I was at the farm supply store the other day getting feed for the horse and they had dry creek pellets so I brought home a bag. I always sift the pellets in one of those kitchen strainers because from what I have read on here it cant hurt (plus my 9 year old loves to do it) Anyways after she sifted through this bag she had about 5-6 cups of just plain old sawdust why would this happen are they just cheep pellets? the pellets burned great and were some of the cleanest burning pellets I have used so far but it bothers me they would have that much sawdust in the bag
sawdust
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I burned them my first year and I thought they were one of the best . No dust and very little, if any, fines.bfgmt said:
That said , it seems that every good brand on occasion produces bad batches here and there. The process might not ever be fool proof since the materials vary so much.
Right now I`m burning Green Supreme (Newps) and they are very dusty and leave a lot of ash. I`ll not be in any hurry to buy em again.
jtakeman
Minister of Fire
Gio said:
Greene Supreme's were bagged at the Palmer Mass. bagging facility. NEWP closed that last year. They were bulk pellets hauled in by rail cars from BC. Pinnacle was the original brand being rebagged. They were very good. Then the issues started and NEWP was bagging a different bulk pellet. Never did find out what they were. Anyway, I doubt we will see anymore of the Greene Supreme's anytime soon.
I know BTU said the good Greene Supreme's are the same as Dragon Mountain. But I liked the Okies better as they had more heat.
On the fines issue with the Dry Creeks. I bet bad handling by the retailer had a lot to due with it. I burned the Dry Creeks and liked them. Definitely a good pellet! Above average anyway.
But what do I know?
jay
pelletdude
Feeling the Heat
The Dragons are the old Green Supremes. No longer bagged by NEWP. The Dragons are from the Pinnacle Co. and distributed by Cypress Pacific. Extremely good pellet very low ash, not quite as hot as Okanagan. Some of my customers prefer the Dragons over the Okies. They think they burn a little longer.
Snowy Rivers
Minister of Fire
The amount of "Sawdust" is directly related to several things
What the pellets are made from.
How tightly they are pressed.
How are they handled after bagging.
Rough handling can and does cause crumbling of a certain amount of the stuff.
Pine pellets tend to have a bit more "crumbs" than harder woods do.
I use mostly FIR here in Western Oregon and the stuff tends to have very little dust and crumbs.
Snowy
What the pellets are made from.
How tightly they are pressed.
How are they handled after bagging.
Rough handling can and does cause crumbling of a certain amount of the stuff.
Pine pellets tend to have a bit more "crumbs" than harder woods do.
I use mostly FIR here in Western Oregon and the stuff tends to have very little dust and crumbs.
Snowy
Start by asking at your farm supply store how they were handled and where they were stored. If they were exposed to moisture that will cause more fines. For instance, in my area HomeDepot and Lowes love to store theirs outside in partly covered garden center. In my neck of the woods we get much rain and snow, so that's not good.
Transportation plays a factor with fines also. The pellets I get by flatbed seem to have less fines than other methods, but the straps do break some of the pellets. The stuff that comes inside enclosed trailers tends to shift and move a little more than flatbeds causing some rubbing of the pellets. And box cars are a crap shoot. As long as the dunnage (air pillows, plywood,cardboard etc.) holds they are not to bad, but due to being double stacked the pallets on the bottom tend to have more fines due to the added weight on top. If the dunnage lets go and the load shifts ...yikes :ahhh: ! I had to unload 2/3's of a box car last spring by hand because an air pillow failed allowing the load to shift. Lost a few tons because of broken bags and had to exchange a few more because all the movement had almost pulverised the pellets. If you have any that are really bad any reputable dealer will exchange them.
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