Let's talk Corn

MN has a Corn Growers Assocaition

Residual moisture.

Bioburner said:

MN has a Corn Growers Assocaition

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I believe thats in every ag state. Michigan and Ohio have respective associations....

Some stoves are perfectly happy burning straight corn while some aren't and I bellieve any pellet stove will run a mixture of up to 50% corn and 50% pellets, however, when starting any stove, it's probably best to start the stove on pellets and then switch to a corn pellet mix or straight corn (if the stove will run straight corn because corn takea a much higher ignition temperature than pellets to it's very hard to start a burn on corn alone..

Also, keep in mind that running straight corn causes clinkers to form, necessitating removal. You caqn run a clinker pot in a pot stove but thats another subject.

jp99 said:

Guess I'm dating myself :D

It's a nice mill, even if it is far to drive for me. To get quality pellets I have to drive just about as far but go east, so the corn or pellet price is all that matters. The only pellets near my area are at Home Depot or a TSC, and they are pricey or not high quality.

Today their corn price is $4/50# bag, or $160 ton. Pellets are $240/ton plus tax.

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Is this the price at your local TSC on the 50#'s or corn in bags? I picked up a couple of 50 lb. bags of corn at my local TSC and they were $8. Maybe I should look into this. What type of corn was it for $4 a bag? I understand the way to go is buying in bulk but in a pinch it's good to have other options also.

OK, I paid about the same at TSC for an experimental 50 / 50 burn I did just a little while ago. At $8 bucks a bag that equates to more pellets instead but I wanted to see some corn burn. I am working something out with a local farmer here who has it all on site. He really doesn't like to sell unless it's an 18 wheeler load but I know his brother pretty well and haven't seen him yet. I should be able to get it worked out. All about a cheaper heat.

Should be able to pick up a small gravity wagon for fairly reasonable. Around here 150 bu wagons are $500 on Craigslist. Not pretty but should work. Also these smaller ones will fit into a garage.

Bulk is the only way to go.

A 500 buck wagon will net you bald tires, sloppy king pins and a corroded bin, but it's all fixable with time and patience.

SidecarFlip said:

A 500 buck wagon will net you bald tires, sloppy king pins and a corroded bin, but it's all fixable with time and patience.

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Lol perfect! Something to tinker with! My kind of deal.

SidecarFlip said:

A 500 buck wagon will net you bald tires, sloppy king pins and a corroded bin, but it's all fixable with time and patience.

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I've seen small wagons go that price that were decent. The small ones, especially under 140bu aren't desireable for farmers around here.

Auction zip is another source to watch for them in your area.

harttj said:

I've seen small wagons go that price that were decent. The small ones, especially under 140bu aren't desireable for farmers around here.

Auction zip is another source to watch for them in your area.

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That depends. For seed tenders in the field, a small one is more desireable. Fastline is a good one too. Actually the best place to get a used box is a farm auction.

So quick question: If I wanted to do a test of this, would I simply buy a bag of the feed corn sold at TSC?

Johnny_Fiv3 said:

So quick question: If I wanted to do a test of this, would I simply buy a bag of the feed corn sold at TSC?

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That works. Whole kernel, not cracked corn and not deer corn, deer corn has molasses in it. Big no-no in a stove. Bagged corn at TSC will be well below 12%RM.

Will run fine in your USSC, just be sure to have the agitator on auto and at a 50-50 mix or less.

SidecarFlip said:

That works. Whole kernel, not cracked corn and not deer corn, deer corn has molasses in it. Big no-no in a stove. Bagged corn at TSC will be well below 12%RM.

Will run fine in your USSC, just be sure to have the agitator on auto and at a 50-50 mix or less.

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No agitator...

bags said:

Is this the price at your local TSC on the 50#'s or corn in bags? I picked up a couple of 50 lb. bags of corn at my local TSC and they were $8. Maybe I should look into this. What type of corn was it for $4 a bag? I understand the way to go is buying in bulk but in a pinch it's good to have other options also.

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That's the local seed company. 1 bag or 1 ton of bags, it's $4 a bag price. The corn is screened, cleaned, dried and bagged at that price. It's so clean I can just pour it in the stove out of the bag.

Johnny_Fiv3 said:

No agitator...

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You'll probably develop a clinker then. No biggie.

SidecarFlip said:

Some stoves are perfectly happy burning straight corn while some aren't and I bellieve any pellet stove will run a mixture of up to 50% corn and 50% pellets, however, when starting any stove, it's probably best to start the stove on pellets and then switch to a corn pellet mix or straight corn (if the stove will run straight corn because corn takea a much higher ignition temperature than pellets to it's very hard to start a burn on corn alone..

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That's the one interesting feature in my Harman stove - I can start it on the ignitor with full corn. You can tell it takes longer than pellets and makes more smoke on start up because of that higher ignition temperature.

jp99 said:

That's the one interesting feature in my Harman stove - I can start it on the ignitor with full corn. You can tell it takes longer than pellets and makes more smoke on start up because of that higher ignition temperature.

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Not having a Harman (actually not having any automatic ignitor) I'm not familiar but I would think that starting on pellets would cause the ignitor to last longer (shorter cycle time).

I really have no desire to have a resistance ignition system. Gelled firestarter or hand sanitizer is so easy to use. Takes a whole 5 seconds and the fire is cooking in a minute.

SidecarFlip said:

Not having a Harman (actually not having any automatic ignitor) I'm not familiar but I would think that starting on pellets would cause the ignitor to last longer (shorter cycle time).

I really have no desire to have a resistance ignition system. Gelled firestarter or hand sanitizer is so easy to use. Takes a whole 5 seconds and the fire is cooking in a minute.

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I have been firing my stove like this since it's so much faster. Speedy ignition = warm fire faster = happier wife = good day for me.

SidecarFlip said:

Not having a Harman (actually not having any automatic ignitor) I'm not familiar but I would think that starting on pellets would cause the ignitor to last longer (shorter cycle time).

I really have no desire to have a resistance ignition system. Gelled firestarter or hand sanitizer is so easy to use. Takes a whole 5 seconds and the fire is cooking in a minute.

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Probably true about ignitor life. I only start the stove once a week at most, as I can clean it pretty thoroughly without shutting it down. I have no choice when it's time to clean the vent though which is about every 3-4 weeks.

I can get the fire to start on the gel, but the airflow is pretty high and it doesn't always take to start the fire. What I use is the same thing you use for charcoal briquettes - soak pellets in kerosene, drain/strain, and place in the pot. Lights nicely and gets burning in short order compared to the gels.