Sold my pellet stove and I have gone back to burning wood. The price of the pellets just keeps going up. It is the best move I made in a long time. I used to burn a lot of wood for years, and then got caught up in the "pellet" craze. At least I can get wood free, or at a reasonable price. I bought a Avalon Olympic free-standng, what a stove. I cant say enough about this forum, as you all have such great information that is put out there for us all......
Back To Wood !!!
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Welcome to the DARK SIDE dwite01. Good choice of stove. Keep warm and start stockpiling to get it seasoned for next years burn. :snake: Cheers
N of 60
N of 60
Welcome back. With respect to all the pellet heads here, I've never quite understood the pellet bit myself. If I was going to pay someone, I figure it might as well be the gas company and then all I have to do is flick a switch on the wall and feel heat start pouring out of the floor vents. I figure I would break even or barely save any money, then throw in all the hauling, lifting, lugging, fire tending, stove maintenance, etc - pellets loose their appeal pretty quick. Though I suppose the cost may be offset some when comparing oil / pellets as opposed to natural gas.
Anyway, glad to have one convert back!
Anyway, glad to have one convert back!
Every time I go into a stove shop I see pellet stoves and think, man it would be nice to just fill the hopper, set the thermometer and let it rip. Then I see how expensive they are along with the pellets and reality sets in, so I wander back over to the wood stoves. Maybe some day if the prices go down and stay there, and I get tired of the wood routine, I might consider a pellet stove.
Pellets DO have the advantage over gas and oil that they are mostly domestically produced and they are not a fossil fuel with it's attendant CO2 burden. Personally, for me wood makes far more sense economically, aesthetically, and in terms of the "art" of burning than pellets do but I do respect the place of pellets for many.
Im switching over to wood this year too, theres not much savings in pellets compared to oil right now, plus I can get much more heat from a woodstove.
I used to see a lot of pellet stoves in houses with electric heat here in the northeast, those people saved quite a bit especially with pellets under $200 a ton and electric being so expensive.
I used to see a lot of pellet stoves in houses with electric heat here in the northeast, those people saved quite a bit especially with pellets under $200 a ton and electric being so expensive.
dwite01 said:
Welcome back we've been waiting for you....... We knew you'd come back........ I fully agree with what you said about wood being everywhere....
Ray
I've done the pellet thing since 2001. Pellets started at $3/bag and now up to $6. Burned 50% corn in it at times, that price is unstable too. The only thing good about the pellet stove is it runs on a thermostat and can be unattended for a day or so in the coldest weather. I find some disadvantages compared to my Fireview- the pellet stove is not radiant heat, just doesn't feel as warm as heat from the Fireview. Pellet stove is noisy, fans/blowers barely tolerable on medium setting, too loud on high.
Fireview much better for viewing a fire, pellet not so much. Its come to a point where this will be the last season running the
pellet stove, this summer it will be replaced with another wood stove (another Fireview).
Fireview much better for viewing a fire, pellet not so much. Its come to a point where this will be the last season running the
pellet stove, this summer it will be replaced with another wood stove (another Fireview).
wow, great stove choice but I am somewhat partial to it! haha. I knew that that pellet craze was goign to go that way as did everyone on this forum. there was a year or two when everyone and their brother was buying a pellet stove..supply and demand!
I imagine that pellet stoves are just what some want/need and not for others like us - so welcome back. I am actually still looking at a pellet stove as an addition to my two wood stoves. I may not have the cash right now but maybe sometime in the future - who knows.
I also like your choice of stoves...
I also like your choice of stoves...
CTwoodburner said:
I agree. The pellet stove is a financial winner when you don't have NG service but you want a thermostatic heat source. It is way cheaper to burn pellets than to burn a propane stove or run electric heat. Some of us don't even have a central furnace so cheap oil is no help. Pellets are still 200$ a ton in my part of the country and the englander type stoves are pretty cheap too so I am still considering putting one in as a backup to the woodstove.
One other consideration is that during our burn bans it is illegal to burn both wood and pellet stoves but it is a lot easier to be stealthy with a pellet stove. And finally, this time of year I am burning lots of short fires. A pellet burner would be great to run for a half hour to just warm it up a bit.
Primary heat source is wood for sure. We all lay by the fire and watch TV, pet the dog, etc. I wouldn't want to do that with 5 different electric motors buzzing and clanking next to my head.
you made the right choice ,heating with overpriced rabbit food is no replacment for true radiant wood heat
Highbeam said:
Much more eloquent than I, highbeam - well said. I have electric heat - so yeah - I feel the costs rather quickly when not burning wood. Last year I ran out in early march and got absolutely clobbered in my April electric bill.
Pellets have remained fairly reasonable in our area. If you time it right you can get some pretty good deals on them. With local propane running between $3-4, pellet heat is pretty competitive. We had the pellet stove running for 5 years and really enjoyed waking up to a warm fire. Our in-laws loved it too and thought we were nuts to remove it. But we're very happy with the remodel and changes. The big T6 makes a good 24/7 burner and is easy to wake up in the morning. The heat pump is super efficient and takes up the slack without being a pain in the wallet. It's a nice combo.
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