How Much Does a Bioethanol Fireplace Cost to Run?
Thinking about a bioethanol fire and wondering what it will actually cost once the flames are dancing? The short answer: a bioethanol fireplace costs about $2 to $7.30 an hour to run in Australia, and fuel is the only cost. There is no gas connection, no flue servicing and no standing charge. Keep reading for the per-hour figures, how long a litre lasts, a realistic yearly budget, and whether it works out expensive next to gas.
The Real Numbers: How Much Does a Bioethanol Fireplace Cost Per Hour?
An EcoSmart bioethanol fire costs about $2 to $7.30 an hour, worked out simply as the burner's fuel use multiplied by the fuel price. Because fuel is the only thing you pay for, that hourly figure is the whole running cost, with nothing metered in the background.
How much depends entirely on the burner inside your fire:
- Small AB3 burner (Mix 600, Stix): about 0.31 litres an hour, roughly $2.00
- Large AB8 burner with the Efficiency Ring fitted: about 0.73 to 0.89 litres an hour, roughly $4.80 to $5.90
- Large AB8 burner at full flame (Base 40, Manhattan 50, Mix 850): 1.1 litres an hour, roughly $7.30
Why the Efficiency Ring Changes the Maths
Every AB8 burner comes with an Efficiency Ring, and fitting it trims fuel use by about a third while stretching each fill by two to three hours. It is the simplest way to bring a large fire's running cost down without changing the flame you sit around, which is why the lower figures above assume it is in place.
Fuel Basics: How Long Does 1 Litre of Bioethanol Last?
One litre of e-NRG bioethanol lasts about one to two hours, depending on the burner and flame height. A full 8-litre AB8 tank burns 7 to 9 hours at full flame, and 9 to 11 hours with the Efficiency Ring; a 2.5-litre AB3 tank gives 8 to 11 hours because its flame is smaller. The tank burns continuously once lit, so a single fill is either one long evening or several shorter ones.
What e-NRG Bioethanol Fuel Actually Costs, and Why the Cheap Stuff Is a Trap
e-NRG bioethanol costs $265 for 40 litres delivered through My Acre, about $6.63 a litre, sold by the 20-litre carton with larger bundles for heavier users. It is the fuel EcoSmart tests and warrants its burners for, a denatured near-pure ethanol formulated to burn cleanly, with a flame arrester built into the bottle for safe pouring.
You will see cheaper denatured alcohol and generic bioethanol on servo and hardware shelves, including at Bunnings. For a fire you paid thousands for, it is a false economy: lower-purity fuels can burn shorter and smell, and using anything other than e-NRG voids the EcoSmart warranty and its safety compliance. Browse e-NRG fuel.
The Yearly Picture: Is a Bioethanol Fireplace Expensive to Run?
Across a year, fuel usually lands somewhere between $60 and $2,000, because how often you light the fire matters far more than the hourly rate. The honest way to plan is by how you actually use it. On a large AB8 burner with the Efficiency Ring:
- Occasional (a handful of evenings a year): about 8 to 10 litres, roughly $60 to $70
- Weekend seasonal (Friday and Saturday nights through the cooler months): about 90 to 125 litres, roughly $600 to $830
- Frequent (most evenings in season): about 220 to 315 litres, roughly $1,460 to $2,090
Most owners sit in the occasional-to-weekend range, which is why the running cost rarely bites the way the hourly figure suggests. At My Acre the first two cartons, 40 litres, are included with every EcoSmart fire, so a season of the occasional pattern is already covered.
Bioethanol vs Gas on Running Cost
Per hour of flame, a bioethanol fire is a little dearer than mains gas, which is cheaper to burn once it is installed. Where bioethanol wins is total cost of ownership: no $2,000 to $7,500 installation, no gasfitter, no flue and no annual service, so you pay only for the evenings you use. Our bioethanol vs gas fireplace guide sets the two side by side with a calculator you can run on your own numbers.
You May Also Like:
- Do Bioethanol Fireplaces Give Off Heat?
- How Does a Bioethanol Fireplace Work?
- Are Bioethanol Fireplaces Safe?
- Bioethanol Fireplaces Indoors: An Australian Buyer's Guide
- Bioethanol vs Gas Fireplace: Running Cost Compared
