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Wood Pellets - Discussion on Quality
Authored by: pjmelton on Thursday, April 09 2009 @ 10:32 AM GMT+4
We have used two brands of wood pellets. Before the factory burned down, we used New England Wood Pellets from New Hampshire, premium hardwood grade. Now we are using NAPCO pellets from Massachussetts, also premium hardwood grade. We have noticed no difference in quality between the two. We have never burned the softwood pellets, so I can't speak to the difference there.
We burned corn last year because our neighbor had a surplus and sold it to us cheap. It made a nasty clinker and left lots of residue, gummed up our stove all the time so it couldn't autoclean, etc. They say you get more BTUs per ton and per dollar with corn, but personally I don't think it's worth the hassle. And besides, I don't like the idea of burning food to heat my house. Also, the corn takes several minutes to light, so you end up using a lot more electricity with the burner on so long, especially on a bitterly cold day. Corn works better in the South, where the corn stoves were developed.
We are interested in trying switchgrass sometime, but I've never seen it around.
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"Economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." -- FDR
Authored by: Maus Anon E on Thursday, April 09 2009 @ 04:38 PM GMT+4
We used both premium hardwood and premium softwood pellets this year. Not much real difference, although the softwood pellets do generally have more energy/btus (more heat) per pound, and burn more efficiently (less ash). We didn't notice a big increase in heat output per pound with softwood, but we noticed a substantial reduction in ash. I went from cleaning the stove once per week with hardwood pellets, to cleaning it once every two weeks with the softwood.
Clinker production was about the same - my stove doesn't self-clean, so I have to shut it down once a day for a few minutes to empty the burnpot.
It was actually AlanF that turned me on to the softwood pellets, and thanks to him for that.
Authored by: Maus Anon E on Sunday, April 12 2009 @ 06:33 PM GMT+4
We got two tons of Canadian softwood pellets from a local building supply store. It was a "special buy" so I don't know if they'll have them again this year.
Authored by: P on Thursday, April 09 2009 @ 01:15 PM GMT+4
Thanks, PJ.
We already have problems with the stove getting clogged up and producing lots of clinkers, so that's good to know about the corn. I agree with you about the food thing, too, for some reason my brain didn't make the connection!
Authored by: pjmelton on Thursday, April 09 2009 @ 01:41 PM GMT+4
You are getting clinkers with wood pellets? What kind are you using? And what brand of stove do you have? We have a Quadra-Fire, which is pricey but a great investment. The warranty and service are wonderful, and the automation makes is almost as convenient as a furnace.
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"Economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." -- FDR
Authored by: Frederic on Sunday, April 12 2009 @ 12:05 PM GMT+4
I have only tried 2 brands: the aforementioned New England brand which produced what I thought was a fair amount of ash and Lignetics, which we got from Perkins which is the brand I prefer as it burns fairly cleanly and the ash piles are significant;y smaller than with the New England brand. Unfortunately Lignetics is made in either W. Virginia or Idaho so I'd prefer to find a comparable brand that is made closer to home to lessen the transport and environmental costs of buying this brand.
Until this year Perkins would deliver a minimum 4 tons with no additional delivery charge, but they have unfortunately stopped that practice. So far it seems the most expensive pellets seem to be at the Fireside True Value.
We are in the process of identifying the best deals around the area to see who we will buy from this year. We are looking at places within 60 miles or so. We know of 8 places so far. If folks have suggestions for sellers please post them.
Coop Power has bulk purchasing of pellets, bagged or unbagged although the prices don't seem to be significantly less for this past winter. As more folks get involved the prices may drop though.
For the unbagged pellets you would need a hopper, silo or other system (shovel and bucket) to get them into your stove. I am considering this as they are cheaper and then we don't have hundreds of bags left over.
I am including much of the Coop Power message from October below:
Our long-term goal is to secure a local supply of affordable,
sustainably developed pellets for Co-op Power members in Western
Massachusetts AND to keep developing new regional councils who
pool their efforts to develop good deals in their areas.
In the short-term, we are happy to announce that Co-op Power has
reached an agreement with Precision Heat Nature's Way in Ashuelot,
NH, (phone (603) 239-7007 and www.precisionheatnaturesway.com) to
supply Co-op Power members (full and affiliate) with wood pellets
(which they have obtained from suppliers in Illinois) and other
discounts in the following manner:
1) Fifty, 40 pound bags of pellets on a wooden pallet, these are
hardwood, low-ash pellets manufactured in Illinois. Price is $295
plus $15/ton delivery (within a 30 mile distance of Greenfield, MA
by Mapquest, $25/ton delivery beyond 30 miles). Members with the
ability to pick up their pellets in Bernardston, MA, can avoid the
delivery charges. Pick up or delivery can be arranged by calling
Precision Heat at the number above and scheduling with them. Be
sure to mention your Co-op Power membership.
