This is my first season using a pellet stove.
It is an England's Best 25-PDVC.
The installation was relatively uneventful, due in part to the detailed instructions included with the stove.
My home is a bit of a challenge to heat as it is in part 225 years old, part 150 years old, and partly 25 years old. It has a footprint, 100 feet long.
My original intention was to use this stove as a secondary heat source/supplement to the oil-fired boiler.
I had been using kerosene for this purpose.
I'm finding that this stove works so much better than I expected, that it has become my primary heat source. I expect to reap some significant savings.
In past years, I have used 250 gallons of kerosene and 900 gallons of oil to heat my home.
Last week I had an oil delivery of 350 gallons (yikes!!).
The oil delivery company would normally deliver another 350 or so gallons in about 4 or 5 weeks time.
I expect that the next delivery will be WAY less than 350 gallons.
Anyway, my stove is the style that has two augers to feed the pellets to the burn pot. One of these augers is directly in contact with the fire and as a consequence, gets a build-up of carbon that causes a squeak that is annoying.
As part of my daily routine, I scrape the auger and the feed tube of this build-up. While I'm there, I clean out the ashes and clean the glass
Being a maintenance mechanic, I can't leave well-enough alone.
I have made a pretty good living, not leaving well enough alone.
I'm thinking that if I polish the auger and the feed tube to a mirror finish, that it will be less likely to develop a crusty finish that causes the squeak. If polishing these parts allows me to go even 48 hours without having to scrape the build-up, I will have cut my maintenance time in half.
If you're doing the math in your head, 20+ hours of time polishing parts would save me about 10 minutes a week, for a return on investment....carry the 2....long after I'm dead.
Has anyone tried polishing these parts?
I won't get to polish the feed tube until I stop using the stove for the season, but I can purchase a spare auger for small money.
I realize that I could experiment with different brands of pellets, but my reading of the reviews of the various brands finds little consistency. Thirty reviews of one brand finds them to be the best pellets ever made or the worst, and the manufacturers should be run out of town.
I'll be reading the forums here and making a nuisance of myself, as it's getting too cold to play outside.
ed
It is an England's Best 25-PDVC.
The installation was relatively uneventful, due in part to the detailed instructions included with the stove.
My home is a bit of a challenge to heat as it is in part 225 years old, part 150 years old, and partly 25 years old. It has a footprint, 100 feet long.
My original intention was to use this stove as a secondary heat source/supplement to the oil-fired boiler.
I had been using kerosene for this purpose.
I'm finding that this stove works so much better than I expected, that it has become my primary heat source. I expect to reap some significant savings.
In past years, I have used 250 gallons of kerosene and 900 gallons of oil to heat my home.
Last week I had an oil delivery of 350 gallons (yikes!!).
The oil delivery company would normally deliver another 350 or so gallons in about 4 or 5 weeks time.
I expect that the next delivery will be WAY less than 350 gallons.
Anyway, my stove is the style that has two augers to feed the pellets to the burn pot. One of these augers is directly in contact with the fire and as a consequence, gets a build-up of carbon that causes a squeak that is annoying.
As part of my daily routine, I scrape the auger and the feed tube of this build-up. While I'm there, I clean out the ashes and clean the glass
Being a maintenance mechanic, I can't leave well-enough alone.
I have made a pretty good living, not leaving well enough alone.
I'm thinking that if I polish the auger and the feed tube to a mirror finish, that it will be less likely to develop a crusty finish that causes the squeak. If polishing these parts allows me to go even 48 hours without having to scrape the build-up, I will have cut my maintenance time in half.
If you're doing the math in your head, 20+ hours of time polishing parts would save me about 10 minutes a week, for a return on investment....carry the 2....long after I'm dead.
Has anyone tried polishing these parts?
I won't get to polish the feed tube until I stop using the stove for the season, but I can purchase a spare auger for small money.
I realize that I could experiment with different brands of pellets, but my reading of the reviews of the various brands finds little consistency. Thirty reviews of one brand finds them to be the best pellets ever made or the worst, and the manufacturers should be run out of town.
I'll be reading the forums here and making a nuisance of myself, as it's getting too cold to play outside.
ed
