Pellet Stoves

Pellet Stoves have been around since the 1980’s but really took off during the EPA emissions regulations that came about in the late 1980’s and Early 1990’s (especially out west). They burn clean and are actually EPA exempt due to the 30 to 1 air to fuel ratio. The efficiency of the stoves are often not much better than a wood stove but the emissions are cleaner. Pellet stoves use compressed pelletized wood saw dust which is usually made with waste from wood flooring or cabinet making factories. This makes it a great use of a waste product. Pellet fuel demand spiked in our area during the time when oil was running around $100 a barrel. There was a shortage of supply of pellets. Now days there is a slight excess of supply which helps keep prices down.

Pellet stoves have several mechanisms in them to make them work.  They have an Auger motor that feeds the pellets into the fire, an exhaust blower that pulls the air through the burn pot and exhausts the smoke out of the house. Then there is a convection blower that blows the air from the room through the heat exchanger and then out into your room. WIth all this going on you can imagine these stoves are a little noisy. There is a circuit board that controls the whole operation and monitors the safeties on the unit.

One of the benefits of the pellet stoves is that they only needed cleaned once a week normally. They should be cleaned each week then more thoroughly after every ton of pellets burned.  With all the moving parts we find these stoves do not hold up well if they are not cleaned thoroughly at these regular intervals.

The fuel for these stoves is sold in 40 lb bags. Most people buy the pellets by the ton which equates to 50 – 40lb bags.  The fuel is convenient to handle in these bags but does require a little strength to maneuver. The fuel also needs to be stored somewhere out of the elements as it cannot get wet. Water breaks apart the pellets and ruins them.

The Pellet stoves from years ago used to be sheet metal boxes. Now they have cast iron jackets that make them look like wood stoves making them more attractive.  There are also more modern European designs that tend to be taller and more narrow.  Pellet stoves can be used to heat a room, basement or even an entire house if installed correctly.

Stop down to our showroom to see our selection. We do not carry every model that we offer but have a nice selection to look at!

Give Stanley C Bierlys a call to learn more about the right pellet stove for your needs. At Stanley C Bierly we handle the following Brand of Pellet Stoves…