Why are homebrew people SO cheap??

[Sailingeric]

But have you seen the price of custom tap handles?
https://www.custommade.com/custom-beer-tap-handles-odin/by/mkcarving/

Ps: I'm just adding that link to make the point...... "We as humans are able to justify anything we do no matter how ridiculous even as what we are doing destroys the world around us." Arnold

Ouch! That makes the $25 for the ones I am selling look like a bargin!

 

[NitrogenWidget]

In order to save money for my bar set and to avoid paying an arm and leg for nice tap handles I spent nearly $1,000 on a lathe and tools to make 4 tap handles.

buying a 3d printer soon and i'll most likely end up designing and printing up my own tap handles with it among other things.

 

[NitrogenWidget]

Ouch! That makes the $25 for the ones I am selling look like a bargin!

That's a good idea.
too bad i'm too cheap to pay $25 for a tap handle.
You running a St. Patrick's day sale by any chance?

 

[Sailingeric]

That's a good idea.
too bad i'm too cheap to pay $25 for a tap handle.
You running a St. Patrick's day sale by any chance?

If you are interested PM me, have some maple I could make you a couple.

 

[NitrogenWidget]

If you are interested PM me, have some maple I could make you a couple.

Thanks, but I was just kidding.
I'm really going to be making some with my 3d printer this winter.

 

[Soulshine2]

When did this become so much about money, I brew because I love the HOBBY, remember here people we all started this as a hobby, anyone can spend any amount of money on anything that they want, if the OP wants to constantly buy rounds of drinks and breakfast, oh well, brewing is a hobby, I also do not consider the time that brewing takes in terms of time vs. dollars, its a hobby, yes it takes time, it also gives a great deal of pleasure, I enjoy it, if I spend sh!tloads of cash doing it, who cares. I think that I might a start new thread............. "Does spending all your money really make you happy?"

I can answer that...it made my ex-wife extremely happy to spend all my money...
hence , the "ex" part.

 

[kh54s10]

you really don't save money by homebrewing no matter what anyone says...

If you factor in the cost of the time spent brewing, then the cost of the beer is absolutely huge!

I still buy beer too. In fact, since starting to brew, I probably spend just as much on shop bought beer... I just drink more overall!

In terms of shopping around for deals, we all do it... but generally, you kinda get what you pay for

Homebrewing is expensive and it can be ridiculously expensive if you are not careful. I know people who have unnecessarily spent thousands on kit that I have been able to build myself. So it works both ways.

I like seeing the deals and DIY that people do. It gives me ideas where I can save some money so that I can brew more beer.

I am at the point (at least temporarily) where I don't need any equipment, so I DO same money homebrewing. I have long since paid off my equipment by not buying beer.

If you would not be getting paid during the time spent brewing (day off - weekend) your time is worth exactly $0

I still buy some commercial beer - research. I also drink a lot more beer than I did before taking up homebrewing. But I drink less soda so I am probably saving money there.....

Homebrewing is only as expensive as you make it. Keep your equipment purchases under control. Do you really need the latest bling?? Buy in bulk, reuse yeast etc.

 

[soccerdad]

I follow different threads than the OP. I see folks investing in good grain, good yeast, proper water, good books, good equipment, new systems, temp control. You name it. Most times I feel like the cheapskate among folks who have funds to invest in the hobby.

 

[Soulshine2]

I follow different threads than the OP. I see folks investing in good grain, good yeast, proper water, good books, good equipment, new systems, temp control. You name it. Most times I feel like the cheapskate among folks who have funds to invest in the hobby.

its all good. The only person you have to answer to about what you're paying for things is yourself or maybe your spouse.
This is about having a fun hobby that we can enjoy with others and share the end product.
Spend what you want .Nobody else knows what other bills you have.

 

[NewJersey]

I’m admittedly a cheapskate — I don’t like working and the less I spend, the less I have to work. I will admit I kind of roll my eyes at the posts with gleaming expanses of stainless triclover kettles and fermenters and glycol chillers; but it’s obviously making those folks happy and not doing too much damage.

I roll my eyes at that stuff, I just roll my eyes harder when guys are learning chinese to save $3 on a heating element. (a fabrication, but I could see it happening with some people)

 

[ListerH]

I roll my eyes at that stuff, I just roll my eyes harder when guys are learning chinese to save $3 on a heating element. (a fabrication, but I could see it happening with some people)

我喜歡我的新加熱元件

 

[bracconiere]

我喜歡我的新加熱元件

you know google translate is cheating! (that doesn't even sound chinese!)

 

[Still Brewn]

That's weird... I can't hear it

 

[bracconiere]

That's weird... I can't hear it

you don't get the play button? how about this?

