My Oakie Black hills thread

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Domestic as in sourced from the northeast or SE Canada.

Wonder if the high pitch content of WP adds any BTU's.
 
Domestic as in sourced from the northeast or SE Canada.

Wonder if the high pitch content of WP adds any BTU's.
Not sure, But definitely possible. The White Pine pellets I have tried all put out some good heat......and they feel stickier than hardwoods. BTW......what's up with the Orford softies? The Valfei website shows them being a hardwood??
 
Not sure, But definitely possible. The White Pine pellets I have tried all put out some good heat......and they feel stickier than hardwoods. BTW......what's up with the Orford softies? The Valfei website shows them being a hardwood??

Limited run I guess. The only info I've found on them was on a pellet review site IIRC. Hoping they make more.....especially for $250/Ton.
 
Limited run I guess. The only info I've found on them was on a pellet review site IIRC. Hoping they make more.....especially for $250/Ton.

I hear they tested the waters. From the ripples(meaning the end user) it looks pretty good they could try it again. Maybe like MWP and limited runs? We'll have to wait and see i guess. I say if you really like them send of a tidbit to whom ever is in charge with praise and hopes of them doing it again.
 
Yah know , this conversation sounds like a dorm room, discussing their " exotic smokes".

If you replace pellets and heat with a few other nouns, the dea would kick your doors
 
X 2!
Clear bags are becoming increasingly "en vogue" within the pellet industry and for good reason. The problem with clear bags is that all pellets, and (I MEAN ALL!) have some fines content. Most often, it is so minimal, that you do net really see them, as they get "lost in th pour" if you will. And some brands with thicker bags are one step ahead, as the thicker plastic creates a static that will help retain more of the fines in the bag. And if the bag is solid, you more often than not will never see this. But with the clear bags, you see it! And when you see it, people think, "hmmm...never seen that before." Well I am willing to stipulate that although that is true, (that they have never seen it before) it does not mean that it has not been there! It's just hiding behind a solid bag where you can't see it. Point well made and this is a very routine conversation that I have with customers almost every day.
Part of the issue with the Black Hills clear bag is that, for some reason, the fines are pasted to the inside of the bag. It's really odd, the pellets themselves didn't have a lot of fines, but the bag is coated with them and they are stuck to it - glued.

I posted pics in another thread.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/just-got-my-black-hills.100328/page-2#post-1286680
 
Fines on the bag -STATIC

I wonder if they purposely statically charge the bags so the fines stick to them?

Edit: Answer is no. Mr. Warms says that happens when it gets extremely cold.

My conclusion.
I work with plastics and we always see static rise once the temps drop and the humidity also drops. Our building isn't atmospherically controlled, So we have to add anti-static devices to conveyors and feeder bowls. Also grounding to help eliminate static. I bet the bagers are getting zapped when the handle the plastic bags once it gets cold and the humidity drops?
 
For 330 a ton, they better last twice as long. I just can't justify that, no matter how good they may be
 
For 330 a ton, they better last twice as long. I just can't justify that, no matter how good they may be

That I doubt. The burn length will be in the same ball park. Heat will be hotter and they will burn 3X cleaner than you average hardwood. 2X as clean as the average softwood!

Average ash content of these is in the 0.017% range.
 
That I doubt. The burn length will be in the same ball park. Heat will be hotter and they will burn 3X cleaner than you average hardwood. 2X as clean as the average softwood!

Average ash content of these is in the 0.017% range.

Still not worth $330/ton. Not in a Harman anyway.
 
Still not worth $330/ton. Not in a Harman anyway.

Have you tried a DF pellet?


Branson4720 has a Harmone and he is game. If your stove is slightly undersize these pellets will give you a fighting chance at staying warm in the cold(not that branson4720 has that problem!). You don't have a worry with the P61 and all its power. But some due. Also some want to run longer with a cleaner pellet. Auhh he!! IDK some just want the best they can get.



Its all in what works for you. And how much you have to spend!
 
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I wonder if they purposely statically charge the bags so the fines stick to them?

Edit: Answer is no. Mr. Warms says that happens when it gets extremely cold.

My conclusion.
I work with plastics and we always see static rise once the temps drop and the humidity also drops. Our building isn't atmospherically controlled, So we have to add anti-static devices to conveyors and feeder bowls. Also grounding to help eliminate static. I bet the bagers are getting zapped when the handle the plastic bags once it gets cold and the humidity drops?
It's not static, because the way they are stuck isn't reminiscent of static at all. It's literally like dried wood paste - like glue and fines were mixed together and painted on the inside of the bag.
 
It's not static, because the way they are stuck isn't reminiscent of static at all. It's literally like dried wood paste - like glue and fines were mixed together and painted on the inside of the bag.

Maybe its just some the resin in the wood/fines making them stick? IDK, We may never figure it out.
 
Maybe its just some the resin in the wood/fines making them stick? IDK, We may never figure it out.

who knows, but that's a pretty good guess, because it's like they were put in damp, and the fines then dried to the plastic - so the resin theory might hold water
 
who knows, but that's a pretty good guess, because it's like they were put in damp, and the fines then dried to the plastic - so the resin theory might hold water
If the pellets are hot when they are going into the bag. Heat could be a factor? That is an easy fix with a little more cooling time. Could be they need a cooling table/conveyor before the bager?
 
