How much does home brewing cost?

[BarleyDarling]

Entry fee to the home brewing park is about $100. You can stay there for a good long time. Then you want to have a couple going at the same time. $50-$75 later, you have 2 extract/grain going at the same time. About that time you decide all grain would be much more fun. $250 dollars later, you want to 10 gallon batches and you would like to start kegging. Well, now you in for over a grand, looking at a box of ziti, and you need to replace your hydrometer and you think there is a better way to get temp readings. Bob's your uncle, you have the bug, you mortgage the house and buy a brewery. Your wife leaves you, but you got the dog and a brewery.

I think you win at the end of the day.

This right here is my favorite answer. I foresee a dog and a large sum of lost money in my future.

 

[VladOfTrub]

He who dies with the most toys, wins.

 

[BlkWater_brewer]

He who dies with the most toys, wins.

He, whose wife kills him when she finds what the toys really cost. Wins

 

[Melana]

He who dies with the most toys, wins.

Or she...

 

[Melana]

It starts out pretty cheap....but then....the obsession begins

It's not so much the start up costs... it's the little thing here, small addition there, upgrade over there....

 

[Peruvian802]

A loaf of bread is under $5. To bake a loaf of bread you need a $500 oven. Why buy the oven?

 

[firerat]

What I spend in time and money I get back in delicious beer and relative sanity.

I have no idea how much I have spent on home brewing I don't want to know.

 

[soccerdad]

I'm getting rid of my oven .. more space for brewing !

 

[LakeErieMonster]

I would estimate I have spent ~5k in brewing equipment in the past 2 years (this is including the electric setup I just put in my basement, which is most of that cost).

How much of that is sunk in equipment I will never use, and how much of that was wasted is different numbers. I can tell you for sure I would not have built an electric brewery capable of producing 15 gallon batches right away, so the standard starter kit was the way to go. All of the other upgrades seemed to have happened naturally, with keezers and fermentation chambers and electric brewing. In the beginning, there was no way to know brewing would become an obsession (in retrospect, that was stupid) and no one wants to drop 2k on a brewing setup and not like to brew!

 

[HB_in_Subic]

I probably have spent $700 on my gear (ferm chamber, etc. plus shipping it halfway across the world). If I ignore that I am averaging about $2.50/L or $0.82 a 12oz bottle. That is more than reasonable for me as I get plenty of variety that is not available here. The local beer costs $0.75/12 oz bottle. I have lots of friends that are cheap and will drink the local beer. None want to learn how to make what I am making but all of them love it if proffered.

Look at it as cooking from a different angle and you can't compare restaurant cooking to what you make at home (usually way much better)..

 

[BadWolfBrewing]

I started with a 75 dollar kit, and did the standard progression. Carboy, ferm temp control, all grain, and then took a giant jump to a single tier electric herms. Between that, the kegerator and that stuff, and all the other costs including ingredients... maybe 5k? I don't mind, I'm pretty comfortable financially, and it keeps me busy.

I've also brewed a fair amount beer, maybe 300 gallons. So, that puts me at a little over 4 bucks a pint. The costs have slowed down and production has increased, so that number will continue to fall. Not that I care too much.

Now woodworking... there is an endless money pit. Cocaine would be cheaper.

 

[GHBWNY]

Initially, was given a complete brew equip. kit. ($150.) Bought a cheap WalMart SS kettle, hydrometer, thermometer, syphon, thief, chiller, funnels, strainer, misc. ($150.) A CL bargain on a lifetime supply of bottles ($35.) + freebies. Per/mo ingredients, crowns, sanitizer ($25.-35.) Helps getting a couple of LHBS gift cards during the year, plus the occasional brewing gift item. The rest is water and time. Have a perpetual rotation of at least 4-5 styles. Always enough on hand for me, guests and giveaways.

 

[xben]

I spent around 1000 $ for equipment & ingredients since I started 18 months ago. The only thing I did not count is the electricity. I have a spreadsheet that calculated bills and volumes produced and which show trendings/averages/ etc on graphs.

 

[Blue_State]

A loaf of bread is under $5. To bake a loaf of bread you need a $500 oven. Why buy the oven?

