Does Auto Ignition/Thermostat use save pellets?

[cunnibra]

I've been searching through threads, but not finding what I'm looking for. I'm shopping for a different stove for a few reasons, one of which is the annoyance of manually lighting the stove each night as I need to clean it daily. I also do not get a great burn with the stove set very low, which is necessary in the shoulder seasons. So, I've convinced myself that the solution to all my problems is a thermostat controlled, auto-ignition stove that can turn on, burn hot and then turn off and wait for the call. I've heard this uses quite a bit of electricity. Does this actually save pellets or are you guys all just letting them burn all day long?

 

[Bioburner]

If one gets a stove that you can control with a clock feature thermostat for setback and or now control via wifi
Stoves have come along way. Some can go a ton before having to empty the ash bin and the pot and fire chamber needing little more than a few strokes with a tool couple times a week or more for optimum efficiency.

 

[Tonyray]

I've been searching through threads, but not finding what I'm looking for. I'm shopping for a different stove for a few reasons, one of which is the annoyance of manually lighting the stove each night as I need to clean it daily. I also do not get a great burn with the stove set very low, which is necessary in the shoulder seasons. So, I've convinced myself that the solution to all my problems is a thermostat controlled, auto-ignition stove that can turn on, burn hot and then turn off and wait for the call. I've heard this uses quite a bit of electricity. Does this actually save pellets or are you guys all just letting them burn all day long?

I think auto ignition is the way to go specially during shoulder season..
stove may shut down for most of the day before having to fire up again as opposed to simmering all day?
this by itself saves pellets and electricity...
I burn 24/7 when weather stays cold and my electric bill jumps approx 20.00 or so a month..
[most of this is not the ignitor but the exhaust and distrbution blowers..] because
by then I switch to manual mode since the stove wouldn't shut off for days at a time anyways..

 

[bogieb]

The thermostat uses very little electricity (mine is battery operated and I change the battery every 12-18 months). The igniter may use a little electricity, but nothing that you would notice. Like Tony says, the blower is the main power consumer so the little draw on top of that won't be noticeable at all.

I don't kow about saving pellets for the particular situation you describe, but at the very least, you wouldn't use more. And the convenience is great. This is especially tru if the day is colder than you expect, or it stays overcast so there is no solar gain - you can set the thermostat at 62* (or whatever) during the setback time and it will keep your house from getting totally frigid before you get home.

I rarely let either stove run all day long - just thru the coldest weather. Most the time they are controlled by probe (basement stove) or external thermostat (main floor stove). Okay, gotta admit since it keeps me from having to think about it too much, that I have occasionally forgotten to feed a stove

 

[alternativeheat]

In shoulder season I use a lot less pellets in auto mode. The stove only lights when heat is a called for. The starter element uses less electricity than a toaster. So if you use a toaster a few times a day it would be more noticeable on your electric bill than the stove starting several times a day. When the element does use electricity that has been noticed by people this has happened to, is when a control board goes defective and the element stays on 24-7. That and frequent replacement of the element happens too of course in that situation. I think the element draws 200-250 watts or so but just on startup, so for 5 or 6 minutes each time.. It's not going to destroy your electric bill like a couple of air conditioners might.

FWIW our gas range stove the oven uses a similar type element and it starts and stops many times during a half hour run to cook say fish or something. It's just how it is but way more cycles per use than a pellet stoves start up.

 

[Tonyray]

In shoulder season I use a lot less pellets in auto mode. The stove only lights when heat is a called for. The starter element uses less electricity than a toaster. So if you use a toaster a few times a day it would be more noticeable on your electric bill than the stove starting several times a day. When the element does use electricity that has been noticed by people this has happened to, is when a control board goes defective and the element stays on 24-7. That and frequent replacement of the element happens too of course in that situation. I think the element draws 200-250 watts or so but just on startup, so for 5 or 6 minutes each time.. It's not going to destroy your electric bill like a couple of air conditioners might.

FWIW our gas range stove the oven uses a similar type element and it starts and stops many times during a half hour run to cook say fish or something. It's just how it is but way more cycles per use than a pellet stoves start up.

I think i may have had that problem last season..[ ignitor staying on as my electric took a BIG JUMP last month or so..or i had a shorted wire lead..
guess the way to check is to touch the ignitor cover after a while of being "off'
had to replace the ignitor anyways since it stopped working.

 

[Dr.Faustus]

I've been searching through threads, but not finding what I'm looking for. I'm shopping for a different stove for a few reasons, one of which is the annoyance of manually lighting the stove each night as I need to clean it daily. I also do not get a great burn with the stove set very low, which is necessary in the shoulder seasons. So, I've convinced myself that the solution to all my problems is a thermostat controlled, auto-ignition stove that can turn on, burn hot and then turn off and wait for the call. I've heard this uses quite a bit of electricity. Does this actually save pellets or are you guys all just letting them burn all day long?

It saves money if you can flip flop modes as needed. Heres how i use it and it does save pellets. This time of year the house is warm enough not to need the stove. Except for the mornings. Waking up it can be freezing. So i have the stat set to turn on at 4 am and shut off at 7 30 am. This saves a lot vs. leaving it on 1 all night so the morning wont be cold. This of course is a direct result of me using my stove as the sole heat source.

as the winter comes closer, and heating is needed all day, i can set the mode to hi/low. The stove will ramp up with the call for heat and lower down to 1 when there is no call. this also saves pellets.

coming out of the winter i'll put it back into on/off mode and only set it to run 1 or 2 times a day. typically before bed or during wake up hours.

If you set it on/off all year long, the stove will turn on and off too much. remember its not as instant as a furnace. It can take 15 mins to get going. so stat calls for heat, then 15 mins passes, it may be way colder than you want. It also takes a while to turn off and cool down, making it hotter than you want. besides that it will burn out the igniter faster. I dont know for sure but i believe running the igniter all the time will cost more in electric than the pellets you would save.

 

[lagger]

Just to add a little from experience ... try to use a thermostat that has adjustable swing setting to prevent the stove turning on and off too often .. Swing on mine is set to 2 deg. so that at a setting of 68, it will turn on at 66 and off at 70, I tried a Honeywell at first but it has a cycle limiter only , this is set afaik to limit the amount of times a furnace (oil or gas) will turn on and off in a given time period (5 usually per 12 hours I think)

 

[Tonyray]

It saves money if you can flip flop modes as needed. Heres how i use it and it does save pellets. This time of year the house is warm enough not to need the stove. Except for the mornings. Waking up it can be freezing. So i have the stat set to turn on at 4 am and shut off at 7 30 am. This saves a lot vs. leaving it on 1 all night so the morning wont be cold. This of course is a direct result of me using my stove as the sole heat source.

as the winter comes closer, and heating is needed all day, i can set the mode to hi/low. The stove will ramp up with the call for heat and lower down to 1 when there is no call. this also saves pellets.

coming out of the winter i'll put it back into on/off mode and only set it to run 1 or 2 times a day. typically before bed or during wake up hours.

If you set it on/off all year long, the stove will turn on and off too much. remember its not as instant as a furnace. It can take 15 mins to get going. so stat calls for heat, then 15 mins passes, it may be way colder than you want. It also takes a while to turn off and cool down, making it hotter than you want. besides that it will burn out the igniter faster. I dont know for sure but i believe running the igniter all the time will cost more in electric than the pellets you would save.

harman has a manual mode whereas the flame stove never shut off..
it will "simmer" a while as a few pellets are pushed in every so often tp keep the flame going..