I'm looking for an opinion from you experienced pellet burners. I've been burning the Energex Hard/Soft mix ever since I started my new P43 on 02/13/14. Since then, not having anything else to compare it to, I've gotten used to how the flame looks. Well yesterday I started burning some Crabbe softwood pellets and the flame is quite a bit smaller, but more intense looking with quite a bit more blue around the bottom of the flame. With the Energex when the stove ramps up for heat(I run in room temp manual) on cold days the flame would be licking the heat exchangers. With the Crabbes the flame never gets this high, but seems more intense with less orange, more yellow/white. The burn pot isn't filling up with ash as quick either. Heat seams as good if not a little better with the Crabbes. Are the Crabbes burning better? When I dumped the first bag in I was a little sceptical because they were dustier and had more fines than the Energex. Anybody have any thoughts?
As others have noted, every stove will perform differently. However, in my experience, the better dialed in your stove is, the better it will burn everything.
I have burned 2 tons of Crabbés, and 1 ton of LG, and a bunch of other stuff lately from HD, like FSUs, Blazers, etc. My stove likes softwood pellets, like Crabbé and LG, but everything burns fine, though I have to adjust the airflow with the FSUs.
Crabbé are very similar to LGs, and though I've been told they are double-vacuumed before bagged, I find them slightly dustier than the LGs. The LGs are practically dust-free.
Your stove sounds like it likes the Crabbé, and a yellow-white flame is hotter than a yellow-orangish one. Bluish, I'm not so sure any pellet can get a blue-hot flame. It's possible that you can see green tinting, which is copper sulfate which leaches into the wood. Perhaps, the blue is green.
Down here in Central Maine, I can't get Crabbé for less than $269 a ton. Further south, in Sanford, they sell them for $225, I think. If I could find them for $225, they'd be my go-to pellet.
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I just wanted to add, that if the heat difference is more than 10%, then something is likely wrong with your settings. Whenever pellets are tested, they rarely vary more than 10% in BTU content. With a few bags it's not worth the time trying to figure out the best settings ,but if you get a ton or more, then it pays to tweak your settings to get the best burn.
Although I like the Crabbé and love the LGs, next season, I'm going to get 6 tons of whatever my local HD is selling at $209 a ton. The price difference, 20% cheaper, is enough that it's worth it to burn FSUs or Blazers, which are both fine pellets. They don't burn any less hot in my stove.
