I ordered pellets today for next season

[newpelletstove]

Well I ordered pellets today for next season. Where I live, delivery from folks like pelletsales or any similar folks is non-existent.

I got 5 tons at $264.50 a ton, plus a $300 delivery fee. They will come with either a fork-truck or a boom, to unload them close to where I need them. And these are the high-energy, clean burning Energex pellets. I got them from Curtis Lumber. They are supposed to deliver Tuesday. So I'm feeling pretty good.

My stove store sent out an early-buy ad for NEWP hardwood pellets (8000 btu/lb instead of 9000 btu/lb for the softwood Energex ?). They were $225 a ton, the delivery fee was maybe $250, but they weren't sure what the fee would actually be, and they have no way to unload - they toss the bags one at a time onto the ground.

Hopefully per btu I made out almost as well, plus with the convenience of good unloading.

I figure I'll burn a little more than 5 tons a year, and I have almost a ton in the basement, so with these I should be set until next summer.

 

[MSmith66]

At $264 , i think i would have shopped around

 

[newpelletstove]

At $264 , i think i would have shopped around

You may be right, but I want good burning pellets, not like the cheaper ones from Walmart or even Lowe's that are known to go out (I want reliability and low ash), and prices are higher up here in this part of NY, and I wanted good delivery, not dumped on the ground, which is what I found when I shopped around.

Something else that surprised me, is that unlike for a lot of folks in this forum, all the dealers in my area run out of pellets toward the end of the season and are out for a while. I wish I could have some choices like many of you seem to.

If anyone knows of a better deal I could have gotten on a well-delivered, up here 2 hours north of Albany, Energex type pellet I'm all ears, for next year.

 

[PutnamJct]

$300 for delivery? OUCH!

 

[Wet1]

$300 for delivery? OUCH!

I said the same thing... I hope that's a typo

 

[TboneMan]

Is that "Upstate" (Westchester County) or the "REAL UPSTATE" (north of NY 17/Interstate 88)?

That seems pretty expensive given there are at least 4 pellet plants in "upstate".

 

[gangsplatt]

Is that "Upstate" (Westchester County) or the "REAL UPSTATE" (north of NY 17/Interstate 88)?

That seems pretty expensive given there are at least 4 pellet plants in "upstate".

The real "upstate NY" is Plattsburgh,

 

[Xena]

Sorry to hear you paid so much, that sucks.
$300 is very high for a delivery charge of 5 tons.
Sounds like that place is taking advantage of the
local situation.
Most places that have the forklifts charge around
$30 per ton on average for delivery.
That figure usually drops if you order more than
3 or 4 tons at a time.

 

[TboneMan]

Is that "Upstate" (Westchester County) or the "REAL UPSTATE" (north of NY 17/Interstate 88)?

That seems pretty expensive given there are at least 4 pellet plants in "upstate".

The real "upstate NY" is Plattsburgh,

I was going to say north of the Thruway, but that would leave out parts of "Upstate" like the Finger Lakes.

I do suppose, however, New York City if everything along the Hudson from Albany south....

;-)

 

[newpelletstove]

$300 for delivery? OUCH!

I said the same thing... I hope that's a typo

I appreciate all the responses to my post.

The $300 is not a typo - that's for 5 tons, so $60 per ton. The other estimate I got was for almost as much (without any way to unload), so I guess that's what it takes to get them up here.

 

[newpelletstove]

Is that "Upstate" (Westchester County) or the "REAL UPSTATE" (north of NY 17/Interstate 88)?

That seems pretty expensive given there are at least 4 pellet plants in "upstate".

Actually I am WAY more upstate than north of NY 17/I 88 - as I mentioned I'm 2 hours north of Albany - not terribly far actually from Plattsburgh. Stores up here ran out of pellets in March or so, and I had to scramble to find some to finish out the season (I paid $280 a ton for those !!).

The prices and availability seem to be nothing like what I read from those of you in Mass, Ct, or certainly Maryland or the Midwest. Even less-remote parts of New York State have it better than here.

 

[newpelletstove]

Is that "Upstate" (Westchester County) or the "REAL UPSTATE" (north of NY 17/Interstate 88)?

That seems pretty expensive given there are at least 4 pellet plants in "upstate".

Hmmm - what are the four plants (where are they and what brands do they make ?) If they are high-quality pellets, maybe for next year I can find a reputable dealer who can deliver them with a boom truck or fork lift up here for less.

