Over dinner this evening I remarked that we’ve had our propane BBQ for quite a while now.  I believe we bought in the spring of 2001.  Since then it has been through two moves, served up countless burgers and grilled up delicious steaks.  The Scot didn’t skimp on the unit, but he didn’t blow the wad either. As I recall it was about $500 including a propane tank, a cover and a few accessories, all in.  It stays outside year round, underneath a cover and braves our Canadian winters.  It gets a thorough cleaning 2-3 times a year and it still cooks a perfect steak.

porkchops on the grill at night

Two years ago I repainted the hood with high heat BBQ paint ($5 for a can).  Last year I replaced the burner ($50), the grills ($50) and the ignitor sparky thing ($10).  Let’s do some quick math here.

• Initial purchase price: $500
• Maintenance costs: $115
• Total cost of ownership: $615 not including 4-5 tanks of propane/year.
• That’s, umm, about $77/year.

…and I’ll get 5 more years out of it, easy.  This is why MAINTAINING your stuff can save you scads of dough in the long run.  And it’s all about the long run here when making large purchases.  Anecdotally I can tell you that even though I spent a bit more than a friend on a BBQ, he’s replaced his twice in the last 8 years.  I guarantee he’s spent more than me, and for no good reason.

So, welcome back to BBQ season! I know that it never really ended for some of you, but for we Canadians who endure long and cold winters the warm weather is very much welcome.  Of course everyone will be bitching about the oppressive heat in about 4 months.  Yes, we do get summer up here.