Wǒ xǐhuān wǒ de xīn jiārè yuánjiàn...

edit: and
我找不到美国卖家的12英寸O型圈

 

[sborz22]

Idk, I feel like calling anybody with a hobby “cheap” is kind of oxymoronic. A hobby is something that you spend your time and money on for your own gratification and nothing more.

Of course, there are some people who comment on ways to cut costs and do things cheaper but I look at those as those things as innovative and creative not cheap. I guess it’s a perspective thing. Also, I love a great bargain.

 

[topdog149]

Idk, I feel like calling anybody with a hobby “cheap” is kind of oxymoronic. A hobby is something that you spend your time and money on for your own gratification and nothing more.

Of course, there are some people who comment on ways to cut costs and do things cheaper but I look at those as those things as innovative and creative not cheap. I guess it’s a perspective thing. Also, I love a great bargain.

Amen to that brother

 

[rodwha]

It's true that, even if you can brew cheaply, you could probably get beer even more cheaply by buying American macrobrew.

But it's also true that, even if you can brew beer well, you can probably buy better beer than you can make. So on neither front are you at any absolute advantage homebrewing.

Here's why I'm cheap: I like the idea that I can produce any sort of beer I want, whenever I want, at a low marginal cost. It's the same reason people buy swimming pools for their backyard. Given how much most people actually swim, it's probably cheaper in absolute terms to get a membership at the local Y or use the municipal pool. Their pools are also probably better than whatever hole you're going to dig in your yard. But some people really like the idea of being able to go swimming whenever they feel like it for zero cost. Personally, I don't, but I get the idea.

Not everyone's cheap because they want to maximize their absolute consumption potential. Some people are cheap to maximize their freedom, i.e., minimize the cost for them to do what they feel like doing. If you think about the costs of owning tools, and the value of your time, learning how to fix things around your house probably also doesn't pay off. You wouldn't expect it to, because of the division of labor: a trained plumber is so much better than you are at fixing a leaky faucet that your time is probably better spent either enjoying yourself or working longer hours. But people do DIY fix-it stuff because they want to be self-sufficient. They don't want to wait around for someone else to fix it. They don't want to think of their relationship to their home as one of managing a bunch of contract repair persons. Not for everyone, obviously, but the ethos seems perfectly intelligible to me. Homo faber ain't homo economicus--they're different outlooks.

I have to disagree on too many levels here.

First of all if I were really cheap and trying to compete with really cheap beer such as Natural Light, which is 4.2% and $18.97/12 pack here, I could easily make a 5.25 gal all-grain batch using 4.5 lbs of pale ale malt, 1 lb of cane sugar, and 0.25 lb of DME for a yeast starter and 1 oz of Willamette hops, including store bought water and come in under the 12 pack price for more than 2 cases of crappy home made beer.

Second of all the majority of my beers are on the top end of the average scale of commercial options with a good enough portion being much better than anything I’ve found.

On both counts I’m winning here. And I’m not a class A homebrewer.

I also still buy a lot of commercial beer. Typically I buy three 6 packs twice a month plus whatever we buy when out, which isn’t so often these days like it used to be. And I’m frugal and will often buy a 12 pack of something for $15 in place of two 6 packs for $10/ea.

The tools to fix a leaky faucet likely don’t cost more than the repair bill. Likely the tool purchase pays for itself on the first need or close to it.

 

[rodwha]

do you people actually enjoy living like that?
the rich grandpa story seems sad to me. what is the point of having money if not to enjoy it? seriously. why would you wanna amass a pile of money and never enjoy it?
money on it's own is just paper or numbers on a screen.
when i go out with friends to a bar or out for breakfast i'm more inclined to buy breakfast or grab a round of beers for us without asking. my friends are the sme way. no bickering. no obsessing about deals or stingy cheap bs. we tip well and enjoy being out.
i simply cannot imagine enjoying life while being a cheapskate about everything. it sounds like suffering to me.

I must say I’m at a loss here with your reasoning. It seems like you poohed all over anyone who is frugal by any means and associate anyone like that as being “cheap” in every aspect of their lives. You’d be sorely mistaken.

My wife grew up with next to nothing. My family had but weren’t so boisterous in spending. I went a different direction and didn’t grow as an adult with plenty. We both understand hardship and we both felt that when we go out a server starts at 20% and can work up or down from there. We also like to support local/small businesses when the price difference isn’t extreme. Yet we both don’t just toss money likes it’s nothing and collectively we are doing quite well. Your view is rather absurd and seems only fitting for the top few percent in the country. It seems to me you don’t understand the world around you and are here to complain about it.