Have you tried a DF pellet?


Branson4720 has a Harmone and he is game. If your stove is slightly undersize these pellets will give you a fighting chance at staying warm in the cold(not that branson4720 has that problem!). You don't have a worry with the P61 and all its power. But some due. Also some want to run longer with a cleaner pellet. Auhh he!! IDK some just want the best they can get.



Its all in what works for you. And how much you have to spend!
Douglas Fir burns hotter and cleaner than any other fuel I have tried. Period. To me, they are worth the money.....to some, maybe not. Yes, I have a Harman Accentra. I can and have put every possible type of pellet through it with no issues to speak of. Of course......if you consider "issues" to include high ash, low heat, clinkers galore and a filthy stove in general then you are on my wavelength;). DF pellets do not cause any of these issues. Yes, I do and will continue to burn Ambiance, Somersets, Cubex, Etc., Etc.....BUT, when my Accentra is cranking 24/7 during the few coldest months of the New England winter I want high heat and low ash. It's really nice to have choices.
 
Hmmmm. I burned my 3rd bag of Black Hills last night and they were OK in my stove but they did not set themselves apart from the crowd, The LaCrete's and Northern HW pellets gave me a little more heat. I tried adjusting the damper a little but couldn't get the Black Hills to excede the LaCrete's or Northern's. The ash was a coarser ash and about the same in amount by eye. I did not measure the amount of ash. Should be the same pellet you guys are firing. I just put a bag of Boundary Bay's in the stove. We'll see what these do.
 
Hmmmm. I burned my 3rd bag of Black Hills last night and they were OK in my stove but they did not set themselves apart from the crowd, The LaCrete's and Northern HW pellets gave me a little more heat. I tried adjusting the damper a little but couldn't get the Black Hills to excede the LaCrete's or Northern's. The ash was a coarser ash and about the same in amount by eye. I did not measure the amount of ash. Should be the same pellet you guys are firing. I just put a bag of Boundary Bay's in the stove. We'll see what these do.

One of the reasons we try to tell people to try them first. Each stove kind of has a mind of its own. You need to let the stove choose what it wants.

LaCrete's would be comparable to Okies-Spruce Pointes. BlackHills weren't quite as hot for me and also had a bit more ash. But the dollar amount was also in the BlackHills favor. A bit cheapier for the frugal. Boundry Bay will probably be not as hot and a bit dirtier than the Blackhills. Trebio's and McFeeters caliber. Please report your findings. ;)
 
We went skiing yesterday and when we got home the house was at 70 degrees with the Boundary Bay's. Hard to say that it was the pellet but that's the first time I've hit 70 since starting the stove. It was a bluebird day with little wind so I probably picked up some solar gain due to all the glass and the outside temp was fairly warm. The price on the Boundary Bay's was the same as LaCrete's, $6.49 a bag, $295/T. The seller told me they came from the same mill but they look completely different. The LaCrete's were light colored and the Boundary Bay's were much darker. Definitly a different feedstock if they were from the same mill. At East Coast Lumber the Black Hills are the same price as regular Okies, $6.35 a bag, $299/T. They stopped selling regular Okies and are substituting Black Hills.
 
We went skiing yesterday and when we got home the house was at 70 degrees with the Boundary Bay's. Hard to say that it was the pellet but that's the first time I've hit 70 since starting the stove. It was a bluebird day with little wind so I probably picked up some solar gain due to all the glass and the outside temp was fairly warm. The price on the Boundary Bay's was the same as LaCrete's, $6.49 a bag, $295/T. The seller told me they came from the same mill but they look completely different. The LaCrete's were light colored and the Boundary Bay's were much darker. Definitly a different feedstock if they were from the same mill. At East Coast Lumber the Black Hills are the same price as regular Okies, $6.35 a bag, $299/T. They stopped selling regular Okies and are substituting Black Hills.

He was pulling your leg or he don't know chit!

Edit: Maybe Not, Some actually believe they all come from the same mill!
 
He was pulling your leg or he don't know chit!

Edit: Maybe Not, Some actually believe they all come from the same mill!
They do come from the same distributor, but the mills are in fact two totally seperate mills. The LeCrete's are one pellet, and the Boundary Bay pellets, although sold by the same distributor, come from.......ready?....


Trebio!

Trebio is now putting their stuff in Boundary Bay bags and it is being marketed as a "price point" pellet for the LeCrete dealers. The Boundary Bay label is only for dealers who buy their LeCretes from one very specific distributor. You will not see a lot of it here in the northeast.
 
What "domestic" softies do you speak of? I'm pretty sure Curran softies and Vermonts are straight White pine. LG's are supposedly a Pine/Spruce mixture. Regular Okies are SPF.....framing lumber stuff.
MWP Softies- I would assume that those are also white pine since they hail from the Pine Tree State!
 
New England has a number of trees which could be considered SPF(to lazy to list all the species). Any variation of these could be used. I doubt they use just white pine for instance. Its probably a mix of what they can get. As long as its a softwood variety it will be classified as a softwood pellet or a SPF pellet.
 
where the f did the op go anyway. its HIS oakie black hills thread. :p
 
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