I posted this on the general forum but think it probably belongs over here. Anyone have any experience with the wood pellet stoves? Would a pellet stove be a good alternative to heating oil? I know a good stove is a bit pricey but would it pay off in the long run? Thanks...
wood pellet stoves
- Thread starter Hatfield
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Mr Bill
New member
Availabity and cost of pellets main issue
Availabity and cost of pellets main issue
With recent advancements in combustion technology, wood pellet stoves not only heat very well, they burn very clean relative to other wood burning appliances. The single greatest drawback, and why you don't see any used up here, is you must have an affordable, reliable, and local availability to pellets for your stove. All pellets for pellet stoves are shipped up here, and by the time freight costs are added, it simply doesn't add up from a cost-analysis point of view to burn with pellets here on mainland Alaska. Fuel oil, even at today's prices, still pencils out to a better value of BTU-per-$$. People simply opt for wood, it's more easily available, and doesn't require commercial processing.
Over the yrs, we have heard a rumor or two of someone concidering starting a wood pellet plant here. It never happens. Probably never will.
But you never know.
There was a huge demand craze for pellet-stove products a few yrs ago in the lower-48, and manufacturers of the stoves couldn't keep up with demand, and when they finally built production up to meet market demand, the wood pellet suppliers couldn't make enough pellets for everybody, so people ended up with beatiful and efficient stoves they couldn't use. Frustration set in and the whole thing fell in on itself. The craze died down, pellet supply eventually met demand, but stove mfgr's ended up sitting on tons of inventory they couldn't get anyone to buy any more. Thus- there are some great deals out there for pellet stoves. Many companies are desperate to move that excess inventory.
Availabity and cost of pellets main issue
With recent advancements in combustion technology, wood pellet stoves not only heat very well, they burn very clean relative to other wood burning appliances. The single greatest drawback, and why you don't see any used up here, is you must have an affordable, reliable, and local availability to pellets for your stove. All pellets for pellet stoves are shipped up here, and by the time freight costs are added, it simply doesn't add up from a cost-analysis point of view to burn with pellets here on mainland Alaska. Fuel oil, even at today's prices, still pencils out to a better value of BTU-per-$$. People simply opt for wood, it's more easily available, and doesn't require commercial processing.
Over the yrs, we have heard a rumor or two of someone concidering starting a wood pellet plant here. It never happens. Probably never will.
But you never know.
There was a huge demand craze for pellet-stove products a few yrs ago in the lower-48, and manufacturers of the stoves couldn't keep up with demand, and when they finally built production up to meet market demand, the wood pellet suppliers couldn't make enough pellets for everybody, so people ended up with beatiful and efficient stoves they couldn't use. Frustration set in and the whole thing fell in on itself. The craze died down, pellet supply eventually met demand, but stove mfgr's ended up sitting on tons of inventory they couldn't get anyone to buy any more. Thus- there are some great deals out there for pellet stoves. Many companies are desperate to move that excess inventory.
I think folks living remote should be self sufficient and you don't have that with pellets. It's much easier and cheaper felling trees and processing them into splits around your property then using a atv or snowmachine with all the associated costs. Just like other commodities, pellets are supply and demand. Just when you need them most (winter time) up goes the price.
Wyatt
Wyatt
tommy123
New member
Well did you get your pellet stove,and has it payed off? sorry the first one did show up
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tommy123
New member
Did you get your pellet stove and did it pay off ?
nuprofessor
Member
There are several companies that offer consumer size pellet makers. Some run on electricity, some on diesel, & others on gasoline. Granted they are not cheap, but I would think that in the long run it would be cheaper than paying freight and having to pic up and transport the bags.
On YOUTUBE there are several videos showing pellets being made from paper (newspaper, old bills, magazines), sawdust, wood chips, grass, hay, crop residue, or just about anything with a plant origin.