 

[rodwha]

you got me wrong.
i do not think you have to or even should spend a ton on equipment or ingredients.
i do not think you need super fancy fermenters.
i like looking at other people's setups and recipes from the simple to the insane overkill.
my gripe is about people who seem to be obsessed with "deals" over anything else in the hobby. it's pervasive in most sections of the forum and i, personally, find it tiring to read through.
no matter how much money one has, cost will always of course be at least a consideration. for some it's everything and it irks me.

You don’t come across that way honestly.

 

[gunhaus]

While I cannot speak for the Op's thoughts, I can say there is "cheapness" abound at times. I am ALL for saving a buck on grains and gear. But how many post are there around here where a person is trying to rationalize ( or rather get US to rationalize for them) using their crappy tap water AS IS so they do not have to spend a couple bucks on salts or god forbid, an extra 7-8 buck on some RO water from the store? It happens all the time, and it is NOT being frugal, it is being cheap and there is a difference. THAT is the sort of thing that I feel gets irritating.

 

[madscientist451]

So, after seventy-something posts, and next-to-no participation from the original poster, I think it's safe to say, TROLL.

He's from New Jersey, where a bagel costs $5, there are tolls everywhere you drive and people blow money on Rutgers and Giants football season tickets. So he doesn't understand why everyone doesn't have a brewing rig that cost $3500.

 

[Bobby_M]

He's from New Jersey, where a bagel costs $5, there are tolls everywhere you drive and people blow money on Rutgers and Giants football season tickets. So he doesn't understand why everyone doesn't have a brewing rig that cost $3500.

Oh boy, here we go.

 

[bobeer]

$10 bucks saved is $10 bucks saved.... When you have a wife, little kids, mortgage, etc... hobbies tend to take a backseat when they need to. I love brewing so I'm buying whatever I need the cheapest way possible. I'm part of a club at a LHBS which I support when I can even though the prices are much more than they need to be. I'm also in another club at a local brewery to get the bulk grain buy deals.

Nothing wrong with buying bulk grain, washing yeast, growing hops, etc to save money where you can. I spent almost a year putting together my 2 tap draft setup but it was totally free and worth the time to make it happen. In my experience most wealthy people I've known save money where ever they can even if it's only $10 bucks. With that said there is a fine line between saving money and wasting your time and effort but that line will vary depending how desperate you are to brew.

 

[lump42]

He's from New Jersey, where a bagel costs $5, there are tolls everywhere you drive and people blow money on Rutgers and Giants football season tickets. So he doesn't understand why everyone doesn't have a brewing rig that cost $3500.

East coast rivalry/ jealousy?

 

[user 254557]

Right on!! I feel the same way, I have 3 kids and a stay at home wife which has made life super easy because we dont have to worry about who stays home with sick kids, driving kids around to school, practices, friends, whatever, but anyway money is at a premium in our house and "$10 bucks saved is $10 bucks saved" an can that can add up when your in a hobby that always seems to "need" upgraded equipment

 

[Bobby_M]

I can kind of see what the OP is talking about. There are people that spend $5 in gas to get to the station that sells the gas $.02 a gallon cheaper. That's called penny wise/pound foolish. It's not always that easy to spot though and the people I think are generally getting ragged on here are the ones that are nearly blind to the cost of saving so much money. It gets even trickier when the person who does this sort of thing actually gets gratification from it, i.e. that saving money is another hobby in and of itself. I get that. I have a couple friends who are like competitive couponers that get a cart full of stuff for nothing. We won't get into the fact that half that crap expires and gets thrown out.

As a retail store owner, the small portion of this discussion that annoys me the most are people who value saving money in the short term at a greater later expense. This is realized in two ways. Buying from budget retailers like Walmart and Amazon when it is almost guaranteed that they are trying to corner the market. The other is buying the cheapest thing that will need to be upgraded soon enough.

 

[r4dyce]

He's from New Jersey, where a bagel costs $5, there are tolls everywhere you drive and people blow money on Rutgers and Giants football season tickets. So he doesn't understand why everyone doesn't have a brewing rig that cost $3500.

Oh man the bagels are soooooo good though. I grew up in NJ but have spent half my life in Massachusetts. I've never stopped searching for good bagels up here (and pizza). There's some that are ok but everytime I head back to NJ I load up on bagels and Taylor Ham to bring home.

 

[Cantina De Jefe]

I'm so cheap, i just spent $200 so I can do my own RO in batches. No more running to Ralphs with all my quarters.

 

[bracconiere]

I'm so cheap, i just spent $200 so I can do my own RO in batches. No more running to Ralphs with all my quarters.

damn, got you beat! being i brew for $8 a 10 gal batch, only spend about $12 a week on groceries...i donated $100 to the local college scholarship fund, and got nothing for it! lol

 

[NewJersey]

I think most people that describe themselves as "frugal" are actually just plain old cheap. Stingy.
I don't think it's a virtue either.