Unlike regular wood burning stoves, pellet stoves burn wood pellets, a compressed scrap wood and sawdust waste that comes from saw mills and other wood handling facilities. These pellets are dried out and compressed by heat into small cylinder forms no bigger than one inch. When burned, the pellets emit virtually no smoke, meaning no chimney is needed, however, some stoves may require an outdoor vent. Because of the high burning efficiency, pellet stoves do not get hot on the outside metal, which enables you to place a pellet stove within an inch from any wall in your home, and provides a safe environment for children and pets.
Pellet stoves are very easy, convenient, and safe to operate in your own home. To fuel a pellet stove, you simply pour 30 to 140 pounds of wood pellets into a device called a hopper which hold the pellets. Most pellet stoves will then immediately transfer the required pellets from the hopper to the combustion chamber by making using of a corkscrew shaped device called an auger. Air is required inside the stove to provide combustion to burn the wood pellets. There are 2 ways to force air into the combustion chamber, by pulling air in or forcing air in from the bottom vent Read More Here . Totally loaded pellet stoves can usually run for one or two days, and they are easy to clean, since there is barely any smoke residue inside.
There are 2 sorts of pellet stoves you can purchase. Free standing stoves that can be placed anywhere you want in your house, or insert stoves that can replace your current fireplace. These pellet stoves will usually cost you $1,700 to $3,000, depending upon where you buy them. Wood pellets are sold in 20 to 40 pound bags, and can cost anywhere from $2.50 to $4.00 for a bag. If you live in a chillier climate, then the prices will usually be cheaper for both pellet stoves and wood pellets.
For a small financial investment, you can rid yourself of paying another high energy bill to heat your home. Not only will you be saving money, you will be utilizing an ecologically safe energy source that is virtually smoke free.