Because I can make a damn good loaf of bread.

 

[smccarter]

Funnily enough I have a spreadsheet just for this:

Start-up stove-top extract kit: $100
10G BIAB upgrade: $700
3-batch brew-day upgrade: $1200
Keezer & kegs: $1500
Fermentation chamber: $400
Miscellaneous: $400
Redundant equipment sales: -$600
TOTAL: $3700

But I've brewed 250 gallons (and, thanks to the keezer, bought half a dozen 5G kegs at times when the pipeline has run dry) at a savings of at least $10/gallon compared to the 6-packs I would otherwise have been buying, so my effective cost is more like $1000 and falling.

I haven't added any of my costs up. I usually buy when I want to upgrade. I have a freezer with a cheap temp controller that I use as a fermentation chamber and sometimes as a keezer. I have a mini-fridge keezer, and 9 cornie kegs. 2 Bayou Classic 8.5 gallon brew kettles, I believe 10 carboys, a couple of buckets, a 7 gallon igloo cooler, and a whole bunch of miscellaneous items. I'd say 3-4 thousand sounds about right. I've been brewing for about 12 years though, and have eased into the hobbie - from a simple extract setup (which I used for many years), to a simple all grain setup. I brew on the stove top, so I don't have a rig or any burners, etc. That saved me money.

The reality though is that I have saved money. I currently buy grain in bulk, and my per beer cost is anywhere from 30 cents to 70 cents depending on the beer that I'm brewing. The savings are very good. To purchase beer at a craft brew shop, of the same quality, I'd be spending in the neighborhood of $2 per beer. Even with all of the beer that I give away - and it's quite a bit - I still believe I'm saving a good bit of money, which goes against the cost of my equipment.

The great thing about all of this, is that it is a hobbie. I'm not looking to earn a living, or generate any type of captial. I just want to enjoy the occasional Saturday brewing beer, and the fruit of my labor is the sweet, carbonated nectar that I dispense from my chrome plated friends.

 

[gruffudd]

I'm trying not to think that much on what I've spent. Tho if I had to hazard a guess It would be around the $1,200 range. Thankfully I'm at the point were I don't really need anything more, other then building a kegorator.

 

[vincentAlpha]

Hmmm, all in probably about 500-600 for my kegging and brewing equipment. More than half of that being the kegging equipment, probably only 150-200 on my actual brew day stuff.

 

[bbohanon]

If I told you, my wife would have to kill me.

+1 with me. Started with a white elephant gift of a Mr Beer Kit. 3 years later and well over 6k later(over 10k if you factor in the cost of the shed), I am almost done with my 12x24 shed with a full Kal E-brew setup(Ventilation hood, electric panel and all).

Its a hobby that can be as expensive and shiny/complicated or as cheap and redneck rigged as you want it to be. Honestly I think the beer quality stays the same no matter what your equipment setup is as long as you follow the standard dos and dont with sanitation, keep your ferm temps right and use fresh ingredients, etc.

For me, I am targeting a few standard recipes and being able to replicate the recipes exactly the same batch to batch along with wanting to brew larger batches indoors with a bit more consistency instead of using propane/gas outdoors.

I also work in IT so I tend to go overboard with any hobby. Its a disease.

:fro:

 

[oogaboogachiefwalkingdeer]

Fermenters and kettles is all I really have purchased besides a few small things like hydrometer and capper, funnel ect. Already had burners and an 8 gallon pot to start. So probably around 200 or so. My batch's run 15 to 20 dollars depending on the style. That is pretty cheap beer.

 

[kpr121]

The great thing about all of this, is that it is a hobbie. .

Amen to that!

I'm not looking to earn a living, or generate any type of captial. I just want to enjoy the occasional Saturday brewing beer, and the fruit of my labor is the sweet, carbonated nectar that I dispense from my chrome plated friends.

This is where I lost you. Sounds like you need to upgrade to SS faucets

 

[kpr121]

I would estimate I have spent ~5k in brewing equipment in the past 2 years (this is including the electric setup I just put in my basement, which is most of that cost).

