a good estimate)

Then there are the actual kettles pumps and hardware etc...I estimated around $2500-$3000 total project budget + cost of electrician for breakbox work)

I'm working on a FAQ for my site to answer questions like cost. Here's a preview of the breakdown:

How much will it cost me to build a brewery like this?

The number one question we get asked is "how much?". Below are some rough estimates on part costs based on Fall 2010 prices:

Hot Liquor Tank: $758 ($400 Blichmann boilermaker kettle, $88 heating, $270 plumbing)
Mash/Lauter Tun: $567 ($495 Blichmann boilermaker kettle + false bottom, $72 plumbing)
Boil Kettle: $566 ($400 Blichmann boilermaker kettle, $88 heating, $67 HopStopper, $11 plumbing)
Hoses: $302
Brew Stand: $120
Pumps: $915 ($790 pumps, $125 plumbing)
Wort Chiller: $352 ($189 counterflow chiller, $163 plumbing)
Temperature Probes: $112
Control Panel: $891 - 1010
Ventilation system: $273 - 978 ($45-750 hood, $150 fan, $78 electrical and plumbing)
Grain Mill: $130
Total cost: $ 4986 - 5810 USD

Note included: Commercial stainless steel sink and wall-mount pre-rinse arm and faucet ($600), installation of a standard 240V/30A dryer outlet in the brewery (price varies), shipping, taxes/duties.

Kal

 

[jasonsbeer]

Total cost: $ 4986 - 5810 USD

I hope non-brewers don't stumble upon this and decide brewing is only for "rich people". Maybe a footnote would be appropriate indicating anybody can start brewing with probably $50 in parts.

 

[Dgonza9]

Post #5 on This THREAD has cost breakdown for my initial setup. Much of the cost had to do with ventilation and electrical, which I actually overdid a bit and will depend on your space.

Post #6 On THIS THREAD has a breakdown for the control box and RIMS TUBE.

 

[kal]

I hope non-brewers don't stumble upon this and decide brewing is only for "rich people". Maybe a footnote would be appropriate indicating anybody can start brewing with probably $50 in parts.

Electric brewing will always be more expensive than gas. That much is true. You can't build an electrical brewing setup for $50. There's no way. There are many reasons to go electrical including (a) brewing indoors, (b) control (usually a PD), (c) less cost over the long term since electricity costs less than gas.

I'd say setup costs for electrical setups the way most people would want to be set up are in the $500 range once you factor in everything. You could easily spend $200 just in getting a 30A+ electrical outlet installed from your breaker panel.

The point of my site isn't to get non-brewers people to be interested in brewing or how to do it cheaply - there are a bazillion sites and books out there for that. You can brew on your stove for basically next to free. For example, see the first video here: http://brooklynbrewshop.com/instructions

For what it's worth, I know lots of people (not rich people) who spend more than $5K on a hobby. You'll easily spend more on golfing, skiing, etc over just a few years. Remember that this brewery setup cost is one time cost. I also know a lot of brewers who have spend more than that over the years because they buy cheap stuff that doesn't last or work right and they are constantly changing out stuff. Pay once, do it right. Then use it forever. IMHO, $5K to pay once for hobby that you'll do for the rest of your life is cheap!

There's still the malt/hops/yeast cost that but that's really cheap if you buy in bulk. I pay $25 for a 50lb sack of 2-row. Hops are $6-10/lb. I get together with a bunch of local brewers and do bulk oders. We spend many thousands direct from the maltsters and hop distributors and save. I figure it costs me about $100-150/year to make as much beer as I and all my friends could ever drink. Brewing (even with a high-end setup) is one of the cheapest hobbies I know about!

Kal