Do pellet stoves use a lot of electricity?

Do pellet stoves use a lot of electricity?

The average home uses about 7.3 tons of pellet fuel or 6.5 cords of wood per season. You should also note that most pellet stoves have fans, controls and fuel-feeder systems that run on electricity; the monthly electric bill for a typical stove is about $9.

Are pellet stoves worth the money?

Pellet stoves can be an effective and affordable primary or secondary heat source for most residences. “Pellet fuel appliances are almost always less expensive to operate than electric resistance heating, oil, and propane-fueled appliances,” says the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

How long does a 40 lb bag of pellets last?

Q: How long does one bag of pellets last? A: According to the Pellet Fuels Institute, a 40-lb bag of pellet fuel can provide up to 24 hours of solid heat. A winter's supply of wood pellets is about 100-150 bags—depending on climatic and lifestyle variations.

Can you heat your whole house with a pellet stove?

Just like a gas furnace distributes heat to all areas of your home, you can do the same with a wood pellet furnace, and it's a great way to reduce heating costs. Units like the Magnum 6500 can heat any house up to 3,500 square feet and can be connected to existing ducting systems.

Are pellet stoves bad for your health?

Other research has shown that the particles from pellet stoves, although fewer in number than from a log-burning stove, tend to be in the small fine particulate size range that are particularly damaging to health, since they penetrate into the deepest parts of the lungs and can enter the bloodstream.

How long will a pellet stove last?

On the other hand, pellet stoves have a shorter life span than wood stoves: 15 to 20 years, versus 20 to 25 years for the latter. The vast majority of pellet stoves operate on wood pellets, made from sawdust or compressed wood residue.

Is my pellet stove making me sick?

A chemical reaction that produces carbon monoxide (CO) gas can occur when wood pellets are stored. CO is a poisonous gas that can cause death and other harmful health effects if the pellets are not safely stored. The early symptoms of poisoning can be confused with a flu-like illness.

Do pellet stoves need to be vented outside?

Pellet stoves are vented in a couple of ways. You can run the pipes so they vent directly outside through an exterior wall or you can connect it to an approved chimney with the use of an adaptor. The vent pipe in both cases must be a minimum of 3 inches from any combustible materials.

Why does my pellet stove smell like smoke?

The first sign you need to check the pellet stove gasket is a smokey smell in the house because it often signals that your stove has a seal leak. A stove will usually give off a smoke smell the first time it is fired up for the burn season, but that smokey smell is normal.

How far does a pellet stove need to be away from the wall?

The outer surfaces of a pellet stove don't get as hot as the surfaces of wood stoves or fireplaces, so most can be placed closer to combustibles—typically 3 inches from walls at the sides and 1 inch from a back wall. Most need to stand on a non-combustible surface such as stone or tile that is at least 3/8 inch thick.

What does carbon monoxide smell like?

Stale, stuffy, or smelly air, like the smell of something burning or overheating. Solid fuel fires burning slower than usual. The smell of unusual gases in your house. While carbon monoxide is odourless, sometimes it is accompanied by exhaust gases you can in fact smell.

Do pellet stoves affect asthma?

Allergies and Asthma with Pellet Stoves. Heating with a pellet stove is a great alternative for people with asthma and allergies to enjoy the positive aspects of a fire without it being a health hazard. A pellet stove is much different than a wood burning fireplace or stove, and here's how.

Do you need a hearth for a pellet stove?

Yes, all pellet stoves require a non-combustible floor protector (such as a hearth pad) on floors that have combustible material on them, such as wood, carpet, or vinyl. Refer to your owner's manual for the hearth pad size required for your specific stove.

What causes clinkers in a pellet stove?

When wood is pelletized for use in pellet-burning stoves, those impurities can result in "clinkers." A clinker is a particle that isn't burned during the normal combustion process. It looks like a chunk of ash, but when exposed to air, such as when you open the stove to clean out the ash, the clinker can re-ignite.

What happens when power goes out with pellet stove?

In the event of a power outage your pellet stove will shut down and the fire within will continue to burn until it goes out on its own. Keep the appliance doors closed during this time so that any remaining smoke will remain in the stove and not inundate your home.

Are pellet stoves safer than wood stoves?

In fact, pellet stoves are the cleanest solid fuel, residential heating appliance. Pellet stoves that are certified by the EPA are likely to be in the 70% to 83% efficiency range. However, a pellet stove is often cheaper to install than a conventional wood-burning heater.

Can you vent a pellet stove through the wall?

Pellet Stoves – most are vented horizontally directly through the wall to the outdoors, similar to direct vent gas fireplaces. Pellet stove venting consists of a pressurized hybrid system with a stainless steel inner wall and gaskets that seal tightly.

Do Wood stoves cause lung cancer?

Emissions from wood smoke, discussed below, can cause coughing, wheezing, asthma attacks, heart attacks, lung cancer, and premature death, among other health effects. Many of these pollutants can worsen air quality indoors and outdoors.

What color should the flame be on a pellet stove?

This kind of flame needs more air for the pellet stove to be efficient. A bright white or blue flame is too hot and is burning too intensely for a pellet stove. This flame is receiving too much air and needs to be reduced. The proper flame is yellow, steady and solid, without flickering or wavering to either side.

Why does my pellet stove window get black?

Black on Your Pellet Stove Glass? If you're experiencing blackened glass, it can most likely be fixed with one tweak. Your problem could be caused by a lack of air flow. Burning on too low of a setting can make your air-to-pellet ratio out of balance, which results in the build-up of creosote.

Can you cook on a pellet stove?

Using a pellet stove to cook isn't much different. Both pellet cook stoves and those designed simply for heating can be used for cooking, as long as the stovetop has a flat surface. Use cast iron cookware to disperse the heat evenly. Use cast iron cookware for cooking on a pellet stove.

Do wood pellets have chemicals?

Wood pellets are 100% natural, with no binders, chemicals, or additives. Most wood pellets made in the USA are manufactured from clean sawdust and wood chips: waste products from lumber and other wood industries that would wind up rotting in landfills, if not used for heating fuel.

Do pellet stoves smell?

A new pellet stove may have a "burn off" smell that goes away once it is broken in. A stove will usually give off a smoke smell the first time it is fired up for the burn season, but that smokey smell is normal.

What is better pellet or wood stove?

Pellet fuel appliances are more convenient to operate than ordinary wood stoves or fireplaces, and some have much higher combustion and heating efficiencies. Most pellet stoves cost between $1,700 and $3,000. However, a pellet stove is often cheaper to install than a conventional wood-burning heater.

Can pellet stoves cause headaches?

Stored bulk wood pellets are another source of carbon monoxide so it is important to safely store pellets outside your home or business. Symptoms can be flu‐like: nausea, headache, dizziness, shortness of breath, sleepiness, weakness, chest tightness, and confusion.

Is a wood pellet stove economical?

Pellets generally are more economical than heating oil, propane or electricity, and like traditional wood, they are renewable. Compared with a log-burning woodstove, a pellet stove is easier to tend, says Gary Richardson, owner of Open Hearth, a stove retailer in Kalispell, Mont.

How do you run a vent pipe on a pellet stove?

Place the pellet stove on top of the floor pad, making sure to maintain the proper clearances from combustible surfaces. 3. Temporarily attach the vent pipe to the stove, then bore a ⅜-inch pilot hole through the exterior house wall. Align the hole with the edge of the vent pipe.