On YOUTUBE there are several videos showing pellets being made from paper (newspaper, old bills, magazines), sawdust, wood chips, grass, hay, crop residue, or just about anything with a plant origin.
greythorn3
New member
home made ones have unknown btu, and probably burn dirtier.
tommy123
New member
Dirty pellets are not so bad if you have the right stove to burn them.Yes they make more ash sometime but again it comes back to the stove!My harman's can go a month an more sometimes with out dumping the ash box.They (pellets need to be some what drie ) Whats also cool about having your own pellet maker is you can mix what ever you want in them .I mix some coal in with my pellets (not over 20%) this takes the BTU's up, and helps burn what ever else is used better then the stove does the rest (when set on auto ) Hotter fire meant it does not take as long or as much fuel to heat things up
They have a place in the home but there is a lot more draw back that plus’s. I used to install, clean, and service them in Colorado when I lived there.
Plus: they fit any where for the most part in a home because of low clearances to combustibles and they are power vented which means they can be vented right out the wall. Heat is not bad but again it is based on type of pellets.
Neg: They still need to be cleaned every year and some time twice a year. They require power 110v to run and there is a battery backup that will last about 6hr (optional) and the backup is expensive. Pellets can be hard to find in some area and worse late in the season. Most do not work well on cheap pellets or the saw dust. (Harmon and Vermont castings were the best when it came to burning cheap pellets because they have a horizontal auger system. Meaning they did not clog up as much as some of the others did with the saw dust.
They are expensive to fix and it is hard to find someone that really knows how to fix them without being a parts changer to figure it out. Components are expensive meaning the mother board and blowers are not cheap to replace. There is some multi fuel pellets stove out there that will burn coal pellets or corn but we really cannot get either up here and still be cost effective to used.
Hope this helps
Plus: they fit any where for the most part in a home because of low clearances to combustibles and they are power vented which means they can be vented right out the wall. Heat is not bad but again it is based on type of pellets.
Neg: They still need to be cleaned every year and some time twice a year. They require power 110v to run and there is a battery backup that will last about 6hr (optional) and the backup is expensive. Pellets can be hard to find in some area and worse late in the season. Most do not work well on cheap pellets or the saw dust. (Harmon and Vermont castings were the best when it came to burning cheap pellets because they have a horizontal auger system. Meaning they did not clog up as much as some of the others did with the saw dust.
They are expensive to fix and it is hard to find someone that really knows how to fix them without being a parts changer to figure it out. Components are expensive meaning the mother board and blowers are not cheap to replace. There is some multi fuel pellets stove out there that will burn coal pellets or corn but we really cannot get either up here and still be cost effective to used.
Hope this helps
tommy123
New member
There is always pluses and Neg's to most things.I have found there is many more plus's than Neg's in using these stoves .If one does not have the ability to get the fuel or to have enough elec to run them.And or gets enough savings from using them to maintain the up keep on themThan they probably should not own one!! It is nice however to always have a back up sorce of heat,or as I see on your boat two motors.
Now lets talk about what these stove are doing and can do, for the homes and cities that they are in. Lets take Fairbank Alaska,Is there a problem with air polution? And do most of these stoves burn cleaner than other wood stoves.You know they do just compair the exsaust .Can they help inprove the air our children breath,put money back into or wallets.If a semi load of pellets goes in a river does it equal the same as a semi of oil? Now alot of the same stoves that you fixed can help heat or heat all of the home that they are in and most if not all of the demicic hot water also at the same time. Using close to the same amount of pellets or ? (fuel) as they did to heat the one room or what ever.I know this to be a fact ,I see them doing this in homes up to 4000 sq ft and three levels high(with the stoves being in the basement or garages) about every day on 45k BTU stoves.And have seen homes, go from using 1500 gallons of fuel at $2 to $4 a gallon ( oil and or propane etc.) to not using any at all.
