Firewood versus Pellets

[fordmantpw]

If you switch to pellets, you lose out on all the good conversations about which wood is best, how to season it, how to stack it, how to cut it, how to split it, which chainsaw is best and most interesting of all, how you avoided that tree - or didn't - that you just cut when it fell unexpectedly in your direction.

Speaking of...using pellets is a lot safer!

Not only in acquiring the fuel, but also in burning it. And it frees up a lot of time as well.

 

[DieselnHooters]

Speaking of...using pellets is a lot safer!

Not only in acquiring the fuel, but also in burning it. And it frees up a lot of time as well.

If I didnt spend so much time felling trees, hauling splitting stacking wood , my post count might be much higher......but then my weight might be too lol

 

[buickanddeere]

Several years ago I found that I was physically unable to cut and split wood. If I had to buy wood the heating cost was in line with oil or gas. I looked into pellets and discovered that for many of the reasons given in this thread, they weren't for me.
I ended up burning coal. There are downsides to coal. It is dirty, smelly, and I still need to store it under cover. (If it does get wet, it is usable when it dries out) The plus side is I only need to tend the fire once every 10-12hrs or so. Fuel cost is also low, $125 per ton. I usually burn about two 5gal buckets full per day.
If I end up with some free wood, I can also burn it.
Up north coal is more expensive, but you will be buying anthracite, instead of soft coal, and it has more BTU's per ton.
I didn't intend to hijack the thread, just point out another alternative.
There is no free lunch. Good luck in making your decision. Stay warm.

Best, Bill

That's why I mentioned the Harman PC45 . They have been known to burn coal or a coal pellet mix.

 

[coobie]

I have burned firewood for 20 years and am thinking about switching to wood pellets. My house is single story with full basement, and the wood stove is in the basement. The basement ceiling is insulated (hot water radiant floor heating under floor between the floor joists), so I have a hood over the wood stove with an 8 inch round duct into the living room.

I burn 3 cords of wood a year and the 1400 square foot house is about 72 degrees during the coldest winter nights without burning propane in the boiler.

May go to pellets because: won't have to buy and stack wood; can buy pellets and stack them in the basement at my own convenience; no bugs with pellets; consistency of pellets compared with wood; wood is getting to be between $245 and $275 a cord and seasoned/ dry wood is getting scarce. Not to mention, wood delivery truck usually leaves ruts in yard, or I have to schedules delivery only during mid summer when I don't have enough time for it to season.

Has anybody made the change, and what has been your experience? I know I will need a new stove, and will have to retrofit my duct to get the heat upstairs. Thanks.

Good reading here Hearth.com - Information on Fireplaces, Wood Stoves, Pellet Stoves, etc. We have a had a wood pellet stove for the last 10 plus years.We spend about $600-$700 per year to heat our 1765ft sq.house at 72 degrees with our Avalon stove.Love it.

 

[Oaktree]

If you switch to pellets, you lose out on all the good conversations about which wood is best, how to season it, how to stack it, how to cut it, how to split it, which chainsaw is best and most interesting of all, how you avoided that tree - or didn't - that you just cut when it fell unexpectedly in your direction.

Not to mention the face cord vs real cord discussions.

 

[bcp]

Speaking of...using pellets is a lot safer!

Haven't seen many stories about someone cutting their foot with an axe while trying to split a pellet.



Bruce

 

[wotalota]

Just a caution that wood stoves can have hidden costs. A friend put in a wood stove to save on the oil bill. At first he had the wood delivered but then switched and got a chain saw to cut down trees in his yard. That lasted a season or two before he decided to buy a wood lot an hour or so from his house. Of course a truck was needed to haul the wood. Then to have quality time with his son he put a trailer on the land so they could stay overnight on a weekend and cut wood. Last I heard his wife decided it was time to retire and they moved to Florida.

 

[Ken45101]

If you switch to pellets, you lose out on all the good conversations about which wood is best, how to season it, how to stack it, how to cut it, how to split it, which chainsaw is best and most interesting of all, how you avoided that tree - or didn't - that you just cut when it fell unexpectedly in your direction.

But instead you get to participate in all the discussions as to which brand of pellets is best, when to buy them, where to buy them, what the current pricing is in your area, how that compares to other areas, how to stack and cover them, why isn't the quality the same this year as the ones last year. Oh, and maybe how to avoid getting hurt when the stack of bags falls over on you ;-)

 

[charlz]

I have found both good and bad pellet batches in the same brand. Now I just go by looks, if it looks like it has lots of bark, dirt or pine needles (we are all softwood out here) in it then I avoid it. Wood pellets should look like wood. When the local farm store puts on their 'stock up now' sale at the end of summer I go poke a hole in a random bag (if there isn't already one of that brand torn open) and have a look.

 

[wjmst]

Not to highjack this thread, but I am looking for a stove brush. Often times I use a regular paint brush to brush off the ash inside the stove. Of course if the stove is hot, the brush burns, melts. Is there some type of high temperature brush similar to a paint brush to remove the ash?

Wes