 

[newpelletstove]

Sorry to hear you paid so much, that sucks.
$300 is very high for a delivery charge of 5 tons.
Sounds like that place is taking advantage of the
local situation.
Most places that have the forklifts charge around
$30 per ton on average for delivery.
That figure usually drops if you order more than
3 or 4 tons at a time.

Yeah, I think it's because the pellets are coming from a supplier about 90 miles away, and I live in a low-population area.

 

[richg]

Me thinks you was screwed here. I threw a dart for Glens Falls NY, tapped zip code 12801 into pelletsales.com, and got a price of $253 per ton delivered. Any way you can cancel your order?

 

[newpelletstove]

Me thinks you was screwed here. I threw a dart for Glens Falls NY, tapped zip code 12801 into pelletsales.com, and got a price of $253 per ton delivered. Any way you can cancel your order?

You could be right. I emailed pelletsales last month and they wouldn't come up here without a minimum of 24 tons "for my area", even though I'm only an hour farther north from Glens Falls. I wonder what pellet that was for $253 delivered ? Pelletsales also won't drive across grass, which I believe (we'll see tomorrow) my supplier (Curtis Lumber) will. Lowe's will.

Don't really want to cancel the order - it's coming tomorrow. I will still save a bunch compared to the oil I used to burn. As years go on if folks like pelletsales expand their area, and/or I learn more about how to get good quality pellets delivered cheaper, that will be a good thing.

Something else to consider is that the Energex pellets I'm buying are all softwood, with a higher (9000 btu/lb) heat content, I believe because the resin in the softwood contains more heat value. If one assumes for a moment that this is 10% higher than for a hardwood pellet, then the cost of $264/ton is really equal to about $240/ton of other pellets. So the price difference isn't as stark as it might look.

I appreciate your interest and your thoughts.

 

[newpelletstove]

My Energex pellets came today, and the driver kindly drove all 5 tons, using a truck-mounted forktruck, into my backyard and near the cellar door This helps me a lot. The pellets arrived in good condition, except for one bag, which I will use soon.

Added later in the day:

Now, with help from a friend, all 5 tons are in the basement I would say that maybe 10 or 12 out of the 250 bags had holes in them, most of which I could cover with duct tape. One bag was a loss.

But it feels good to have pellets for a year bought and stored.

 

[jchick]

I paid a delivery fee total of 50 dollars for 3 tons in Mass. It seemed like a very good deal.

 

[MCPO]

Pellets here in Pittsfield Ma (Berkshire county) might be on the high side.
I paid $267 for 2 tons of Green supreme and $290 for a ton of Heartland . No delivery charges.
John

 

[newpelletstove]

Jeff and John,

Your low-to-no delivery charges are what I keep hearing about for MA, CT, and RI. I wish it were like that here. But I'm happy - the flatbed truck which delivered my pellets had travelled quite a way (90 miles), and the driver used a rear-mounted fork truck (which was actually quite sophisticated, with a scissor-type extension to hold the load out at a distance if needed) to put the pallets right where I needed them.

I understand that living up here may mean costlier pellets and costlier delivery. But it's still worth it

 

[jchick]

I am very lucky to have a couple of pellet dealers close to me. With the 90 miles they traveled and price of fuel to get there you can understand the high cost. The bottom line is at 4 or maybe even 5 dollars a gallon for oil this winter that 300 for shipping wont hurt so much. Maybe they will be good enough to give you a discount next year for being a return customer.(hopefully!) Take care jeff

 

[MCPO]

I am very lucky to have a couple of pellet dealers close to me. With the 90 miles they traveled and price of fuel to get there you can understand the high cost. The bottom line is at 4 or maybe even 5 dollars a gallon for oil this winter that 300 for shipping wont hurt so much. Maybe they will be good enough to give you a discount next year for being a return customer.(hopefully!) Take care jeff

Crude prices today were at $133 a barrel. Another record! Gasoline will take another jump tomorrow.
John

 

[Wet1]

I am very lucky to have a couple of pellet dealers close to me. With the 90 miles they traveled and price of fuel to get there you can understand the high cost. The bottom line is at 4 or maybe even 5 dollars a gallon for oil this winter that 300 for shipping wont hurt so much. Maybe they will be good enough to give you a discount next year for being a return customer.(hopefully!) Take care jeff

Crude prices today were at $133 a barrel. Another record! Gasoline will take another jump tomorrow.
John

I saw it went over $135/barrel in overnight trading. The all the c@ck-suckers (excuse my french) were out there increasing prices at my local stations as I was coming into work. It really fries my azz knowing they didn't all fill their tanks overnight... and take their sweet time dropping their prices in the rare event that oil goes down.

I got bent over for $4.85 for diesel this morning.