Wood or Pellets?????

[Hardway]

Getting ready to put a stove in my house and just wondering what you guys thought? I have no problem getting wood, my family has an almond ranch and there's also plenty of forest wood around, but pellets are cheap, easy, clean, and no smoke. But why have a stove if you cant have all that right?




If huntin is a sport.....Well your lookin at an athlete!

 

[1911]

I've wanted to put a stove in my house for the last five years I've been here now. On one hand I like the independance of the regular old wood burning stove as it would be a good source of heat in the event of an emergency and it is just plain old fashion fun to have the crackling logs burning in the family room. On the other hand a pellet stove would provide a lot of the same with maybe a little less effort. Then on the other hand I think awe heck maybe just get a gas direct vent and be done with it. With gas it doesn't get much easier than a flip of the switch and no worries about red burn days although it kinda defeats my original idea of lowering the heating bill.

 

[nickman]

I am 60 years old and in my lifetime I have never not heated with wood.....except for 7 years in the Navy.

We put in a pellet stove 3 years ago and I ain't never lookin' back. No chain saw, no log splittin', no bark on the carpet, no soot on the curtains, no stack fires, no triple wall stove pipe, no weekends wasted gettin' firewood, no gas expense to go get firewood, clean the stove once a week and get a milk carton half full of ash, no wet firewood pile, easy to start, no burns on the floor. Environmentally sound, way cheaper heat source. Very consistant, controlled heat.

Lots of people enjoy the entire firewood experience.....not me....always hated anything to do with it. One of those childhood things that they made you do, I guess. Seemed like, no matter how much wood I had stacked and split, we always had to go cut more. Screw that. I had a million things I'd rather been doin'......fixin' fence, or having my teeth pulled.

The ONLY downside I have is that, in the event of a power outage, you will have to fire up the Honda Generator to keep a pellet stove going.

 

[ForkWest]

I just put in a wood stove. Love it. If you're not going with wood why not just go with a gas fire place instead of the pellets? I know Pellet prices are going up. If you do go wood, get a stove that is or will retro fit to an outside air supply. This makes the house positive pressure and dosen't use the already warm house air for combustion which actually draws in cold air in through all the loose spots in the house.

 

[TFinalshot]

i think it depends on where you live. You'd be out of your mind to NOT have a wood stove where I live. The cold temps and potential for power failure for extended days are real. NO wood stove and no power = frozen pipes and wrecked house!

 

[bragabit]

I had the same question last year when I built my new house. I was talked into the pellet stove. When I bought it I was told a ton of pellets would cost $120. This year I went to buy them and they were $220. I spent enough time in the hills I wish I would have went with the wood stove. The pellet stove is very convinient, but at close to $10 a day it is not hardly worth running.

 

[Longun]

I'm with Tfinal on this. Where I live electricity is a luxury not a necessity. So I have a nice wood burning stove and when the power goes out we still have a place to cook and heat water. I still love getting firewood but on of these days old age will catch up with my young heart. I don't care what anybody says you can't beat wood heat.

 

[justpassinby]

I had the same question. Next year we want to put a fireplace in, I want a wood burning fireplace and he wants to go with pellets. I agree that pellets are more convenient as far as how clean they are and less work. But I've always had a wood burning fireplace and it was nice. Always helped if the electricity went out, especially if we were cooking dinner (happen once). I guess it's more just a sentimental reason why I want a wood burning stove. I always enjoyed being out doors w/dad even if it was getting wood. It was always a good time. Plus a little hard work never hurt anyone and I love the smell of fresh cut pine.

 

[Hardway]

Well here in good old Ca it does'nt get too cold, usually about 30 is as low as it gets. But the power does go out every once in awhile. Right now the gas for my house (1400sq ft) is about $80 to a $100 a month and about $30 for electricity. Those numbers flop in the summer since my AC is electric. So I dont think I'm gonna save a ton by putting one in but I just thought it would be nice to have since I'm off work when its raining. Plus I thought it would be good for resale value. I really like the wood but the idea of the house smellin like smoke and burnin the carpet and so on has me leaning torwards pellets. And if i run my gas heater in conjunction I dont think I'll be using much of either.




If huntin is a sport.....Well your lookin at an athlete!

 

[RELH]

I live in the mountains in N.CA and we had a wood stove for about 10 years. The wife got tired of the mess and it started getting harder to find good wood cutting. I thought about getting a pellet stove, and the wife nixed that idea very fast. She is the book keeper for a local hardware store and told me about how pellets were going to go skyhigh in price in the next few years. It seems there is fewer places that make the pellets then there used to be. Also in the last two years the store was unable to get pellets during the winter due to a shortage. She was right about the price, goes up higher every year and some years the price jump is far above the increase in living expenses.
We went with a "Lopi" propane stove. It is 84% efficent, has a glass door to see the flames, very very close to watching wood logs burning. Has a blower that will stay on after the flames go out until the stove reaches a certain temp. That feature increases it efficeny a tremendous amount, and it is adjustable from a quite low setting to a heat fast higher speed. Our propane bill is about what it would cost to heat with pellets, and I do not have to worry about a shortage of pellets in the dead of winter.
Cost was about 2,000 to install, 6 years ago. I very glad that I listened to her, even has a remote control to override the thermostat setting. Have had no maintance problems during those 6 years and you can not say that about a pellet stove.

RELH

 

[clayshooter]

I'm in the sawmill business in Michigan, we supply a pellet manufacturer with our residue. It seems to me, at least here in Mi. the supply is going to improve as there is a lot of talk of more pellet mills coming on line in the next couple of years.

 

[Hardway]

Thanks for the replies, still not to sure which way to go. I guess its more for nostalgia than anything. Our heating bill is'nt bad right now does a good job, I'm really just wanting one to enjoy while I'm at home on rainy days and holidays so maybe I'll just go with wood.Besides I have easy access to good almond wood that does'nt cost me a dime.



If huntin is a sport.....Well your lookin at an athlete!

 

[foghorn]

Hardway
We removed a pellet stove and installed a soapstone stove company wood stove. This was 5 years ago. I would do it again in a heart beat!! Although I don't love running a chainsaw or a splitting maul. Some of my best memories are from firewood cutting expeditions. We make it a family affair. Along with a picnic and just enjoying the outdoors. The soapstone stoves are heavy and efficient. We can burn ours on NO burn nights because of the catalytic combuster. Nice even heat, and with those heat activated fans sitting on top it really distributes the heat.
Plus no electricity required.
Later
Foghorn

 

[eelgrass]

It's a no brainer for me. I work in a sawmill and our owner allows us all the trim ends we want. I can get a load of Douglas Fir everyday. I like 3X4, 4X4, and 4X6 the best.

You can't beat the nice dry heat of a wood stove, especially in foggy, rainy coastal northern CA.

Hardway, I lived in Turlock for a couple years. Almond wood is great if you can get it. I used to duck hunt Turlock Lake. Modesto Res. and Merced River near Los Banos. Stevenson, Kesterson, San Louis, O'neill Forebay, on and on.........

Eel

 

[Hardway]

Cool, I'm only about 5min north of turlock but my familys ranch is out in Westley. We have about 200 ac of almonds and about 50ac of flood plain right on the San Juaquin river. Lots of ducks and geese.....I know what you mean about up north, my Dad is in Ft Bragg right on hwy 1.




If huntin is a sport.....Well your lookin at an athlete!

 

[BuckSnort]

First thing your gonna want to do is replace your carpet with a hard surface (tile) where the stove will be. come out an extra 18-24" out past the stove with the tile and it will protect your carpet from any embers that pop out while stoking the fire.