Converted from wood to pellet stove.

[Sillyoldman]

A couple weeks ago I picked up a pellet stove off CL. (http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=3597354) That was an experience. It was kind of a peachy/beige color. I decided to clean it up and paint it black. I had to make a 3" to 8" pipe adapter for the chimney pipe. I still need to shim & level it. aI also need to make a bracket to hold the chimney pipe vertical. The exhaust comes out the side rear and not center. I had to fashion a piece if stainless flex pipe to get it close. Moving them things around by myself was a challenge. Anyway it's working now. Not quite ready to sell the wood burner yet. I'll need to evaluate its performance first.

[Bernie]

Nice Job !

[mikey531]

Just be careful with what you buy for pellets. There are several places on the net that will explain the difference in pellet types. It really doesn't matter if they are hardwood or softwood as you are buying by weight. We are using a combination this year and so far so good. Some brands leave a lot of soot so you are cleaning the glass all the time. Try 2 or 3 bags of different brands and see how they work.

Nice fireplace too !

[Sillyoldman]

Originally Posted by mikey531

Just be careful with what you buy for pellets. There are several places on the net that will explain the difference in pellet types. It really doesn't matter if they are hardwood or softwood as you are buying by weight. We are using a combination this year and so far so good. Some brands leave a lot of soot so you are cleaning the glass all the time. Try 2 or 3 bags of different brands and see how they work.

Thanks for the tip. I'll have to tinker a bit. Ran it all night and turned the auger speed down to the first setting and still maintained 66F until this morning.

Nice fireplace too !

Originally Posted by Sillyoldman

Weekend #2. I'm pleased with the performance of my $200.00 stove. The stove is at mid level and it is heating the two upper floors. I've shut down the heating system completely. That little stove is holding the temperature at (oops typo) 69F . I still need to do a few things to make it more permanent. I wanted to run it a little first.

Whoops. I said 79 degrees. Check that, it was 69F. My neighbor built this house. He thought of everything. He went kind of overkill in areas. My basemen bathroom gas a light & switch for over the tub, another switch for the light on the back wall. One switch for the light & fan on the ceiling, one switch for the light over the mirror. Thats four light switches for one standard size bathroom

[NONHOG]

Thats great ........ 200$ what a score ! Now get one for the garage

[Sillyoldman]

Originally Posted by NONHOG

Thats great ........ 200$ what a score ! Now get one for the garage

I was out your way for the pellets. Just off 108th & Pacific.

[Sillyoldman]

Weekend #2. I'm pleased with the performance of my $200.00 stove. The stove is at mid level and it is heating the two upper floors. I'v shut down the heating system completely. That little stove is holding the temperature at (oops typo) 69F . I still need to do a few things to make it more permanent. I wanted to run it a little first.

[Sub-versive]

Nice!
Also nice you had a receptacle in the woodstove niche, that is not normally seen.

[slomotion]

SOM, can you make a heat comparison yet on how the pellets burn vs sticks? ( ie faster, slower,)Do the pellets want to fall through the grates? I've been trying to make an educated guess on the BTU output of a cord of dry oak/maple mix, and a ton of pellets or bricks.
Seems to me the pellets or bricks would be better as they're by-products, cleaner, and easier to store.
With the length of pipe you have I'd guess the creosote problem would be less too. Fair assumptions?

[Sillyoldman]

Originally Posted by slomotion

SOM, can you make a heat comparison yet on how the pellets burn vs sticks? ( ie faster, slower,)Do the pellets want to fall through the grates? I've been trying to make an educated guess on the BTU output of a cord of dry oak/maple mix, and a ton of pellets or bricks.
Seems to me the pellets or bricks would be better as they're by-products, cleaner, and easier to store.
With the length of pipe you have I'd guess the creosote problem would be less too. Fair assumptions?

Not sure how to calculate the BTU's. I have seen quite a few claims. The pellets fall into a burn pot which has holes smaller than the pellets. There is really very little to clean up. Hardly any ash. I'm not vacuuming bark off the carpets. I would have to agree with you that creosote build up should not be any concern. My pipe is approx 25'. I adapted 3" to the existing 8".The stove produces heat within minutes of starting. I'm really liking just dragging one bag of pellets a day inside the house.

[LooseCannon]

Originally Posted by slomotion

SOM, can you make a heat comparison yet on how the pellets burn vs sticks? ( ie faster, slower,)Do the pellets want to fall through the grates? I've been trying to make an educated guess on the BTU output of a cord of dry oak/maple mix, and a ton of pellets or bricks.
Seems to me the pellets or bricks would be better as they're by-products, cleaner, and easier to store.
With the length of pipe you have I'd guess the creosote problem would be less too. Fair assumptions?

I have been heating with a wood stove for years but looking to change to coal. During my research I found this Heat Calculation chart that is useful for comparing prices of various heating sources. According to the chart, Wood is $9.09 Per million Btu where pellets are $15.15 Per Million Btu. Of course prices very region to region. In my area a cord delivered goes for $130 so I pay $5.91 Per Million Btu.

[bubba327]

Since you are in the the northwest- I like the Bear Mountain pellets best. Made in Oregon. Hotter than Lignitics (North Idaho) and maybe a little less ash.
Beware of cheap pellets , they are dirty and require lots of stove cleaning. Some really cheap ones still have nails shreads from the pallets they were made from! Enjoy the warm!