How much of that is sunk in equipment I will never use, and how much of that was wasted is different numbers. I can tell you for sure I would not have built an electric brewery capable of producing 15 gallon batches right away, so the standard starter kit was the way to go. All of the other upgrades seemed to have happened naturally, with keezers and fermentation chambers and electric brewing. In the beginning, there was no way to know brewing would become an obsession (in retrospect, that was stupid) and no one wants to drop 2k on a brewing setup and not like to brew!

Theres a good message in here for new brewers (and echoed by most responses in this thread)…. Don’t go dropping a ton of money into brewing until you’re sure that you’re going to be obsessed (you know it when it happens). Sure, if you end up not liking homebrewing you can sell off all/most of your stuff (email me, I’m always looking for a good deal!).

I went through about an 8 month hiatus where I couldn’t brew due to my living arrangements last year. Keep in mind this is after I spent the $2K (not to mention the DIY bar that I built in the old house that I found out got torn down for a ‘photography studio’ – ugh). I had serious thoughts that I would never brew again. Didn’t miss it. Had other hobbies that kept me busy. Drank a lot of yuengling and PBR. We got into the new house last fall and I’m back to the brewing-obsession with a vengeance.

Many people would agree that the best approach at throwing money into this hobby is to understand what purchases will either a. make your beer better, b. make your brewing experience easier, or c. make your setup cool/blingy/awesome/show-worthy. In. That. Order.

Everyone knows how they would address c. but you gotta have some experience under your belt (with some help/tips from friends here at HBT and other resources) before you know how to address a. and b.

 

[smccarter]

Amen to that!



This is where I lost you. Sounds like you need to upgrade to SS faucets

Oh no... another upgrade... It's always something.

 

[Happywanderer]

Unlike others, I don't count the cost of equipment into the cost of homebrewing a beer.

Because I consider it money well spent.

I only look at the cost per bottle per recipe.

Right now I average about ... $.75-$1.00 per bottle. And that ain't shabby when I'm cranking out brew that would sell for dubble or tripel that (see what I did there).

As I perfect my technique and harvest more yeast, I'll drive that down a bit. I am also toying with buying hops in bulk for the stuff I use a lot (EKG, Cascade, Fuggles, Nugget). And once I get a grain mill I'll be buying base malts in bulk... another cost saver. I'd like to see $.65-$.75 average costs....

 

[Peruvian802]

Because I can make a damn good loaf of bread.

Precisely!

 

[EuBrew]

I wouldn't be surprised if I was above the $4k mark. That puts my per batch cost in the several hundred dollar range at this point but I have pretty much everything I need to really work on consistency and banging out killer beers when I find time.

 

[Culinarytracker]

Easy, $200 per month.

That is the budget I can afford, and I am having no problem keeping up with it.

Actually though, I had a couple months that came close to the $500 mark, but that got my entire kegging setup, and chest freezer. There is quite a bit of money left to spend. I plan on getting:
Another chest freezer/temp controller for fermentation chamber,
Stainless shanks and perlick flow control faucets once I build my collar,
a 10 gallon 3 vessel system (got a good lead on craigs list for under a thousand)
More kegs
Portable keg system (keg coat, ice blanket, tiny regulator and paintball co2)
Waterproof handheld thermometer with a couple k probes.

After that I'm sure there will be more, but as has been said many times, this is a hobby and it makes me (and my friends) happy.

 

[Clonefan94]

I have all of my receipts somewhere, but last count I was in around $700. That included retrofitting my kegerator to 3 taps and ball locks, 5 - 5 gallon kegs, 2 - 2.5 gallon kegs and the equipment I use to brew.

I've thought multiple times of really diving in and building an automated brewing rig, but I always talk myself out of it after I brew because what I have does the job so well now.

 

[Calder]

I've kept detail costs. One of the aims of this hobby for me is to make excellent beer that will stand against some of the best craft beers for low cost.

I'm currently around $3600 for everything, and produced about 8000 bottes, and probably have everything I need for another 1000. Less than 50 cents a bottle.

For ingredients only, I'm probably about 30 cents a bottle, for my average 1.060 beer.

 

[glick]

Along my journey to e-brewing I have spent entirely too much money!!!

 

[Onkel_Udo]

It only costs you most of your soul.