Electrical Cost of Operation

T

tnlyne

New member
I was talking to a buddy tonight (his birthday) and he's considering buying the SI#2 after I've been showing him all the cool things like this forum, the build quality and options, and pictures of the food it produces. He said he's probably going to order tomorrow but wanted to sleep on it. One of his questions to me was how much it costs to operate. One of his comments was "My grill is def a waste of money... 5 hrs on low still takes a big toll on tank". I know most of us could care less about how much these smokers cost to operate over an average smoking session but I figured it wouldn't hurt to start a thread that began collecting some measured and quantifiable data. I performed a few searches and couldn't really find anything like this around here.

So, I have a device called a "Kill-A-Watt" electricity usage monitor. I think I'm going to try and start plugging my smoker into this device and collect data associated with various configurations of smokes over time. When I get new data I hope to come back to this thread and update it with new information. I'm thinking a tabular format of sorts with columns such as "Smoked Item", "Quantity", "Approx weight", "Avg smoking temp", "Avg Ambient air temp", "Time of smoke", "Watts consumed or kWh", "Estimated electric rate per kWh", "Estimated smoke session total electric cost in $". Just doing some quick logic in my head I'm thinking it's pretty cheap to operate per smoke (e.g. 800 watt element X 15 hour smoke X .7 factor for "element on time" = 8400 watt hours or 8.4 kWh X $0.1082 avg Iowa rate per kWh = $0.91 to complete a 15 hour smoke). Hopefully with some time I'll be able to confirm this with data that is measured rather than really roughly guessed. I'd love to see this expanded to the other SI models after I put the initial groundwork in place should anyone owning those models want to collect some scientific data in the same way.
 
Interesting gizmo, never knew it existed.  I've had people ask me the same thing, their thinking was, the smoker has to cost a lot to run.

Scary the tech that is out there.   
 
It is pretty neat.  For $20, I may have to git me one. 

I'm about 13 hrs into a pork butt smoke dialed to the max.  I am curious what the electrical cost is. 

Never really thought of it till now. But now, I'm interested!  Damn technology!  LOL!!
 
That would be great to get some running data.  Calculating the maximum cost by assuming the element is running constantly shows that the smoker is still relatively cheap to operate.  The SI #2 has a 0.8KW element, so calculation is 0.8 multiplied by the the hours of smoke multiplied by cost per KWh.  Here is NJ, electric is fairly expensive at $0.167 / KWh for PEAK hours in summer (it is much less most of the year), so I can assume this is max cost for me.  My maximum expected cost for running would be: 0.8 x $0.167 = $0.134 per hour or $2.68 for a 20 hour smoke.  Again, this is assuming the smoker running full blast for the 20 hours which is not accurate.  To run the smoker at 250F and under, the element would utilize much less energy.

I am really interested in seeing some actual numbers as I expect these smokers are significantly cheaper to operate than some would think......

P2B
 
SMH!  One spends an large amount for a smoker and large amounts of money on meat for every smoke and they get a clinched sphincter over a couple bucks in fuel cost, either propane or electric.  I'm a big fisherman, I have an expensive boat, a dually to haul it with and someone is going to complain about a small launch fee or gas used to get to the lake.  It makes no sense to me.  ::)
 
Dave, I hear you about the relative low cost compared to the smoker and meat. But, I think Tony's question was from a friend who was considering buying a Smokin-It smoker.

While I don't think the results will change the amount that I use my smoker, seeing the data would definitely be interesting to see. I have a feeling it is going to be relatively low cost of operation.
 
There might be some that drive a Prius that would love the SI if it was cheaper than an electric or gas oven. 

Maybe even someday be California mandatory to own a smoker!

Sorry, couldnt resist.


 
With the high degree of insulation and a thermostatically controlled heat source, I bet that the juice is probably only running 60% of the time.  Any other fuel source that I can think of would be 100% burn time.  I've got friends like Tony's too, I just bite my tongue a lot. 
 
SuperDave said:
SMH!  One spends an large amount for a smoker and large amounts of money on meat for every smoke and they get a clinched sphincter over a couple bucks in fuel cost, either propane or electric.  I'm a big fisherman, I have an expensive boat, a dually to haul it with and someone is going to complain about a small launch fee or gas used to get to the lake.  It makes no sense to me.  ::)
Click to expand...

