Long-term Debt and Capital Lease Obligations Steel Excel (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2015	Jun. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2015	Jun. 30, 2014
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest expense	$ 2,139,000	$ 2,522,000	$ 4,173,000	$ 4,963,000
Steel Excel Inc. | Energy Credit Agreement
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest expense	$ 600,000	$ 800,000	$ 1,200,000	$ 1,700,000
Steel Excel Inc. | Energy Credit Agreement | One-Month LIBOR
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Interest rate (as a percent)	2.80%		2.80%
Steel Excel Inc. | Energy Credit Agreement | Long-term Debt
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Long-term Debt	$ 72,700,000		$ 72,700,000
Assets pledged as collateral	182,200,000		182,200,000
Quarterly maturities	3,300,000		3,300,000
2015	6,607,000		6,607,000
2016	13,214,000		13,214,000
2017	13,214,000		13,214,000
2018	39,643,000		39,643,000
Steel Excel Inc. | Energy Credit Agreement | Term Loan
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Long-term Debt	95,000,000		95,000,000
Steel Excel Inc. | Energy Credit Agreement | Line of Credit | Revolving Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Long-term Debt	105,000,000		105,000,000
Maximum borrowing capacity	$ 10,000,000		$ 10,000,000
Borrowing base of eligible accounts receivable			85.00%