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Pellet Stove Fuel Selection
Pellet stoves are engineered to use plant based biofuel
that are derived primarily from unused products
such aswood chips, used pallet, saw dust or other wood products that uaully ends up in our landfills..
Small pellet of wood compariable to what we associate with animal food,
The unused products is squeezed
into small pellet of wood, similar to what we associate
with animal food, to a size suitable
for pellet stoves.
Pellet Stove fuel comes in two different grades of pellets.. The
premium grade makes up approxmatly 95 percent of the pellets made, where as the
standard grade makes up the what is left which quite often
is used in agriculture as animal bedding. To minimize jamming
and or bridging from occurring in a pellet stove, manufactures product pellets to meet the
best grade standard for demisions. The optimum
favorable deminsion is by
and large less then 1.5 inches long and if possible smaller then 1 inch to avert
bridging from occurring in the hopper of the pellet
stove where the pellets drop onto the auger. The
ash content of Premium grade pellets will be less then 1 percent when
the pellets are burned. High ash content is usually caused by an excess amount of bark mixed
into the pellet. If there is
less bark the pellets will be lighter in color, e.g. very dark indicates a lot of bark, with little
or no bark the pellets are very light in color. Premium quality fuel for pellet stoves can
be made from both hard woods and soft woods. The
type of wood that will be used will be determinedby the local source
of wood that the pellet mill has available for their production process.
It always is a great idea to try out different brands
of pellets before deciding on your finale choice
to conclude,
which brand works best for your pellet stove. Before you stock up to keep your home warm for the winter.
Different brands of pelletscan have different
price tags. Don't rule out the lower cost brands
without testing them first in the bottom of the bag although some saw dust fines will be normal. A
lot of pellet stoves do not
auger these loose fines very well, nor do these loose fines create
much heat value as saw dust usually just turn into fly ash, meaning
more through cleaning is required to keep you pellet stove air flows from being plugged up. Some home owners actually screen the loose saw dust fines out of the pellet to insure the pellet
stove feeds correctly. Do make sure
the pellet manufacture is supplying premium grade or equivalent pellets, as this info should be listed on the bag.
The Pellet Fuel Institute has set guidelines for pellets to help the consumer to make a better choses of the grade of pellet fuel that is suitable
for their own brand
is trying to supply a quality product. The membership will be posted on the bag./p>
One big question that is ask quite often, can my pellet stove burn corn kernels. The
answer is yes maybe, but you will need to combine with the
corn. Kernals of corn generate more
heat and is possible to trip a safety switch and shut your stove off due
to much heat generated by the corn, be
cautious with setting the heat selection to high. Remains
from the burnt corn has a excessive amount of clinker
that areleft in the burn pot. Manual removal of the hard clinkers that have built will be necessary, usually with a scraper,
causing frequent scrapping of the clinker then would
be expected with residue from wood pellets. If these clinkers are
not removed, air flows are impaired and the pellet stove will
not function correctly. Most manufactures of pellet stoves do not recommend corn to be
burned in their appliances as they are aware of the likely
problem the user may have. If you do decide
to try to burn corn, start with
a limited quantity mixed completely with your pellets. The rule of thumb is not to exceed a 30 percent to 50 percent corn to pellet fuel ratio. You need to understand,
why do I want to burn corn? There really is only two answers.
First, unable to locate a adaquate source of pellets
in my area. Second is the price of corn a lotcheaper
than pellets to warrant the extra work.
With the
use of a pellet stove, you will be able to reduce your
home heating cost compared to the use of conventional gas or oil type
of products or electrical heat. It is very important that you follow the owners manual supplied by the pellet stove manufacturer for the operating instructions
with regards to the periodic cleaning (recommendations.
Purchasing a pellet stove is a fairly expensive decision, a stove company or a store that deals extensively
hearth stoves
are more knowledgeable as they are better suited
to answer your questions and help you if your pellet
stove appliance will not working the way it is supposed to. multi product web sites, big chain stores, and farm stores
do not offer you any assistance. Often
they will say call the manufacturer or a dealer of pellet stoves in your area. You should realize that a hearth
stores or internet site that did not sell you the pellet stove has no responsibility
or desire to assist you. Usually,
when you need the most advice and or help is during the main
part to the heating season when the manufacture is experiencing
their largest call volume and very often will not respond to your call
swiftly. Saving money is very important, but if your pellet stove appliance does not
work correctly, or you have to hire a tecnition to repair or fix your stove, how much money did you save? When you are experiencing a problem with your pellet stove, a good
service technition can help you figure out the problem, and have
your pellet appliance back back in operation in a faster
length of time..
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