I agree with you there is a place and there is extra inconvences to these stoves.How ever the plus's out way the Neg's in most cases.As I hope we all know, to THANK the once who give us freedom,and to help each other find ways to better our lives. And as you put it
LIVE THE DREAM
Now lets talk about what these stove are doing and can do, for the homes and cities that they are in. Lets take Fairbank Alaska,Is there a problem with air polution? And do most of these stoves burn cleaner than other wood stoves.You know they do just compair the exsaust .Can they help inprove the air our children breath,put money back into or wallets.If a semi load of pellets goes in a river does it equal the same as a semi of oil? Now alot of the same stoves that you fixed can help heat or heat all of the home that they are in and most if not all of the demicic hot water also at the same time. Using close to the same amount of pellets or ? (fuel) as they did to heat the one room or what ever.I know this to be a fact ,I see them doing this in homes up to 4000 sq ft and three levels high(with the stoves being in the basement or garages) about every day on 45k BTU stoves.And have seen homes, go from using 1500 gallons of fuel at $2 to $4 a gallon ( oil and or propane etc.) to not using any at all.
I agree with you there is a place and there is extra inconvences to these stoves.How ever the plus's out way the Neg's in most cases.As I hope we all know, to THANK the once who give us freedom,and to help each other find ways to better our lives. And as you put it
LIVE THE DREAM
greythorn3
New member
make some pellets with gunpowder and give them to some inlaws.
tommy123
New member
look the cyber bully needs some attention
greythorn3
New member
hey osama is dead horray!
tommy123
New member
Now thats putting gun powder to good use
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To my way of thinking, owning a pellet stove is out of the question unless you can make your own pellets...I mean even if it burns more efficient, cleaner, it defeats the purpose, if you have to rely on someone else to provide the fuel. Isnt that one of the main advantages of burning wood?
As long as I have arms and a back (or kids, lol), I can heat my home...JMO
As long as I have arms and a back (or kids, lol), I can heat my home...JMO
greythorn3
New member
Greythorn, as much as i am loathe to admit it.....you come up with alot of crap that makes me laugh. I don't mean to encourage you, because I think you just might be mildly retarded. 
75% of the time, I think your posts suck, but 25% of your posts are comedic gold. Work on those percentages, would you?
75% of the time, I think your posts suck, but 25% of your posts are comedic gold. Work on those percentages, would you?
tommy123
New member
How about all the people who are on fixed incomes .Like some ones mother livening in her home, in town were they are going to fine her if she does (or not ) because she can't go cut up, Split or haul home etc. and stack , then carry the wood that her son promised to do for her. Because his back was hurting from getting that free moose meat , And had to have a few beers with the buds and for got to think about anybody else's needs because he was still in the bush way of thinking. Burn free wood ( right on bush thinking )( I have never heard of it ) Still takes time, gas. oil, cloves, trucks, axes, splitting malls, trailers, tarps, hand saws or chain saws chains ,chain sharpeners, file for ax ,new ax handle, duck tape, help, beer, bug spray, band aides, Wrenches ,(to tighten the chain and to fix what you broke using it to get the wood ),A screw drive, 4 wheeler, steel ash bucket, 2 shoves, chimney fire stopping log, Chimney cleaner brush, ladder, soap, hot or cold water, towels, Elect bill for washing machine, or more beer for the pain of scrubbing cloths and towels in the stream, cloths dryer or nylon rope,
I know I forgot something O ya the kids coming home from school crying because ,the other kids were teasing them because there cloths smelled like smoke, the wife finally got tired of cleaning up after you !! And left taking the kids with her ,to that other guys house who spent his money on a pellet stove and added a boiler kit to it to save money, and is now spending it on her. All because (It just my way of thinking) Do you know any one this may of happen to ?. Well I know many!! So If I was to now make a list of the time and money spent on the things it took to burn the wood, that so many people our proud of doing, while putting more pollution in the air that there children breath . It make more since to me to use that time and money to take my wife and kids out and teach them how to camp, hunting and fish and watch them have fun in the Great State of ALASKA while I drink some beers responsibly It's just my way of thinking
tommy123
New member
Thanks beer is good! I like cutting wood I just got ride of it being a job ,so I changed out my wood stove to a pellet stove to up grade my enjoyment factor
