Every steam machine buyer eventually asks the same question: should I run this on gas or electricity? The honest answer is that it depends on your electricity tariff, your LPG cylinder cost, and how often your power actually stays on — and a dual-fuel machine like the Tea Coffee Store machine is built specifically so you never have to pick just one. This guide walks through how to work out the real running cost for your own shop, not a generic national average that may not match your city or your connection type.
Running cost — the actual math
The 16 and 20 inch models use a 2000W electric heating element, which draws about 2 units of electricity per hour of continuous use; the 24 inch heavy-duty model steps up to 2500W, closer to 2.5 units per hour, so factor that in if you are sizing up. Multiply the relevant figure by your local commercial or domestic tariff (which varies widely across states and even across meter categories) to get an hourly electric running cost. Pull out your last electricity bill, find your per-unit rate, and multiply it by 2 (or 2.5 for the 24 inch) — that number is your hourly cost for running the machine on electric alone. A commercial LPG cylinder, split across the hours of steady brewing it typically fuels, produces a comparable per-hour gas cost — the exact number depends on your city’s cylinder price and how efficiently your burner is tuned, but most tea stall owners already know this number from their existing gas bhatti, since a steam machine’s burner uses gas at a broadly similar rate. A simple way to estimate it yourself: take your current cylinder price, divide by roughly how many hours of brewing a full cylinder lasts you today, and you have your working gas cost per hour to set against the electric figure.
| Factor | Electric (2000-2500W) | LPG (commercial gas) |
|---|---|---|
| Cost driver | ~2 units/hour × local tariff (~2.5 for the 24 inch) | Cylinder price ÷ hours of use |
| Power-cut resilience | Stops immediately | Unaffected |
| Permit-friendly (malls, offices) | Yes — no open flame | Often restricted |
| Startup speed | Steady, predictable | Fast, familiar to any chaiwala |
When gas wins
Street-side tea stalls, event and wedding catering setups, and any location in a power-cut-prone area should lean on LPG. A stall owner cannot explain to a queue of morning commuters why the tea has stopped brewing because the grid tripped — gas keeps pouring regardless of what the local substation is doing. Outdoor events and marquee tents rarely have a reliable power socket in the first place, so gas is often the only realistic option on the day, and a caterer running the 24-inch model — the one that draws 2500W if plugged in — is better off on LPG anyway, since it never has to worry about a generator sized for that extra load failing mid-service. Rural and semi-urban stalls that have run on a gas bhatti for years also tend to already know their gas costs precisely, which makes staying on LPG the lower-friction choice even before comparing numbers.
When electric wins
Malls, corporate offices, food courts and any indoor commercial space with fire-safety rules typically do not allow an open LPG flame near a food counter — building management simply will not permit it, and this is not a preference you can negotiate around once a lease is signed. In those locations electric heating is not just convenient, it is often the only compliant option, and knowing this before you sign a food-court counter agreement saves an awkward conversation later. Electric is also the calmer choice for a low-footfall office pantry where a steady, moderate draw beats managing a cylinder that might run dry mid-shift with nobody around to swap it — an unattended pantry with an empty cylinder simply stops serving until someone notices, while an electric connection just keeps working as long as the building has power.
Three questions to decide for your shop
If you are still unsure which fuel to plan around, three questions usually settle it. First, does your location allow an open flame at all — if the answer is no, as it often is in malls and corporate campuses, electric is not really a choice, it is a requirement. Second, how often does your power actually go out during your business hours — a stall that loses power for even thirty minutes during the morning rush loses real sales, and gas removes that risk entirely. Third, which fuel do you already have a reliable, cheap supply of — many existing tea stall owners are sitting on years of negotiated cylinder-supply relationships that make gas the obvious lower-cost choice for them specifically, while a brand-new office canteen with no existing gas connection may find electric simpler to set up from day one.
Dual-fuel is the answer, not a compromise
Every Tea Coffee Store variant runs on both electric and LPG from the same unit, with a manual switch between them, backed by the same pressure gauge and safety valve fittings regardless of which fuel is active. That means a tea stall can run on gas through the day and switch to electric overnight for a lower flame risk, and a mall counter that starts on electric can fall back to gas if the building briefly loses power during an outage. You are not locked into one fuel’s weaknesses, and you do not have to guess right at the time of purchase — the machine adapts as your situation changes, whether that is a new location, a fuel-price shift, or simply a season where power cuts become more frequent. See exact model pricing on the price page, and if you are planning a new stall from scratch, our tea stall setup guide walks through the full cost breakdown including fuel.