Sunflower seeds anyone??

[peirhead]

Occasionally I'll add something different to my Pellets to see the effect...coffee beans work great, but not practical here (maybe in Columbia)....A few weeks ago a added a handful of sunflower seeds to the burnpot and they burned awsome, so I have been trying a little experiment.

Sunflower seeds are about .50/lb here and I have been experimenting with adding about 1 lb to every 40 lb bag of pellets.....I don't have any quantitative data but seat of the pants says I am getting a much hotter fire overall...as though the small bit of sunflower seeds is acting like a catalyst.

Anyone else used any sunflower seeds??

 

[joescho]

Never burned 'em but they're delicious!

 

[TimfromMA]

Pellets can range anywhere from 10 cents - 18 cents per pound.

Sunflower seeds are far from economical. It would be alot cheaper just to fire up the oil furnace.

 

[boomhour]

Sunflower seeds are far from economical.

You could grow them yourself, you have all summer!

This could be the start of a grow op, just like Colorado's new ventures.

 

[TimfromMA]

I wonder how how may sunflowers I need to produce 4 tons of seeds?

 

[boomhour]

About this many.

 

[peirhead]

If the crows dont eat them all first. Sunflower seeds run around 12,000 btu/lb instead of 8500 for pellets, ......Obviously there is no economics in buying them as a primary fuel, same as coffee beans, but if they help the pellets burn hotter and more efficiently you may be ahead of the game......make that cheap bag burn like the hot ones!! .....Once I get my heat measuring tool setup Ill post results of my Comfy cozy pellets and compare with a little sunflower mixed in.

 

[SmokeEater]

If the crows dont eat them all first. Sunflower seeds run around 12,000 btu/lb instead of 8500 for pellets, ......Obviously there is no economics in buying them as a primary fuel, same as coffee beans, but if they help the pellets burn hotter and more efficiently you may be ahead of the game......make that cheap bag burn like the hot ones!! .....Once I get my heat measuring tool setup Ill post results of my Comfy cozy pellets and compare with a little sunflower mixed in.

Tried to say this in several ways .... in the chemistry of this high rate of oxidation, the temperature of the reaction, unfortunately, bears no relationship at all to the amount of energy in a pound of any pellet or in a pound of any substance than can be rapidly oxidized or burned. So a few degrees more or less or a few hundred more or less will not do what we first think it might. My mother always said "you can't borrow from Peter to pay Paul". Same with wood pellets. There is not a substance known that can get more energy from that pound of pellets. Just the right amount of O2 and the temperature to start the reaction will be best.