Going the temp route was the best way for you since you will be actually using natural gas. Ours is a perm tank that sits outside of the building, and when we first got our hook ups, we got hosed by the propane company because we didn't know any better in the beginning. Now that we do, we've been able to keep them honest by keeping a couple of others in our back pocket, if these guys decide to pull a fast one on us. I'm glad you got everything taken care of...But then again I knew you would
Our Dietrich IR12 honks along on propane. Strickly as a fudge factor, figure on about $0.03-0.04 per pound roasted. Less for longer production runs. This is based on $12.50/20# tank fill -which is too high, but it's convenient!
How much per week is rough to say because many times I'll roast a few pounds to gin up the smoke to attract folks. Then, a 20# tank will last only a week or so. I'm also afraid of running out of gas during a production run . . . has happened, so I only draw the bottle down 2/3rds of the way.
Also, the beauty of the IR12 is that once it's up to temperature, the propane usage slacks off which is what one would expect from a 1,000 pound heat sink!
. . . 'to attract folks' means folks at the outdoor market were we roast. Production roasts are during the week because of too much smoke . . .
I just recently started home roasting. I am using a Fresh Roast that I was given by a friend of mine. Anyway, I see alot of talk about city//city+/FC/FC+ etc... I understand what these are and have done alot of reading. My questions is this. When I start my roast, i here the 1st crack, once the first crack is done, there is a period of time that there is no crack, then a few more cracks. After that, it starts to sound like popcorn, this is normally the time I start the cool down. Can anyone tell me what roasts this is. Thanks.