I store my pellets outside tarped, on pallets, under a lean to. Just for the heck of it I thought it to be a good idea to check the moisture content of the pellets. Soooo I put a handfull in a bowl, put a loose fitting lid on it, set microwave on HIGH for 5 min. After about 3 min. I smelled smoke coming from the kitchen, and smoke pouring from the microwave. So much for that idea.
Microwave Pellet Stove
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jtakeman
Minister of Fire
I think 40 to 45 seconds would have been fine. You only want to warm em up some.
Like delta says you may be on to something!
Super duper pellet igniter!
Like delta says you may be on to something!
Super duper pellet igniter!nuYooper said:
Try this testing method:
1. place 1/2 cup pellets in a GLASS (not plastic) bowl.
2. cover the bowl with a saucer to make moderately airtight
3. nuke them in microwave for about 45 sec, to 1 minute.
4. immediately when finished heating remove the saucer and tip it up vertically, look for moisture on the bottom of the saucer, there should be a little. If enough is present to allow it to run down the bottom of the saucer, they have excessive moisture
Now that is one way to get that burnt popcorn smell out of the ole microwave. The part that proves I am a pellet addict is if I had a choice to smell the burnt popcorn or some smoldered pellets I would choose the pellets.
DMZX
Member
Here is a way to determine fuel moisture % content.
Take some pellets, about a dozen. Weigh them on a small scale, a powder scale works real well if you are a reloader. Put them in a glass container, uncovered. Microwave for 30-40 seconds on high. Remove and weigh them again. Divide the difference in the weights by the original weight. So if original weight is 60 grains and after microwave weight is 50 grains, the difference is 10 grains.
10/60 = .166 * 100 = 16.6% fuel moisture content.
This works better in an oven at 220 degrees for a few hours, because the microwave can volatize some resins in the wood pellets.
Take some pellets, about a dozen. Weigh them on a small scale, a powder scale works real well if you are a reloader. Put them in a glass container, uncovered. Microwave for 30-40 seconds on high. Remove and weigh them again. Divide the difference in the weights by the original weight. So if original weight is 60 grains and after microwave weight is 50 grains, the difference is 10 grains.
10/60 = .166 * 100 = 16.6% fuel moisture content.
This works better in an oven at 220 degrees for a few hours, because the microwave can volatize some resins in the wood pellets.
DMZX,
That's just the information that makes this site great. Also, the jokes are really good too. Why is a glass container needed instead of plastic? I must have been sleeping in chemistry class that day.
That's just the information that makes this site great. Also, the jokes are really good too. Why is a glass container needed instead of plastic? I must have been sleeping in chemistry class that day.
DMZX
Member
nuYooper said:
If plastic is used, there is a chance that chemicals or food residues (grease) can be leached into the pellets.
save$
Minister of Fire
This might be a good answer for those who questions about where they store their pellets. Test them new, and then again later in the season. Then come back to the forum with the findings. I won't buy pellet that I know have been kept outside and not in a shelter.imacman said:
DMZX said:
I tested my outside stored pellets with the results of 2.15% moisture content. I wish I had a baseline number for comparison. Is there a P.F.I. standard for new manufacture, as I don't know how these pellets were stored before I got them home? The hardest part of this little experiment was remembering where I set my BEER
:roll: I think the P.F.I. website says less than 8.0%, but that seems high.
jtakeman
Minister of Fire
DMZX said:
Looks like I need to order another scale. Thanks for posting this DMZX! I can use it for sure!
nuYooper said:I tested my outside stored pellets with the results of 2.15% moisture content. I wish I had a baseline number for comparison. Is there a P.F.I. standard for new manufacture, as I don't know how these pellets were stored before I got them home? The hardest part of this little experiment was remembering where I set my BEER
Pretty simple, The lower the moisture the better as higher moisture content will produce less BTU's. If you look at some of the Twinport test data sheets they have 0% moisture corrected BTU outputs and actual BTU 's produced with the moisture content of the pellet as it was recieved. 0% corrected has a much higher BTU output.
I would say below 5% for the top shelf Super Premium grade and a bit more for for Premium grade. 8% sounds pretty high though.
P.F.I. tests moisture "as-received". http://pelletheat.org/wp-content/up...ential-Commercial-Densified-Fuel-10-25-10.pdf I was wondering about moisture content as-manufactured. I would venture to say that my results, of just one test, at 2.15% is OK for my outside stored pellets. Your mileage may vary.
jtakeman
Minister of Fire
nuYooper said:
PFI actually doesn't do the pellet testing, They only write the specs for the tests and certify the mills. Most testing is done by Twinports labs, But there are a few others that also test. The pellet mills send the samples to the labs, The labs return the test data back to the mills. The mills then send the lab data to PFI for certification. FYI only.
I do my own testing because the mills can select that special batch to send to the labs. There are some new PFI spec's floating around, And the EPA has set some upgrades like mill spot checks. Hopefully the PFI label will have a little more meaning. Until then, I put little faith in the PFI label and I have burned some dandy pellets that don't carry the PFI label.
Here is a Twinports test report for Curran pellets.
Twinports Curran Softwoods
This is what I discovered:
1. Pellets will burn in a microwave oven.
2. A simple test can be used to determine if outside storage is adequate.
3. Where did I set my BEER?
1. Pellets will burn in a microwave oven.
2. A simple test can be used to determine if outside storage is adequate.
3. Where did I set my BEER?
Wi Thundercat
Feeling the Heat
nuYooper said:This is what I discovered:
1. Pellets will burn in a microwave oven.
2. A simple test can be used to determine if outside storage is adequate.
3. Where did I set my BEER?
#3 should be # 1
#1 should be #2
#2 should be #3
LOL
:lol:
J.R.1951
New Member
If you watch your burn pot closely, you can see if a pellet is giving off steam as soon as it hits the burn pot. In my Englander 10 CPM I can tell right away if I have excess moisture in a bag of pellets, if so? I'll take a few scoops of them out and mix in known dry pellets, then slow down the feed rate and up the combustion rate.
This in hand let's me keep burning within 5° of the normal grill air temp. Also watch the pellet leigth, if you start seeing 1/6 to 1/4 inch pellets its a good sign of to much moisture in that batch of pellets, no matter what brand of pellet you use. If the wood is to wet the binding ajent cannot bind itself to the wood fiber at any ton of pressure, and as they come out of the pellet press die they will break off short, then you end up with auger binding fines and chips that become klinkers real fast. All any pellet stove is...Is a small kiln except that you cannot take out the moist wood that you have just dried,
A great pellet should be gas dance. So make it twist lol
The denser the pellet the better the dance. twist and shout.
This in hand let's me keep burning within 5° of the normal grill air temp. Also watch the pellet leigth, if you start seeing 1/6 to 1/4 inch pellets its a good sign of to much moisture in that batch of pellets, no matter what brand of pellet you use. If the wood is to wet the binding ajent cannot bind itself to the wood fiber at any ton of pressure, and as they come out of the pellet press die they will break off short, then you end up with auger binding fines and chips that become klinkers real fast. All any pellet stove is...Is a small kiln except that you cannot take out the moist wood that you have just dried,
A great pellet should be gas dance. So make it twist lol
The denser the pellet the better the dance. twist and shout.
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