I've been obsessing about what to do, if anything, about bulk pellet storage for a BioWin pellet boiler. I'm thinking the day hopper is pretty tall,
pellet bags weigh 40 lbs, I might burn 6-7 tons, and I'm no spring chicken.
One thing that surprised me is the potential cost of bulk storage, including the accessories like piping, and then also, the cost of getting them
over to the boiler.
It seems the options are, in absolutley no order of preference:
1) Outside Storage
a) Steel Silo
b) Custom Wood Silo
c) Premade Shed
d) Underground
2) Inside Storage
a) Frameless Sack
b) Framed Sack
c) Metal Bin
d) Custom Built Room
Outside Storage
As PassionforFire&Water, just said in another thread
"These are some pros and cons for a silo used with a pellet boiler for residential use: say less then 30 kW or 102,000 BTU/hr.
Cons:
- cost is 2x the cost of an indoor storage room
- no redundancy in suction point. Most silos have 1 probe at the bottom.
- if pellets are stacked higher then 8', they have more tendency to bridge because of the pressure.
- your money is no longer in your pocket when you buy 10 tons at once versus 2 or 3 smaller deliveries.
- right now there is no real incentive to buy bulk pellets. You would think bulk is cheaper, but it's not
- when you have a mild winter, you will sit on a lot of pellets for 1 more summer that can pickup moisture
Pros:
- you save valuable inside space.
- you keep the possible mess outside from the pellet dust during delivery.
- lower pellet delivery fee
- you may be able to take advantage of lower pellet pricing when buying early.
In my opinion, a pellet storage room should be build so you have 2, maximum 3 deliveries per year."
Inside Storage
The frameless sacks seem to be the cheapest option. I found a place that will install a 3 ton sack for $600. HOWEVER, it's a little unclear about piping, which I don't THINK is included as well as the outside fittings-not sure. Framed fabric and steel bins of about 4-5 tons are about $2500 or so uninstalled.
Piping can get expensive but nothing like the conductive hose. The 4" piping and hose are like what is used in agriculture. I found no generic place on line to get it. For purely approximate scaling purposes, I found approximate prices of $11 for a 10' straight run, $40 for each transition, and maybe $35 for each clamp that holds two pieces together-these are big sweeps,etc, different from what the average non-farmer has seen. The hose is $24 a foot. The frameless sack needs two lines because the fabric doesn't breathe. Same thing for the steel bin and custom room. The framed fabric bins apparently act as a filter when the pellets are blown in, (one vendor said it works well from a dust perspective), so only the fill line is required. Where I want to to put my storage, it's about 25'. For hose, that's $1200 for two lines! Pipe, 2 sections, 4 transitions, 2 pipes, maybe $900 for two lines. (Plus, that's if you can figure out what fittings you need with this ag. pipe.) You still may or may not need to buy the cam lock fill fittlings for maybe $300.
The sacks, framed and frameless go up very quickly. Plus they can be taken down similarly when not filled with pellets. The frameless sack just totally collapses when empty. I can envision some scenerio in the future where I'd like to have access above the pellet storage, or if we wanted to remove it to sell the house, or whatever. This could be a negative for a custom built room or the metal bin.
I would consider the single point suction of the silos a plus from a cost point of view. I understand that the changeover system for 3 points, as is used for a room, is about $1800, as I recall. I guess the 2" pickup could get clogged and that's where redundency would be helpful.
Don't forget, you still have to get the vacuum option, which, I'm not looking this up, might be $1500.
Not that I'm totally money-oriented, but convenience costs. Then again, if you can't lift 6 tons in 40 lb increments, albeit over a 6 month time frame, how much is that convenience worth if you're dead set on burning pellets.
As far as size, PassionforFire&Water made a good point about not having too large a storage. I am thinking along these lines too, but carryover to the next season might be inevitable. I am thinking that having some bagged pellets stored might be a good idea in case the autofill system has a problem or you want to totally empty the bag for whatever reason other than mentioned earlier (I'm not sure why-fines removal?).
