Wood Pellet Stoves
Wood pellet stoves are an alternative way to heat a home. The stoves use wood pellets, which look exactly like rabbit food, and are made out of dried recycled compressed sawdust from lumber mills that otherwise ends up in landfills. They were invented in the 1980s and were popular for a while then declined some in the late 90s but since 9/11 have made a big comeback. The industry for stove manufactures, pellet distribution and stove technology has greatly matured and is nationwide.
Wood pellet stoves have a number of advantages over normal wood stoves. Because the stoves are so efficient, there is almost no smoke or creosote produced, in fact the exhaust is barely even hot so the stove doesn't need a masonry chimney and can be installed anywhere a tin metal liner can be put in, either directly into the roof, or sideways out a wall. They can be stand-alone stoves on legs in the corner of a room, or chimney inserts using an existing chimney. Unlike wood stoves, pellet stoves work well in urban environments because of little exhaust and no need for a chimney and can be installed in any room.
The pellets come in 40 pound plastic bags, about the size of a mulch bag, which makes transport and storage a snap compared to dealing with cord wood. A fully automated stove requires filling up with the pellets and turning on; the stove does the rest: it automatically lights, automatically feeds the pellets into the flame with an auger, automatically adjusts the rate to keep the room at a pre-set temperature with an electric thermostat. At the low setting I can go 76 hours on one load in my Harman stove, which is a fireplace inset so it is limited in hopper size. There are other stoves that have bigger hoppers. Indeed there are pellet furnaces that can hold weeks worths of pellets and heat an entire central heating system.
A 40 pound bag of pellet wood produces less than a cup of ash so it rarely needs to be emptied (keep the pellet hopper and ash tray size in mind when shopping for stoves). I need to vacuum the ash pan in my Harman stove after burning fifty 40lb bags --about every two months during heavy use.
A 40 pound pellet bag can cost from $2 to $4. Typically they are sold by the pallet, which is 50 bags or 1-ton, for $120 to $200. You will need storage space and some brawn. How much you use will depend on the stove, season, comfort level, space, etc., but the general recommendation is 1 bag of pellets a day. In my experience it can be much less than that based on your comfort level and weather and time at home. Wood pellets can be found at most hardware stores around the country including Home Depot, Ace, etc. Pellets come in 3 grades, depending on ash content (less ash the better), the higher grade pellets are hardwood while the lower grade is pine, most of the major hardware chains sell the middle grades. For buying pellets my experience is to call the local hardware stores, buy a single bag of different brands, try them out and when you find a good brand purchase a pallet for the season. The brands and availability seem to change with each season.
The stoves require electricity to run so if you lose power it won't work, which is a notable drawback, although there are solutions such as a generator or battery back up. I personally have a long extension cord to an inverter in my car in the driveway in case of a heating emergency. The pellet stoves also make noise with the blower fan and turning augur, this has become less an issue with more recent stove technology which is significantly quieter.
Pellet stoves range in price from $1200 to $3000. Harman is way ahead of the game with computerized sensors and controls and is the brand I recommend. The stove I own is Harman's Accentra Insert, and it was $2800 installed complete.
-- Stephen Balbach
Are wood pellets cheaper than gas or oil? Probably not, although they may be in some areas, but there are environmental "costs" to consider as well. For a straight BTU comparison for heating fuels prices see this chart.
Here is a list of the major pellet stove manufacturers. You'll need a local stove dealer to sell, install and maintain yours.
Amazon carries the American Harvest, 52,300 BTU Multi Fuel Corn/Pellet Stove for $1945.
Favorite (15)
Kathleen
Do you ever have used stoves that are available through your website? I have a small, one-person rental house approx. 500 sq. ft. that needs a supplementary heat source, but I can't afford to invest much - it already has electric heat. I've just hear about the pellet stove, and I'd like to determine whether or not it would be applicable to my little house.
Quentin P Mack
What is the mineral content and ph of the ash and would you recommend it for gardens? Thank you
Rick
I would like an answer to Question #2 myself Can the ash be used for gardens?
John
Yes, the ash is a very good soil conditioner as its potash, particularly good for roses and fruits with stones in. Best to produce compost with it though instead of adding it directly to the soil its self.
I’ve just found a guide on how wood pellets are made at www.woodpelletmill.com. I was finding it hard to get detailed answers on how the process works until I found this guide. Definitely worth a look if you’re interested.
John
Steven Leckart
Hi John,
Thanks for the tip! Would love to hear more about this guide.
If you see this note, please drop me a line:
steveleckart AT gmail DOT com.
Best,
Steven
Editor, Cool Tools
Rion Piccaro
I burn pellets to keep warm and I found that the heat is more of a narcotic pain reliever. When I have a back ache, I light up the stove and a blunt and the pain goes away within minutes. The HR 3000 is one of the best stoves available for pain relief. After surgery, it is good to burn about 80 lbs (2 bags of pellets) to help with the pain and works really well. The stove and pellets are much safer than Oxycontin, oxycodone, morphine, and most other narcotic pain relievers. I would recommend pellet therapy to anyone with chronic pain or even short lasting pain.
Good Luck !
- Rion Piccaro
Grant
The type of wood (hardwood or pine) has very little effect on the ash content and therefore the grade. More of the difference is based on bark content.
I burn very low ash pellets (< .5%) known as the super-premium grade, and they are pine.
LLazyme
The article was written in 2004 so the pellet prices given are a bit outdated.
Nov 09- Just bought a ton of pellets for $229.
Single bags have been running about $5 even.
Currently Oregon gives a biofuel tax credit of $10 for buying a ton of pellets or cord of wood.
Have been using a (no longer produced) Glo-king pellet stove for 15 years now. Since we've used it so long an often hard to say exactly what it saves on the power bill but I'd say at least 1/3 up to 1/2. Watch you local craigslist for used stoves.
Glo-King made a fantastic stove- too bad they went belly up. To answer ahead of time, No I don't have a source for replacement parts.
Yes, I do use the ash in the garden.
llazyme
Btw.. It isn't necessary to get a stove with all the extras.
Mine has a simple 4 level heat control setting. It's rare we ever raise it above the lowest. They don't need a chimney - they can be vented right out the side of the house. They burn so clean there is no visible smoke outside. If you have to burn wood, this is the cleanest way to do it. You'll need a metal canister vac to regularly vacuum out the burn area. You will also need to dump out whatever remains in the firepot before each lighting so a small metal trash can is needed, and a pair of work gloves to keep your hands clean. If the stove has windows to view the fire you'll need to clean them regularly too.
Rose
Why is the ash in the firepot hardening up. It's almost like styrofoam. I have to shut off the stove and clean it a couple times a day. Am I doing something wrong. I'm using hardwood.
Grant
Ash hardening up: Usually bad pellets. Try a different brand. High mineral content in them is often the issue. I use the Rocky Mountain Super Premium with no issue, and at least here, they are the cheapest kind, and they are from beetle kill no one wants for anything else.
I have a very basic stove, an Englander, and the only maintenance is daily scoop the ashes to the sides, weekly scoop out a little ash, and once a month vacuum it out. Very easy, and always works. It heats our entire 1600 sq ft house without a problem. It does take longer to get the whole house warmed up, probably because it is not hooked into the ducting, but it will keep it warm by itself, down to about -10F, and it is only rated at 1500 sq ft.