Pellet stoves again

[jg21]

Hi, I've done searches and found some old information on pellet stoves, but I was hoping for more current answers to my few questions. (1)...Are they safe? I just had a chimney fire yesterday and I'm done with wood and the creosote buildup, even though we had our chimney cleaned yearly. I don't want to go through that again. (2) Availability and recommended brands of pellets?
(3) Dealer/installer? We had a gas insert sold and installed by Tri-County, and they seem good; and lastly, (4) comparisons between another gas insert and a pellet stove. I am absolutely paranoid about another fire and feel that a gas insert would be the safest, but I've read where pellet stoves are safe also, although I did see an old post from OldHillcrestGuy that said his pellet stove caught fire.

Thanks for any information/opinions you can supply,
Jim

 

[RPMDAD]

jg, just curious did you have a wood burning stove, or was it a fireplace where the chimney fire occurred?. I used a free standing wood burner stove with a metal chimney pipe for 7/8 years and never had a problem. Did have to replace some worn out pipe. But cleaned it every year an no chimney fires. Fireplaces on the other hand i dislike, due to their lack of heat and chimney issues. Can't help on the pellet stoves have not owned one yet.

 

[jg21]

jg, just curious did you have a wood burning stove, or was it a fireplace where the chimney fire occurred?. I used a free standing wood burner stove with a metal chimney pipe for 7/8 years and never had a problem. Did have to replace some worn out pipe. But cleaned it every year an no chimney fires. Fireplaces on the other hand i dislike, due to their lack of heat and chimney issues. Can't help on the pellet stoves have not owned one yet.

Have a wood burning insert going into a chimney; I had the chimney and stove cleaned every summer....except last summer. I burned pretty crappy greenish wood all winter pretty much 24/7. A tough lesson learned. Why I didn't get the chimney cleaned last summer after 20 summers is something I keep asking myself (and kicking myself for!). No real damage from the fire, just some smoke inside the house, blackened bricks on the hearth front and some ripped siding where they pulled it off to check for fire in the walls. We were very lucky.

Jim

 

[GWguy]

Chimney fires are caused by the buildup of creosote from green wood, pine, low burning temps, failure to clean the chimney. Pellet stoves do not produce creosote. The end product of burning is a non-flammable ash which is vacuumed out. Chimney fires just can't occur.

The fire OHG had was a fire inside the stove itself, where the pellets caught fire inside the hopper. That seems to occur when you use pellets with high sawdust content. The excessive sawdust starts to burn and travels up the feed chute and back into the hopper. Don't use pellets with high sawdust, and vacuum the entire unit out on a regular basis.

I feel perfectly safe with mine. Self install is a piece of cake.

 

[kom526]

Chimney fires are caused by the buildup of creosote from green wood, pine, low burning temps, failure to clean the chimney. Pellet stoves do not produce creosote. The end product of burning is a non-flammable ash which is vacuumed out. Chimney fires just can't occur.

The fire OHG had was a fire inside the stove itself, where the pellets caught fire inside the hopper. That seems to occur when you use pellets with high sawdust content. The excessive sawdust starts to burn and travels up the feed chute and back into the hopper. Don't use pellets with high sawdust, and vacuum the entire unit out on a regular basis.

I feel perfectly safe with mine. Self install is a piece of cake.

He had switch go bad too IIRC.

 

[GWguy]

He had switch go bad too IIRC.

Couldn't remember if the switch failed before or after.....

 

[kom526]

5 years and no problems here. I'm not real happy with my pellet choice this year but they did the job.

 

[jg21]

Thanks gwguy and kom526, that's the answer I was looking for. I figured they were clean burning, but it's nice to hear it from those who know. Can the stove just be set into the fireplace opening, with an appropriately sized facing, or does an exhaust pipe also have to be run from the stove to the top of the chimney as does my gas insert?

 

[GWguy]

Each manufacturer has different requirements, but basically you can run the exhaust up the flue a few feet to a sealed off damper. I chose to run mine all the way out the top with a 3" corrugated pipe. If you want it flush fit into the fireplace, then you're looking at an insert model vs a free standing.

 

[Vince]

I've had a pellet stove / fire place insert type for about 5 years now. Never a problem. I leave it burning all day and all night. Clean it out about every 3 or 4 days. Just vacuum out the dust, clean the pellet holder, clean the windows, about 10 min. If power goes out the stove goes out. It works off a vacuum system. You open the door and it goes out. Got mine from Tri County and they service it every year. You don't have to clean the chimney because it doesn't produce any smoke, etc. You won't even know it's running from the outside/chimney smoke because there is none.

 

[OldHillcrestGuy]

Since my little problem a few years back, Im still huge pellet stove fan, I have had no problems since, even last night when there was a big power failure in No. St. Marys and eastern Charles (Hughesville area) around midnight last night, a SMECO sub-station went out. Stove shutdown and just the little bit of smoke that it released smelled nice, but I was surprised when I went downstairs this morning the stove started backup when the power came back on. Thought maybe it would have had a error code and would not have started till someone cleared it.

