No Shortage this year....

[sinnian]

I am not saying there isn't a shortage or won't be of raw materials. However, I wasn't talking about Nebraska, but rather Maine. Just kidding! There is a huge difference between transporting to other areas of New England and Maine. Maine is a dead end for the most part, unless the products are coming from Canada (read, Quebec Province). Additionally, MainePellethead and I are not making things up. With the harvest of Maine potatoes, we will see an increase in pellets from outside of Maine. I have heard that from numerous sources, including pellet sellers and people in the trucking industry. My guess is, due to supply and demand, these pellets will be less expensive.

 

[WILDSOURDOUGH]

Might also want to consider the the mills are now paying 180.00/cord for the logs... competition for the raw material.
Also, alot of truth about the trucking cost... and the Deadhead runs... all additional cost to pass along with the product.
I know the pellet factories are going full gun, and I would bet that some consumers haven't even thought ( or don't have the money yet) to purchase for this winter.
This could be intresting...

 

[TboneMan]

I called around today, lowes & home depot (40 minutes away) and they have non in stock and not sure when they will. My tractor supply store said they are backed ordered 200 tons from their presale in august. I finally found and bought 5 tons (empires) making 6 tons that I will have on hand (which I am still probably 2 tons short). went through 1 ton a month last year...

Wow, 8 tons? How big (old?) is your house. I'm about 40 miles north of you and I'll use around 5 ton for 2500sqrft house.

 

[MCPO]

The shortage exists with *cheaper* by products of the wood industry but as long as pellets maintain a reasonable price difference from oil , the industry will keep going. I beleive that whenever a profit can be made they will find the raw mat`ls . When the cost gets too close to oil pellets sales are doomed.

 

[DiggerJim]

The shortage exists with *cheaper* by products of the wood industry but as long as pellets maintain a reasonable price difference from oil , the industry will keep going. I beleive that whenever a profit can be made they will find the raw mat`ls . When the cost gets too close to oil pellets sales are doomed.

What would help is a small "pellet plant in a box" concept. Something that could be added to a small mill operation to produce pellets. Something in the 50-$100K range would be cost-effective to a lot of the small wood mills that are all over the place. They might not produce enough scrap to make it worth collecting & selling now, but with an onsite pellet operation that churned out a thousand or so tons a year, they'd have a very nice cost basis and selling into their local market would negate much of the cost associated with shipping. A cheap enough pellet mfg plant could even be financially viable for a lot of small/medium sized woodlot producers.

 

[chrisasst]

Wow, 8 tons? How big (old?) is your house. I'm about 40 miles north of you and I'll use around 5 ton for 2500sqrft house.

well my house was built in 1900. 1900 square feet also. It does have something to do with it, the other 50% is I think my stove is not right or something ( kozi 120) I usually have to have it on 5 (highest) setting. So that uses a lot of pellets.

 

[gw2kpro]

This past weekend I had breakfast with the owner of Corinth Pellet Co. as we were visiting my father in law. My father in law knows him well. Actually offered my wife an office manager job in the office. lol. But we arent moving way up Maine even though both of us was raised up there. lol. They are balls to the walls(so to speak) at the mill. He sees absolutely no shortage with pellets this year at all. He has installed thousands of dollars in equipment to begin using whole logs. They use alot of chips there now with sawdust. They have started and looking to increase a third shift there. He was telling me he burns 30 tons a day just for operations in making the pellets...the drying. We was going to tour the mill but didnt have time.

That is great news! If there is no shortage, does he have any suggestions as to where someone in Maine could go pick up a ton of his product?

 

[MainePellethead]

This past weekend I had breakfast with the owner of Corinth Pellet Co. as we were visiting my father in law. My father in law knows him well. Actually offered my wife an office manager job in the office. lol. But we arent moving way up Maine even though both of us was raised up there. lol. They are balls to the walls(so to speak) at the mill. He sees absolutely no shortage with pellets this year at all. He has installed thousands of dollars in equipment to begin using whole logs. They use alot of chips there now with sawdust. They have started and looking to increase a third shift there. He was telling me he burns 30 tons a day just for operations in making the pellets...the drying. We was going to tour the mill but didnt have time.

That is great news! If there is no shortage, does he have any suggestions as to where someone in Maine could go pick up a ton of his product?

They have dealers on their web site....

http://corinthwoodpellets.com/

 

[Fire It Up]

This past weekend I had breakfast with the owner of Corinth Pellet Co. as we were visiting my father in law. My father in law knows him well. Actually offered my wife an office manager job in the office. lol. But we arent moving way up Maine even though both of us was raised up there. lol. They are balls to the walls(so to speak) at the mill. He sees absolutely no shortage with pellets this year at all. He has installed thousands of dollars in equipment to begin using whole logs. They use alot of chips there now with sawdust. They have started and looking to increase a third shift there. He was telling me he burns 30 tons a day just for operations in making the pellets...the drying. We was going to tour the mill but didnt have time.

