Pellet Shortage Already?

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If you increase the frequency of your regular cleanings and clean your vent at least after every ton, you should be ok until your full spring cleaning.
Agree.... best advice......
I have a Harman P61A free standing pellet stove and even I never bought into the "Fill it/set it/forget it Claims without at least doing regular maint cleaning every 10 days or so.
Scrape the burnpot each day Once or twice is a given..
 
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so far with my Lopi AGP which has a burn platform rather than a pot I just brush off the few ashes that aren't pushed into the ashtray by the new pellets when fed onto it... have not used it long enough to get any clinkers or clogs, about once a week I take the platform out of the stove and do a thorough cleaning..glass, vacuum insides take the inside walls out and clean them etc. worried about a more extensive cleaning as I am uncertain regarding pulling the insert out and the tools \ procedures needed to clean the vent. I ended up with a ton of newps by the end of last year but also have 2 tons of Timber Heat on hand I will be using shortly, some reviews have these as dirtier than other pellets so we will see... some in the hopper now on top of a previous bag of NEWPS (yes I waited until the hopper was all but empty).. now just need some cool days to assess the TH's
 
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so far with my Lopi AGP which has a burn platform rather than a pot I just brush off the few ashes that aren't pushed into the ashtray by the new pellets when fed onto it... have not used it long enough to get any clinkers or clogs, about once a week I take the platform out of the stove and do a thorough cleaning..glass, vacuum insides take the inside walls out and clean them etc. worried about a more extensive cleaning as I am uncertain regarding pulling the insert out and the tools \ procedures needed to clean the vent. I ended up with a ton of newps by the end of last year but also have 2 tons of Timber Heat on hand I will be using shortly, some reviews have these as dirtier than other pellets so we will see... some in the hopper now on top of a previous bag of NEWPS (yes I waited until the hopper was all but empty).. now just need some cool days to assess the TH's
Don't put all your marbles into reviews here about Pellet quality....soooooooooooo much depends on the Stove that is burning them..
Not all but more than people think...." X pellets are Horrible". X pellets are best I ever burned" Same Pellets..
Have to just try the brands yourself and see what works best with your stove.
Once in a while u might run into a renegade pellet brand No one ever heard of and when u open them up, you think you accidentally opened a bag of Dry Dog food. Crumbled, lot's of saw dust etc..just use them for cat liter or try to take back. No need to burn and try Especially if they did not get that way from being wet or damp..
hint: if they got wet inside, the pellets will swell up double size or more or clump up like a brick. had that happen to a good brand that got wet on bottom of skid. More Cat liter..
 
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Don't put all your marbles into reviews here about Pellet quality....soooooooooooo much depends on the Stove that is burning them..
Not all but more than people think...." X pellets are Horrible". X pellets are best I ever burned" Same Pellets..
Have to just try the brands yourself and see what works best with your stove.
Once in a while u might run into a renegade pellet brand No one ever heard of and when u open them up, you think you accidentally opened a bag of Dry Dog food. Crumbled, lot's of saw dust etc..just use them for cat liter or try to take back. No need to burn and try Especially if they did not get that way from being wet or damp..
hint: if they got wet inside, the pellets will swell up double size or more or clump up like a brick. had that happen to a good brand that got wet on bottom of skid. More Cat liter..
Yeah I get that that lol about the cat litter part.. we adopted a cat from the shelter last January and they were using pellets exclusively for litter.. actually cheaper than the cheapest from walmart by the lb.. anyway the TH came and one bag had been run through by the forklift .. I was so upset when I saw all the fines and sawdust in the remains of that bag I bought a pellet cleaner, opened a second bag recently to run through the cleaner and was surprised to find it was not nearly as bad as I expected.. the selling point on the AGP (all grade pellets) is the horizantal disc feed and burn platform rather than a pot, it is nearly self cleaning as far as the ash build up on the platform.. I will post in the appropriate forum when I have a good idea how the TH's perform .. still a large learning curve for me (see signature below)
 
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I was able to get a ton of Oakies from the place we just bought our stove from. It's a delivery that's coming in November. But thats when then stove goes in so hopefully, it'll work out. Didn't realise there would be a crunch now.
 
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Agree.... best advice......
I have a Harman P61A free standing pellet stove and even I never bought into the "Fill it/set it/forget it Claims without at least doing regular maint cleaning every 10 days or so.
Scrape the burnpot each day Once or twice is a given..
Once every 10 days? What sort of maintenance?
 
I just bought 3 tons from my local aubuchon hardware they had 1 ton of softies left they were energex and then they had about 15 ton 9f curran blends o. Hand so I took 2 blends and the 1 ton of softies I also had 2 ton of curran softies left from last year and I also have a full 275 gallons of fuel oil so we should be in good shape. ... we have a cogeneration plant near us and they are burning wood chips like mad so you cant hardly get a stick of firewood around here let alone the pellets are drying up as well... all the loggers have contracts with the energy company and chip everything they cut!!!! Alot of folks are pissed off at the local army base because the cogen is on the base!!!!!
 
Once every 10 days? What sort of maintenance?