+1!  Sure a heckuva lot cheaper than propane, charcoal or sticks!  I wouldn't care if each smoke costs $10!  It's better BBQ, cheaper than going to a BBQ joint, and a whole lot less work!  I guarantee Tony's results won't be any more than baking a casserole in an electric oven.  Now, I have to go to town in my 5.3L Chevy truck...
 
Reading this thread has made me smile. I just like to compare data and see how to build up stories like "The SI2 will pay for itself in 3 years from standard BBQ's that use charcoal and lots of wood chunks". It's all a marketing gimmick... but for some people knowing that they can save money over the "long run" could be all they need for that extra little nudge to buy now! And just so you all know - my convincing worked as my buddy from work slept on it and made the purchase yesterday! He'll probably be joining the rest of us in a week or so. Now, where's my referral bonus so I can pay back my smoker quicker than just saving electricity costs?  :P

Dave-
The few dollars saved here and there really do make a difference over the long run. It's all relative to everyone's habits I believe anyway. I am not a penny pincher by any means as I also own a 5.3L Chevy Silverado (*wink DivotMaker), boat, motorcycle, camper, etc... But I still like to watch recurring costs and save where I can to spend more on the man toys! I'm just about ready to cut DirectTV (I love em) but the rates are ridiculous for what I get out of it. I have friends going to all streaming services for about 1/4th the cost and they say they don't miss much (maybe a few sports games here and there).

If anyone else is looking to blow some extra cash on a cool PID controller I am building a second HeaterMeter PID and will sell it for the right price. I have my first one done and working for the controller but now I just need to modify my smoker with the permanent thermocouple probe and SSR. After that I'll do some PID calibrations and start smoking with my newly built baby.
 
Tman,
I guess I'm just of the opinion that hobbies can't be justified when costs come into play.  I do what I do because I love it.  If any hunter or fisherman figured the actual cost per pound for the meat they harvest, they'd be down right depressed.  LOL!  But I don't begrudge anyone for trying to make what they do more economical.  However, even if a different fuel source was cheaper than our electric, one could argue that one's time has value and the set it and forget it saves $40, $50...., $100/hr.  That's pretty much end of the discussion.  ;)
 
I went Solar, smoking is free!  Can't wait to use my smoker, just broke it in last weekend...this weekend will be my first smoke.
 
Welcome, Wolf!  Head over to the Introductions section and tell us about yourself.  A first name and town in the signature line is also a nice touch - we like to get to know the new members of Club Lazy Q! :D
 
When I did the research on smokers before purchasing the #2 one of the main factors was cost per smoke,minimal to say the least, a buddy purchased a very expensive pellet burner which works great and produces great food but factor in the cost of pellets, 50 cents per pound and using a pound per hour, that adds 7-8 bucks on a pork butt, now figure a years worth........meat aint cheap and if I can keep the cost down and produce good food it means I can smoke more often.
 
I don't see why this would cost any more than running your indoor electric or gas oven at 250. It's got to be pretty efficient cost-wise. My WSM sucked big $$ in charcoal etc. And I AM frugal, even though I don't have to be. Just get a kick out of saving money. But that was only ONE of the MANY reasons I bought this smoker. There are so many other advantages, that cost was not my top deciding factor. I'd love to hear the results of your test, and in comparison to just running a standard indoor oven.
 
SconnieQ said:
I don't see why this would cost any more than running your indoor electric or gas oven at 250. It's got to be pretty efficient cost-wise. My WSM sucked big $$ in charcoal etc. And I AM frugal, even though I don't have to be. Just get a kick out of saving money. But that was only ONE of the MANY reasons I bought this smoker. There are so many other advantages, that cost was not my top deciding factor. I'd love to hear the results of your test, and in comparison to just running a standard indoor oven.
Click to expand...

Nail on the head...+1!
 
I don't really cook much with the indoor oven (my wife does though). I'm more of a smoker, grill, stovetop, cast iron, and tripod over the fire cooking type of guy. I forgot to hook up kill-a-watt on my spare rib smoke today but I intend to collect some of this data over time. I won't be able to compare to oven since the oven can't be run through the kill-a-watt for power monitoring. I'm sure the smoker is less to operate than the oven just based on the heating element and volume of the container.
 
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