Multi-fuel on a budget

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samdweezel05

samdweezel05

Member
Feb 11, 2012
87
Upstate NY
I work on a farm and I should have thought about this before I bought a pellet stove. I can get my entire heating supply in the forum of dry corn for no cost to me. My current pellet stove is a Heatilator PS-35 and it does what we need it to do but I have to buy wood pellets. We can run about 50% pellets and 50% corn in this stove with out too many issues but I would like to be able to run 100% corn if I could. I also have access to soybeans but haven't tried them in the current pellet stove. Any suggestions on multi-fuel stoves that don't cost an arm and a leg?
 
Check out the Cumberland MF3800, it's a multifuel at a great price. So far I'm happy with mine although I haven't tried burning corn yet...someday.
 
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I've bought two used Harman PC45s.I've a Hestia burning corn in the shop as it has a big hopper and big fan to move some serious air but its minimum burn is over 2 lbs per hour, 17k btus. Soybeans do burn but very sooty and almost equal amount of ash to input. May do OK if mixed. Better to sell the beans and buy pellets
 
Great info. I will look into the MF3800. As far as venting, we didn't go cheap with our current stove. The stainless venting we bought was designed for pellet stoves and is also used with multi-fuel stoves. Where are you finding the MF3800 for $1,400?
 
Englander 10-CPM will burn corn. Never burned it in mine, but have burnt some pretty nasty pellets with no problems. Try the AM-FM energy website.
 
Think Mike stated that the CPM was backordered till Decembrrr or so.:)
 
samdweezel05 said:
Great info. I will look into the MF3800. As far as venting, we didn't go cheap with our current stove. The stainless venting we bought was designed for pellet stoves and is also used with multi-fuel stoves. Where are you finding the MF3800 for $1,400?
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i actually found it on sale at ocean state job lot, it was 1599.00 but they dropped it to 1400.00.
 
I just stumbled on a never used englander multifuel in my area surfing craigslist for 1250.00. I am not sure but going through some site like U-ship might make it doable. I have never bid or hauled anything through the site but I know someone that has had things shipped and sent things using it and it was much cheaper than regular freight.

http://kansascity.craigslist.org/bar/4193285426.html. I might be able to go view it for you but its about an hour from my house.
 
Bowhunter1 said:
love it, it will burn most any pellet, some more ash with the cheaper stuff. i like barefoot and the Curran softies.
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Were the factory settings good enough to just plug in and start , or did you need to do some tweaking?
 
not a lot of tweaking with this stove, typically burn on range 3 with the good stuff, range 4 with the "less expensive" pellets. on local tstat, it will change feed rate by itself. you will burn more on Local tstat than without, but during the day when no one is home I like it. As soon as i get home I put it on stove temp.
 
Bowhunter1 said:
not a lot of tweaking with this stove, typically burn on range 3 with the good stuff, range 4 with the "less expensive" pellets. on local tstat, it will change feed rate by itself. you will burn more on Local tstat than without, but during the day when no one is home I like it. As soon as i get home I put it on stove temp.
Click to expand...
Install instructions talk about a lot of technical adjustments but mine is a typical install and I am only burning pellets. I've devised a means of locating the controller down the hall from the stove so it can act like a remote T Stat
 
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chriscarl said:
Install instructions talk about a lot of technical adjustments but mine is a typical install and I am only burning pellets. I've devised a means of locating the controller down the hall from the stove so it can act like a remote T Stat
Click to expand...
did you use a female coupler and more phone cord? thats what I did.
 
I just put a phone jack next to the stove and one will be in the hallway. Connected them with RGBY phone wire. Out of sight out of mind. Hope to fire it this evening.
 
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