I had it on last night when I went to bed, and I got hot, woke up and thats when I noticed the power was out.

You dont live in Huntingtown do you jg21, was over there Saturdau after for soccer game and heard call dispatched for Huntingtown Rd for chimney.

 

[Vince]

Only mechanical failure I've had in 5 or 6 years was the motor that runs the auger to feed pellets. Easy to replace.

 

[GWguy]

I've been running mine hard since '97 (or thereabouts..). Just replaced the exhaust fan motor, and it sounds like the main air blower or auger is going to need replacing soon, and besides normal cleaning and maintenance, that's it. Turn it on and walk away.

 

[jg21]

Thanks for the information guys. Vince, we got our gas insert from Tri-County and have been happy with them, would you mind telling me the model of your stove? I've read some bad reviews on Lopi stoves, but those may be old. OHG, I live in the Dentsville/Charlotte Hall area. Seemed like we had every fire company in the area here! Good people.
Jim

 

[Vince]

Thanks for the information guys. Vince, we got our gas insert from Tri-County and have been happy with them, would you mind telling me the model of your stove? I've read some bad reviews on Lopi stoves, but those may be old. OHG, I live in the Dentsville/Charlotte Hall area. Seemed like we had every fire company in the area here! Good people.
Jim

I think it's a Breckwell. Not real sure of the spelling. I heat a four bedroom Cape Cod with about 2 ton of pellets a winter. A pallet load is a ton - 50 bags. I buy them from ACE in Lusby for $222.00 per pallet. Just bought another ton which will probably go for next winter.

 

[OldHillcrestGuy]

Thanks for the information guys. Vince, we got our gas insert from Tri-County and have been happy with them, would you mind telling me the model of your stove? I've read some bad reviews on Lopi stoves, but those may be old. OHG, I live in the Dentsville/Charlotte Hall area. Seemed like we had every fire company in the area here! Good people.
Jim

Ive got a Breckwell stove, other then that little hopper fire (I also had alot of fire trucks then too), Ive had no problems, also bought it at Tri-County and I have them come and clean every summer. Just got their postcard Saturday for early bird specials on cleanings.
We all are good people (I volunteer at Hughesville), your chimney fire wasnt the source of all the sirens yesterday evening around 530 or so, I was out cutting grass in the yard and heard tons of sirens, even checked out the skyline for columns of smoke.

 

[jg21]

OK, next question...(sorry!) What's a good brand of pellets? I've read where some are full of sawdust and corn and don't burn as good as other brands. The stove will be my main source of heat as I absolutely HATE turning on the electric baseboards. 2 story house approx 2400 sq ft.

Thanks again,
Jim

 

[GWguy]

OK, next question...(sorry!) What's a good brand of pellets? I've read where some are full of sawdust and corn and don't burn as good as other brands. The stove will be my main source of heat as I absolutely HATE turning on the electric baseboards. 2 story house approx 2400 sq ft.

Thanks again,
Jim

Some pellets stoves are designed to run on corn alone, and I suspect it's not as dusty as pellets, although I don't burn corn. A couple of BTU difference between the fuels.

I've tried a few different brands and always come back to Lignetics. Low dust, low volumes of post-burn ash and coke buildup in the pot. Always burns evenly in my stove, a Quadrafire 1100i.

Had a real issue with Pennington (WalMart). Lots and lots of sawdust, choked the stove. I got my money back on teh entire pallet I bought from them. After filtering the pellets to remove the sawdust, I burned the pellets. Lots of extra work.

 

[kom526]

OK, next question...(sorry!) What's a good brand of pellets? I've read where some are full of sawdust and corn and don't burn as good as other brands. The stove will be my main source of heat as I absolutely HATE turning on the electric baseboards. 2 story house approx 2400 sq ft.

Thanks again,
Jim

This is the $64,0000 question. It really depends on you'd stove and manufacturer recommendations. I burned southern states pellets last yesterday and liked them, this test the pellet size was smaller so I had a bigger flame than usual. Your best bet is the old trial by fire buy a bag or two of a couple different brands and see which works best. Most folks here use either lignetics or hamer's although some swear by country boys.

 

[roadrunnermoore]

OK, next question...(sorry!) What's a good brand of pellets? I've read where some are full of sawdust and corn and don't burn as good as other brands. The stove will be my main source of heat as I absolutely HATE turning on the electric baseboards. 2 story house approx 2400 sq ft.

Thanks again,
Jim

I bought a Enviro M55 cast insert, Pellet Fireplace Inserts

from True Value in LaPlata. Talk to Richard, he's a real pro. I have a 2400 sq ft colonial style house, so it's not a very open floor plan. Kept mine running 24/7 on a thermostat. Kept the first floor around 78 and the upstairs around 72. i had it installed in the middle of Nov. and have used about 3 tons of pellets. (It was a cold winter). Another good site for info is, Hearth.com | Wood Stoves, Fireplace, Pellet Stoves, Gas Stoves and More - Forums!