It'd be great if people with actual operating experience with the different systems chimed in. I myself would be interested in how dusty the fabric (framed and frameless) ones are, since that's the way I am currently leaning.
pellet bags weigh 40 lbs, I might burn 6-7 tons, and I'm no spring chicken.
One thing that surprised me is the potential cost of bulk storage, including the accessories like piping, and then also, the cost of getting them
over to the boiler.
It seems the options are, in absolutley no order of preference:
1) Outside Storage
a) Steel Silo
b) Custom Wood Silo
c) Premade Shed
d) Underground
2) Inside Storage
a) Frameless Sack
b) Framed Sack
c) Metal Bin
d) Custom Built Room
Outside Storage
As PassionforFire&Water, just said in another thread
"These are some pros and cons for a silo used with a pellet boiler for residential use: say less then 30 kW or 102,000 BTU/hr.
Cons:
- cost is 2x the cost of an indoor storage room
- no redundancy in suction point. Most silos have 1 probe at the bottom.
- if pellets are stacked higher then 8', they have more tendency to bridge because of the pressure.
- your money is no longer in your pocket when you buy 10 tons at once versus 2 or 3 smaller deliveries.
- right now there is no real incentive to buy bulk pellets. You would think bulk is cheaper, but it's not
- when you have a mild winter, you will sit on a lot of pellets for 1 more summer that can pickup moisture
Pros:
- you save valuable inside space.
- you keep the possible mess outside from the pellet dust during delivery.
- lower pellet delivery fee
- you may be able to take advantage of lower pellet pricing when buying early.
In my opinion, a pellet storage room should be build so you have 2, maximum 3 deliveries per year."
Inside Storage
The frameless sacks seem to be the cheapest option. I found a place that will install a 3 ton sack for $600. HOWEVER, it's a little unclear about piping, which I don't THINK is included as well as the outside fittings-not sure. Framed fabric and steel bins of about 4-5 tons are about $2500 or so uninstalled.
Piping can get expensive but nothing like the conductive hose. The 4" piping and hose are like what is used in agriculture. I found no generic place on line to get it. For purely approximate scaling purposes, I found approximate prices of $11 for a 10' straight run, $40 for each transition, and maybe $35 for each clamp that holds two pieces together-these are big sweeps,etc, different from what the average non-farmer has seen. The hose is $24 a foot. The frameless sack needs two lines because the fabric doesn't breathe. Same thing for the steel bin and custom room. The framed fabric bins apparently act as a filter when the pellets are blown in, (one vendor said it works well from a dust perspective), so only the fill line is required. Where I want to to put my storage, it's about 25'. For hose, that's $1200 for two lines! Pipe, 2 sections, 4 transitions, 2 pipes, maybe $900 for two lines. (Plus, that's if you can figure out what fittings you need with this ag. pipe.) You still may or may not need to buy the cam lock fill fittlings for maybe $300.
The sacks, framed and frameless go up very quickly. Plus they can be taken down similarly when not filled with pellets. The frameless sack just totally collapses when empty. I can envision some scenerio in the future where I'd like to have access above the pellet storage, or if we wanted to remove it to sell the house, or whatever. This could be a negative for a custom built room or the metal bin.
I would consider the single point suction of the silos a plus from a cost point of view. I understand that the changeover system for 3 points, as is used for a room, is about $1800, as I recall. I guess the 2" pickup could get clogged and that's where redundency would be helpful.
Don't forget, you still have to get the vacuum option, which, I'm not looking this up, might be $1500.
Not that I'm totally money-oriented, but convenience costs. Then again, if you can't lift 6 tons in 40 lb increments, albeit over a 6 month time frame, how much is that convenience worth if you're dead set on burning pellets.
As far as size, PassionforFire&Water made a good point about not having too large a storage. I am thinking along these lines too, but carryover to the next season might be inevitable. I am thinking that having some bagged pellets stored might be a good idea in case the autofill system has a problem or you want to totally empty the bag for whatever reason other than mentioned earlier (I'm not sure why-fines removal?).
It'd be great if people with actual operating experience with the different systems chimed in. I myself would be interested in how dusty the fabric (framed and frameless) ones are, since that's the way I am currently leaning.
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