Bagged wood pellets will be delivered or can be picked up;
Call Precision Heat to schedule your delivery.
Payment will be made to Precision Heat.
2) Loose wood pellets, delivered by Precision Heat's bulk truck
using a 75' flexible hose into your weatherproof storage, is the
preferred method and the less costly alternative.
Price is $224/ton plus delivery costs that we expect to be in the
$15 to $25/ton range.
Call Precision Heat to schedule your delivery.
Payment will be made to Precision Heat.
For loose pellet storage, any of the following methods would work
well:
~~Construction of an indoor bin from plywood, plans available at
Co-op Power for a 2-4 ton bin, build cost in the $200-$300 range.
~~Poly Ag bags can be purchased, through Precision Heat,
for $12.60. They measure 38"x38"x38" and will contain
approximately 1000 to 1200 pounds of wood pellets when filled.
Bags can be reused for years and are a low-cost storage solution
when placed in a garage, shed, or home basement. (Just consider
moisture levels in some basements.)
~~Some members have purchased the black or rust colored 55 gallon
plastic barrels, with a screw on lid (originally used to ship
olives, pickles... that can be purchased cheaply at various sites).
These will hold approximately 350 pounds of wood pellets per
barrel and might loan themselves to outside storage.
~~Precision Heat also sells Poly silos for outdoor storage.
They come in various sizes for an outdoor, truly weatherproof
alternative.
HEATING APPLIANCES: STOVES, FURNACES, BOILERS AND ACCESSORIES
Precision Heat offers Co-op Power members with Full Membership a
ten percent (10%) discount on the purchase of stoves
(wood/pellet/multi-fuel) and ALL accessories, to include optional
equipment, stove-pipe, through the wall installation kits and so
forth.
There is a five percent (5%) discount for Co-op Power members with
Full Membership on indoor wood pellet furnaces and boilers, wood
pellet/multi-fuel outdoor hydronic heaters and outdoor Poly
storage silos of varying capacities from 2.5 ton on up. Precision
Heat will offer these significant discounts on almost everything
they carry to Co-op Power Full Members including tankless hot
water heaters. These discounts offer very substantial savings --
you might recover your membership costs in one fell swoop, and
then continue to save for years.
If Co-op Power members can organize and order in quantity,
shipping costs will be reduced or eliminated (from manufacturer of
appliances).
There is no sales tax for items purchased and picked up in New
Hampshire.
NOTE: You must be a Co-op Power Member or an Affiliate Member to
join the wood pellet buying group. If you're interested in
membership, contact us at 413-772-8898 or via email at
info@cooppower.coop OR download the membership forms from our
website at www.cooppower.coop.
Authored by: P on Sunday, April 12 2009 @ 08:12 PM GMT+4
Thanks, Frederic. That is very helpful. We store our pellets (40 lb. bags) in the basement (which is a little damp), piled up in the corner. Could this be part of our problem? My partner leaves 2 or 3 bags near the stove before opening them up to burn them, to help them dry, but I wonder if that isn't good enough.
Authored by: DavidWMorris on Thursday, April 16 2009 @ 06:35 AM GMT+4
In Panama we are considering producing wood pellets from teak and paulownia, both tropical hardwoods. We could produce about 200 tons a month. Do you think there wood be an interest in pellets from this type of tropical hardwood?
Authored by: Floyd on Thursday, April 16 2009 @ 10:20 AM GMT+4
I think any type of wood, hopefully sustainably harvested and manufactured, would be welcome as pellet material if it works well with pellet stoves (ie doesn't produce too much ash or clinkers).
Pellet stoves have become much more popular in the past couple of years and there is an ongoing concern that demand will outstrip supply, especially as the housing slowdown is affecting output.
We burned corn last year because our neighbor had a surplus and sold it to us cheap. It made a nasty clinker and left lots of residue, gummed up our stove all the time so it couldn't autoclean, etc. They say you get more BTUs per ton and per dollar with corn, but personally I don't think it's worth the hassle. And besides, I don't like the idea of burning food to heat my house. Also, the corn takes several minutes to light, so you end up using a lot more electricity with the burner on so long, especially on a bitterly cold day. Corn works better in the South, where the corn stoves were developed.
We are interested in trying switchgrass sometime, but I've never seen it around.
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"Economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." -- FDR