Whats the lowest ash pellets?

Click on "Pellet Forum Sticky Links" near the top of the home page. There are a couple links to some pellet testing done by members. The problem is, I think pellet quality can vary from year to year. While there are some brands the majority of people would NOT recommend, people have their favorites. What might burn great in my stove might not burn as great in your stove. Always best to test a couple bags in your stove; a little hard to do in 95 degree weather! I personally have had good luck with Turman.

Lowest recorded by our resident pellet testing guru (Jay) was Spruce Pointe/Dragon Mountain. You'll have to do the research on finding them in your area.....probably not easy to find, if available there at all.

Look for some douglas fir pellets. I tried Blazers last year and was amazed at how little ash I got.
Also found them to be the hottest pellets I tried as well. That being said, they were cost prohibitive
at $330/ton so I only bought a 8 bags to try.

They were the lowest ash and hottest pellets in Jay's 2010-2011 testing as well.

Somersets have crazy low ash usually...

Spruce Pointes can be bought @ Eastern Ice Co in Fall River, MA. Not too far from RI. I used them last year & thought they burned hot with little ash. I have 2.5 tons in my garage that i bought this spring in anticipation of higher pellet costs this winter.

Relatively local to you are Vermont Wood Pellets, which I found to be even lower ash than the Okies.

There are a couple dealers in Southern MA and even one in RI.

http://www.vermontwoodpellet.com/index.php?option=com_ordernow&Itemid=103

Softwoods generally have the lowest ash content. Best is going to be 100% Douglas Fir, But hard to find in NE and Pricey when you do. I have personally seen DF provide an ash content around 0.17%. SPF softwood blends have been known to give low 0.20% ranges. Spruce Pointe, Vermont and Okies were all less than 0.30% in my stove. Ponderosa Pine is also another low ash content pellet But not available locally.

Best hardwoods are usually the 100% Oak pellets like Somersets and Turmans. Cubex also has clean pellet when its made from 100% Oak, But they also have some mixed hardwoods like Ash, Maple, Cherry and Walnut depending on what they are producing at the mill. Some users reported higher ash content than what was expected.

Most pellet only stoves easily handle pellets that are below the 0.70% ash content range. Generally a pellet that has a lower ash content will usually fetch a higher dollar amount at the retailer. Another thing is ash content is by weight not volume. I have seen pellets that looked out of spec, But were actually well below what was expected. A light consistency actually is easier to be removed from the burnpot of a standard stove. Some of the lower volume fuels like Oak, Had a denser ash that was a bit harder to be removed from the burnpot area. Ash that stays in the pot will fuse together. Can you say clinker! Ash content alone may not be all your looking at. Burn a few bags(more than 2, I actually prefer like 6 bags for a good test) and see how your stove reacts to the fuel. Always best to trial what you have locally.

Softwoods - Okies, Spruce Points, Cleanfire, Eagle Valley

Hardwoods - Cubex/ Northerns, Turmans, Somersets, Barefoot

Each will range in ash content from batch to batch but at the top of the heap.

Research pellet pricing and availibility @ woodpelletprice.com

As others have mentioned, it is best to try a brand before purchasing.
A bit difficult to do mid summer though. ;-)

However, I have been burning softwood pellets for years and both Spruce Pointe and
Okanagans are in my top 5 list for quality.

Since you are in Cumberland, give AR Building Supply in Attleboro a call if you
are interested in the Spruce Pointe.
They carry them year round. Decent prices and good people to deal with.