Vacuum out excess ash, empty the ash pan, scrape the burn pot, clean ash traps, clean glass etc etc.
 
so far with my Lopi AGP which has a burn platform rather than a pot I just brush off the few ashes that aren't pushed into the ashtray by the new pellets when fed onto it... have not used it long enough to get any clinkers or clogs, about once a week I take the platform out of the stove and do a thorough cleaning..glass, vacuum insides take the inside walls out and clean them etc. worried about a more extensive cleaning as I am uncertain regarding pulling the insert out and the tools \ procedures needed to clean the vent. I ended up with a ton of newps by the end of last year but also have 2 tons of Timber Heat on hand I will be using shortly, some reviews have these as dirtier than other pellets so we will see... some in the hopper now on top of a previous bag of NEWPS (yes I waited until the hopper was all but empty).. now just need some cool days to assess the TH's
i have a AGP its a great stove and seems to burn anything u put in it the pellets can be dirty and your stove will still run fine
 
Why call?, you can look online and order from HD, Lowes and TSC, do a search wood pellet's, all HD in ct/mass around my area are low/out, Blowes has plenty of Green chit Suckpreme, If your that desperate.
HD list's by the ton, Lowes by the bag, last spring i had to be quick online to score some pellets

http://www.lowes.com/pd_87059-62268-777_0__?productId=3506840&Ntt=wood pellets&pl=1&currentURL=?Ntt=wood+pellets&facetInfo=

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Maine-Wo...llet-Fuel-40-lb-50-Pack-1Ton-Bagged/202672617

http://www.tractorsupply.com/product__10151_-1_10051_10158

Type in your zip code for list in your area
 
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The one thing I've never liked about those sites Pellet-King listed is the vast majority of the reviews are for a different pellet than what's at the top of the page.
They're great for the purpose he listed them for though, finding where pellets are available.
 
My St. Croix came with a scraper, a detachable handle for the clean outs and a magnet to store them both out of sight on the back of the stove.
 
the agp came with a brush for the platform, a round brush for the blower vents, a scraper, my installer \ dealer also included a can of spray stove touch up paint, a spray bottle of glass cleaner for fireplaces and a ton of NEWPS
 
Biggest dealer in our Mini state here is out but I overheard them talking to a customer saying they were getting in another truckload of Americas Finest Pellet(not) Omalley's for a paltrey $249 a ton. No thanks
 
I bought a Harman - he didnt give me anything
If you watch the haram vid I think it says they all come with this.ask your place if they forgot.
 

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The HDs around here (Westchester County NY) all seem to have a decent supply. Mostly Green Supreme (which burned very dirty this year in my test bags) and Heat'rs (a softwood blend from out West which I like just fine in my stove when I tried a few bags). BUT, for reasons best known to themselves, our HD put a 2 ton limit on sales, which simply meant I had to pay the $65 delivery fee twice on 2 separate orders. They also boosted prices by $10 to $249/ton.

The price hike is no big deal in and of itself. This is our 4th season with pellets as the [almost] exclusive heat source. [Author's Note: Never would have made it this far with pellets without help from 'those who know' on this forum. Hat tip to Smokey, Kinsman and others who I hope will not be insulted by my omitting their names].

Our first year HD sold AWF and some other brands at $187/ton but raised the price to $209/ton mid-season. The price stayed at $209 for the balance of that season and the following 2 years, during which time I mostly burned FSUs, which I loved. This year the opening price was $239/ton and is now up to $249.

On balance, amortized over time, not too bad at all. I always like to look back and average out my costs, so in reality, for the 4 seasons of heat, I have spent an average of about $203 a ton - or so. That's fine with me. While oil is down this year, it was up over $4/gal. around here a year or so ago. So if I took the trouble to average that cost out, I am still way ahead of the game.

I suspect pellets are like Christmas trees . . . one year the guy buys what he thinks is the normal amount and for whatever reason runs out early. The next year he gets a larger supply and is stuck with some leftover trees, so . . . the next year he cuts back and there is a shortage . . . etc. All of life is a cycle and pellet supply is no different.

Bottom line, I love my stove, love the heat and love the savings. Nuff said.

I was in Poughkeepsie Lowes this weekend - they also had the 2 ton limit/household! I purchased 6 tons of somersets from them a few week earlier and there was no restriction. Guess people they have had people buy them out and leave other customers waiting so they added the restriction within the past 2 weeks.

They, unlike the Danbury Lowes was completely wiped out, had bags available for sale. I saw Timber Heat and something else for almost $6/bag or ~$250 a ton. I didn't pay too much attention to the price because I had mine already, but very interesting to see that Poughkeepsie added the 2 ton restriction!
 
I've seen Lowes and HD with restriction this year.. While I'm shopping at HD and Lowes I always swing by to see if they have pellets and I will pick up 10 bags "just in case" but more times than not when I go to the pellet section they are sold out. There is either a shortage or people are panicking... I'm panicking so I picked up 5 pallets of LaCretes over the summer which are 60 bags a pallet but still look to pick some up when I'm out and about. I'm in no rush to pay $7 a bag this year as I had to do last year during the shortage..... funny thing about Timber Heats (which are the best pellet I have ever burned! Ever... that includes Okies) they have gone up 85 cents a bag from last year.
 
A few local HDs are getting pellets in. The selection varies by store. The one near work had Nation's Choice. The one near home had AWFs. I bought a ton of AWFs.

The store near work told me they're no longer doing pre ordes and that's helped with supply. If you want pellets, you have to buy them when they have them.
 
The restriction is good to keep hoarders at bay. I had a nice conversation with a Harman vendor this year. She explained that they throttled their customers last winter and by doing so, none of their customers ran out of pellets. I understand the behavior but it's unnecessary, much like food stores being mobbed before the " big storm" like they won't be able to dig themselves out for a month and the streets are plowed out within 24 hours.
 
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