That is great news! If there is no shortage, does he have any suggestions as to where someone in Maine could go pick up a ton of his product?

They have dealers on their web site....

http://corinthwoodpellets.com/

Yeah, we know the dealer list, but where can you buy this product? Every dealer that I have talked to in Central Maine has been saying that NO Corinth Pellets are coming at this time and they don't know when. I'm not really concerned as I have my supply for the winter, but I would like another ton of these.

2 Dealers in Augusta haven't seen any of these since June...........

 

[MainePellethead]

This past weekend I had breakfast with the owner of Corinth Pellet Co. as we were visiting my father in law. My father in law knows him well. Actually offered my wife an office manager job in the office. lol. But we arent moving way up Maine even though both of us was raised up there. lol. They are balls to the walls(so to speak) at the mill. He sees absolutely no shortage with pellets this year at all. He has installed thousands of dollars in equipment to begin using whole logs. They use alot of chips there now with sawdust. They have started and looking to increase a third shift there. He was telling me he burns 30 tons a day just for operations in making the pellets...the drying. We was going to tour the mill but didnt have time.

That is great news! If there is no shortage, does he have any suggestions as to where someone in Maine could go pick up a ton of his product?

They have dealers on their web site....

http://corinthwoodpellets.com/

Yeah, we know the dealer list, but where can you buy this product? Every dealer that I have talked to in Central Maine has been saying that NO Corinth Pellets are coming at this time and they don't know when. I'm not really concerned as I have my supply for the winter, but I would like another ton of these.

2 Dealers in Augusta haven't seen any of these since June...........

Not sure on central.....theres several in southern that do. Sorry

 

[Fire It Up]

Where can I get a ton of Corinth pellets in Maine now? I live in Gardiner and work in Portland. Anywhere along the way?

All the dealers I have talked to, don't have a clue when they will get pellets from this mill. Athens pellets are everywhere however...

 

[imacman]

Lowes in Brewer has Penningtons for $5.99 a bag and no takers, must be no shortage or the bad press.

The home depot here is sold out after 2 weeks. Just 1 out 6 HD within 20 miles of me was selling pellets. The walmarts said they should get some in september.

The HD near me had 40 tons in stock a week ago (@$279), and when I went by last night, it looked to be still at least 30-35 tons still there....guess the "panic" buying is starting to slow down.

I KNEW I spoke too soon....went by there today, and except for 5 tons outside that are already sold, it is ALL GONE! Including the 2 tons that were inside to be sold by the bag.......YIKES! :gulp:

 

[nostoveyet]

Its a lot easier not to drink a coffee from Starbucks than it is to not to heat your house. If need be, you can go coffee free. (personally I'd probably die without java) Consumers set the price to a point, but if all the pellet dealers are selling at a high price what do you do, not heat your house??? Example of this, oil prices just dropped slightly, so in response, OPEC cut production and we have no immediate recourse except to keep paying high prices.

 

[oliver5528]

We (Mainers) will also see an increase in supply and a decrease in price (as long as we don't buy at the inflated prices) of out of state pellets due to having to only pay the shipping cost one way. Until the 'taters are harvested we or the sellers (then us) have and will be paying for the trucks return trip. When the 'taters get harvested the trucks will have something to go back with.

Thats right....things are being done differently this year. You go to the box stores and last year they had pellets all over the aisles at this time....NOW they tell you they will be in in a couple weeks or the ones that have some are keeping them out back and some wont let you buy bags, they want you to buy by the ton....they wont break any up. Seems like they are hoarding to see exactly where oil sets at. If oil goes cheap enough they are going to have to go cheap or sit on a warehouse of pellets through the winter.

And thats exactly what Ken(owner of corinth pellets) said this past weekend when I was in Corinth......about the tater harvesting and the trucks etc....

Total B.S. on the tater harvesting !
You can't convince me that the only product being transported out of NE is taters.
ALL major trucking companies have Dispatchers and Transportation Logistics personell to coordinate loads to and from everywhere. No truck runs empty for to many miles before it picks up another load and if the driver has to wait a few hours before a load is lined up it's no big deal because the fuel savings more than makes up for the wait and birth time is mandatory anyway.

You guys just can't seem to swallow the fact that there is a shortage of raw material,production costs are out of sight, and the laws of supply and demand are working well.

I know many truckers haul loaded into southern maine and usually are empty on there way home up her in northern maine. Works out well for getting pellets in southern maine, if mills will allow the little man to buy pellets to sell at there stores. Most pellets are going to big guys like Dysarts who have commited to hundreds of tons. By the way Pellets are hauled on flatbeds and taters are hauled in box trailers.