• Please visit and share your knowledge at our sister communities:
  • If you have not, please join our official Homebrewing Facebook Group!

    Homebrewing Facebook Group

Propane and Cooling Water Costs

Homebrew Talk

Help Support Homebrew Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

huckbof

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 4, 2015
Messages
134
Reaction score
7
I am currently averaging this:

Propane: 2.83 ¢/minute of heating

Cooling Water: 1.08 ¢/minute cooling

how does this compare?

Cent sign ¢
 
Mine runs around 12.00 to fill a 20 lb tank and I can get a little over two batchs. So 6 dollars a batch. Water is so cheap it don't count. If I figure the cost of water I am going to average out how much it cost to cap each beer. Not the cap but how much it cost for each stroke of the 16 dollar capper before it breaks.
 
I paid $1.60 per gallon of propane this year... what are you paying? In general it takes a given amount of propane to generate a given number of BTUs, so the real question is how much are you paying per BTU, or per gallon.

If you are paying a significant amount for water (I'm not), you should look at using that water for more than one thing........... Use it in the bath tub, or washing machine. Water your garden, or save it to flush the toilet.

Last spring I had problems with frozen lines underground (6' under ground). I ended up carrying water from across the street. My water got used 3 times before it hit the drain as a rule. Bath water became laundry water, became toilet flush water..... When you've gotta carry it, you get creative!!


H.W.
 
I paid $1.60 per gallon of propane this year... what are you paying? In general it takes a given amount of propane to generate a given number of BTUs, so the real question is how much are you paying per BTU, or per gallon.

If you are paying a significant amount for water (I'm not), you should look at using that water for more than one thing........... Use it in the bath tub, or washing machine. Water your garden, or save it to flush the toilet.

Last spring I had problems with frozen lines underground (6' under ground). I ended up carrying water from across the street. My water got used 3 times before it hit the drain as a rule. Bath water became laundry water, became toilet flush water..... When you've gotta carry it, you get creative!!


H.W.

Mind telling me where you live so I can never visit? Frost line here is around 18" and it gets in single digits for extended periods over winter. I can't imagine somewhere that 6' deep lines freeze, cold and I do not get along whatsoever.
 
Mind telling me where you live so I can never visit? Frost line here is around 18" and it gets in single digits for extended periods over winter. I can't imagine somewhere that 6' deep lines freeze, cold and I do not get along whatsoever.

I live in South Central Montana....... Those lines had NEVER frozen before in the 35 years I've lived in the area, and I've seen temps drop to a recorded low one night of -48F (quite a few years ago). -30 is common here in December and January, but so is 50+. The changes are stunningly radical. I've seen the temps change 60 degrees in either direction in less than an hour.

I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly encourage you not to come to Montana! It's not for the faint of heart!! I know how deep those lines are.... I put them in myself with my own backhoe!!


H.W.
 
I live in South Central Montana....... Those lines had NEVER frozen before in the 35 years I've lived in the area, and I've seen temps drop to a recorded low one night of -48F (quite a few years ago). -30 is common here in December and January, but so is 50+. The changes are stunningly radical. I've seen the temps change 60 degrees in either direction in less than an hour.

I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly encourage you not to come to Montana! It's not for the faint of heart!! I know how deep those lines are.... I put them in myself with my own backhoe!!


H.W.

Our water lines are 6-8 feet deep and have never frozen. Last year, we had the frost line go down to 54" (typical winter it's more like 36-42"). But one benefit of deeply-buried water lines is that my cold tap water rarely gets above low-60s in the summer, so the IC works great.

Last time I was in Montana I saw a bumper sticker that read: "Montana sucks. Go home and tell all your friends" :cross:
 
I paid $1.60 per gallon of propane this year... what are you paying?

$2.52/gal propane, I pay 12 bucks for 20 lbs. My number is an average over several batches. I usually use about 2 lbs per batch, a little more on 90 minute boils.
I don't think I care how many British Thermal Units I use.

$0.0085/gal water
I was getting concerned when it would take twice as long to cool a batch in August, but now that I did the math, it might cost an extra 40 cents to half a buck at most. So now, I am going to brew more in the summer. I could try and save the 50 gals of cooling water but it would be a lot of effort for ¢50

Bath water became laundry water

bath water in the laundry? so much for a clean rinse? did you bail and carry from the bathtub to the washing machine?
 
I live in South Central Montana....... Those lines had NEVER frozen before in the 35 years I've lived in the area, and I've seen temps drop to a recorded low one night of -48F (quite a few years ago). -30 is common here in December and January, but so is 50+. The changes are stunningly radical. I've seen the temps change 60 degrees in either direction in less than an hour.

I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly encourage you not to come to Montana! It's not for the faint of heart!! I know how deep those lines are.... I put them in myself with my own backhoe!!


H.W.

F***. That. S***.

Our water lines are 6-8 feet deep and have never frozen. Last year, we had the frost line go down to 54" (typical winter it's more like 36-42"). But one benefit of deeply-buried water lines is that my cold tap water rarely gets above low-60s in the summer, so the IC works great.

Last time I was in Montana I saw a bumper sticker that read: "Montana sucks. Go home and tell all your friends" :cross:

AND THAT.
 
Mind telling me where you live so I can never visit? Frost line here is around 18" and it gets in single digits for extended periods over winter. I can't imagine somewhere that 6' deep lines freeze, cold and I do not get along whatsoever.

Here in Texas water lines never freeze underground and above ground you just need the foam to wrap around the pipe. ^^
 
Back
Top