Cigarettes in absentia

Deus ex machina

So we all have friends that smoke. I know it is crazy to think of in this day of non smoking sections, laws against smoking, and just general bad press, but it is true. 

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So I decided to talk to a few people I know that are now into the E-cig craze. I wanted to see if they really did save any money over conventional smoking and "Vaping". The term "vaping" Oddly reminds me of sparkling vampires.

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So here is how it works. Instead of lighting a tobacco filled, paper vessel you simply have a tube that carries liquid nicotine (the addictive stuff in cigarettes) and turns it into a vapor. When you inhale it you get the nicotine, but not the tar and other things like you would with a conventional cigarette. The majority of the E-cigs out there use propylene glycol, which is the same stuff they use in fog machines, for the smoke.

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Love it or hate it, this is a real thing and more and more people are doing it. So I researched the costs of these inventions and, if you are smoker, could save you not only your lungs but literally thousands of dollars in taxes and actual costs of buying conventional cigarettes.

So what is the breakdown on the costs and how much can you save? For this example I will assume that an average smoker smokes about a half a pack a day. You can go here if your friend or loved one smokes more to find out the numbers.

Conventional cigarettes:

Average cost per pack $7.00

Days you would have to buy a pack 183 (rounded up)

Total cost to smoke conventional cigarettes per year $1,281.00


E-Cigarette:

Initial cost of a "kit" (average) $50.00

Cost of the liquid kit (1 tank per month) $20.00

Cost of refills (guessing high at 1 30ml per month) $6.00

Total cost to smoke E-cigs in a year $362.00
You save almost $1000 per year doing this. Not to mention no tar or smokey smell in your clothes.

Now in all honestly minus the D factor (if you don't know what D stands for feel free to ask) there are numerous people that say E-cigs are bad for you. Honestly so is smoking. Which is the lesser of two evils? I will let you decide. The cost savings alone seems to be a big deal for me.

We could get into a long drawn out discussion on the pros and cons or if they should be regulated or kids should be able to use the non-nicotine ones, but I really want to give you all the dollars and cents of this. After all I am all about saving money.

So love it or hate it seems that technology has made its mark and we are going to see more and more of these E-Cigs. What do you think about the cost savings of this?

Gary McCoy is broker and owner of Tartan Real Estate Services, broker license number #0588837. Any and all opinions in this blog are just that, opinions. If you have any specific questions please call us at 877-498-7323.