Why do people feel the need to always point this out ?

MAybe not. I found I had to also power my well pump so the water system was pressurized (I have a boiler embedded tankless hot water heater so without water pressure the boiler would shutdown even though the heating loop was sealed). Not a problem for me (I've got a 6.5KW generator) and possibly you if you have town water but if you've got a well you might want to check on that.

Yep, this one bugs me too. I think Craig hit it, most people don't know enough about pellet stoves to know it may be an issue. Also, the direct vs. up and out is getting on my nerves too now that we are venting (pun intended!). I've experienced both, and have purposely pulled the plug on both while running. Yes, the up and out cleared a bit quicker, but neither leaked an appreciable amount of smoke into the structure. These were both Castile's, both in well sealed houses, so that may have something to do with it. For those that have direct vents, test 'em out and post a new thread on the outcome! Btw, it may not be efficient, but an inverter on the little car worked once for the stove for an outage of a couple hours.

All I know is when my power goes out for a while and I have to resort to starting the generator I`m gonna run the oil furnace .
The oil furnace heat the whole house and do it a lot faster than the pellet stove. I will also keep the fridge cold and have some lights while the gen is running.
The best part is that the generator won`t have to run all the time, maybe 1 hour 4-5 times a day.

"My Pellet Stove is an alternative heating source, not a backup." How's that for for an answer to these people?

When the day comes when I have to go to pellet from wood--that is the day that it is time for the rest home. Even in my sixties, I enjoy splitting wood, stacking it , and admiring the fact that no matter what the temps, or power failures, I am not gonna freeze to death.

Maybe I should change my middle name from William to Indepedent? Pellets are only good if they are cheaper than oil, gas ,etc. but having one of those contraptions with all the moving parts that need constant maintenance and electiricty,etc. is just not my "cup of tea".. If it makes economic sense? Fine.. Otherwise, just a prettry toy that needs constant attention. IMHO :roll:

I did not see any posts about battery back up how long will they last?
Anyone have one and had to use it in a power outage?
I hear you can build one yourself and have it in the basement?
Most power outages here are 10 minutes to 2 hours at that.

Wood is not a feasible option for many of us pelletheads. In my case,
I have nowhere to store it, I have no resources where I can get it for free
which means I'd have to pay for it, which, around my area
it costs the same or more than the pellets I bought in April.

Power outage: I can count on one hand the amount of times
we've lost power here in the last 47 years I've been in this house. Seldom
goes out for more than a half hour. I have a generator if need be.
Replacing parts in my pellet stove is easy for me. May not be for someone
who isn't mechanically inclined but for me it's NBD. Going into yr #4 with
this stove and it's been good and reliable running 24/7 each year so I
have no complaints about all those moving parts.

Fact is, wood, coal, pellet, gas...what works for you may not work for the next person.

I agree w/ you Zeta, some people can't use wood for different reasons. In my case, I'm not retired yet, so nobody is home during the day to keep loading the stove with wood, and after many years of burning my hands, having to cram as much wood as I could in it at night so it would last a whole night and going to bed worrying about an overfire or creosote fire while the kids and I slept, finding bugs and wasps crawling out of the wood when they warmed up, splinters and a sore back from cutting, carrying, splitting, or stacking it, I couldn't wait to get a pellet stove.

Now, I'll load it in the morning, go to work, and it will be running still when I get home. And the kids can carry a pail and fill the hopper too!

Did I like the wood stove ambience? Yes. Will I miss everything else? NO!!

I too pretty much feel the same way you do. Wood is selling for $280.00 a cord and up from what I see near my place. The pellets just made more sense for us. The wife will pour some pellets, but mess with wood, no way !

Maybe this is just going to point out the lack of romance in my soul, but just what kind of ambiance does a wood stove have that pellet stoves don't? Both are warm and flaming. Just don't see what I'm missing (but then I converted my fireplace to a pellet insert so there's probably a big anti-ambiance gene in me somewhere).

My feelings exactly. For every positive given for a wood stove I can counter with a negative.
And I sure don`t miss having to be there 3 times a day loading that dirty wood burner.