Wood pellets- They look like
rabbit food. They could even be mistaken for it by some hungry hare
out for a free meal in your storage shed. But keep watching, and
you'll see your furry friend spit them out with a grimace and
go looking for the bag with the long-eared floppy on it. There's
only one hungry mouth that will consume these morsels, keeping your
home warm and your fuel costs down at the same time: your wood &
or pellet & stove, depending on the cost you invest to adapt
your home to this viable option for home heating.
Wood pellets are made from the waste
material of wood products such as sawdust, wood chips, and
scrap lumber from various wood manufacturing sites. This material
is sold to the wood pellet manufacturer who dries, grinds, and compresses
it into small dense pellets. Held together by lignin, a naturally
occurring substance, pellets are clean and environmentally safe.
Wood pellets were first developed
in the United States in the 1970s in response to an energy crunch.
Currently, over 600,000 tons are produced annually in the
US and Canada. Many European countries also produce this efficient
fuel. Some Scandinavian cities, for example, are heated solely by
wood pellet fuel. So what are the advantages of using wood pellets
as an alternative to electricity, propane, or natural gas? Glad
you asked!
On a pocketbook level, you'll
find that wood pellets are comparatively cheaper, per annum, than
the three major heat hogs, with the greatest disparity between the
lowly wood pellet and that reigning king of cost, electricity. Pellets
are sold in 40 pound bags at an average cost of $3-$4 each,
meaning a winter's supply (to heat a small home) may cost $950-$1,000,
compared to $2,000 + a year for electric heat.
On other levels as well, wood pellets
surpass their counterparts. They are easily stored in a basement,
garage, or any dry place. Compared to firewood, the space needed
is minimal. The automated hopper in a pellet stove regulates the
addition of pellets, and their uniform size makes for proficient
supply into the combustion chamber.
Because of their moisture content,
which can be as little as 5%, wood pellets are fuel-efficient and
thus, cost-effective. The BTU (heat) content is high, resulting
in greater heat production, and ash content is no higher than 3%.
Wood pellets are kind to the environment and therefore a practical,
redemptive utilization of an otherwise unusable material.
There are a few options for burning
wood pellet fuel: adapting your woodstove or fireplace, or purchasing
a freestanding pellet stove.
For the woodstove or fireplace, all
you need is a honeycombed steel-basket insert that slides inside.
Because of its efficiency and low air emissions, however, a pellet
stove is usually the wiser choice.
Pellet stoves are more energy-efficient,
averaging 85-90%, compared to 55-65% for wood stoves. A pellet stove
may cost between $1,200-$2,800. A pellet stove can be attractive
and stylish and, because of the pellet's highly efficient burn,
direct venting replaces the need for a chimney. With the rising
costs of fossil fuels and the outrageous cost of electric heat,
wood pellets are a smart alternative.-Theresa
A Ludwick
