Before you buy a pellet stove....

We've learned a few things since the installation of our pellet stove nearly 2 months ago.
I researched various heating sources before we focused on pellet/corn stoves. Then I studied various makes, models, and manufacturers. We ended up purchasing a Magnum Baby Countryside partly because of the quality, partly because of the price, and partly because of the comfort-level we felt with the seller/installer. Unfortunately, it hasn't been the love-at-first fire that we had hoped for and expected.


First, getting the fire to ignite and then keep burning was a bit of a challenge. We learned that you have to get to know your stove, learn the right ratio of air-to-pellet fuel to get it going and the changes you need to make to keep a consistent flame. Due to the differences in the homes the stove are installed in, it is really a process of learning what works in your particular case. So, we finally got the starting and maintaining down. But even though it's only in the 30s outside, the house is still cold. Yikes! Investigation brings a rude realization - the room we installed this in has little to no insulation. A few years ago we remodeled our old farmhouse. This particular room had been enclosed within other small rooms - the walls had not needed insulation because they weren't exterior walls. And then we remodeled - and removed the exterior rooms, instead creating a wrap-around porch. And frankly, because we "wrapped" the walls on the outside with a foam insulating board before putting up new vinyl siding, we never thought again about insulation. I cringe when I think of the money we burned up in energy costs thanks to this oversight!

So, some $500 later - and thanks to our sons who gave up a Saturday to use the blowing machine - we have cellulose insulation blown into the walls and above the ceiling of that room, as well as additional layers of attic insulation throughout the rest of the house.

Oh, and one more thing. It's messy. Not anything as messy as a regular wood stove or fireplace, but still, messy. The firepot needs to be cleaned daily. And it didn't take long to figure out why there were stove vacuums all over the showroom where we bought our stove. Vacuuming is very obviously the BEST way to handle the soot and fines. We used our house vac at first - but concerns with hot embers and finding that soot gets all over the thing - led us to spend another $200 on a vacuum designed for use with wood-burning stoves, pellet/corn stoves, fireplaces, etc.

Oh, and one more "extra" cost. A non-combustible base has to be under the stove. Naturally, the room we wanted to install it in had carpeting. So, to save money, we built our own tiled base. Pre-constructed bases sell for around $200-$400 depending size and style. We had hoped to do ours for less than $100, but ended up spending about $150.

So, let's see - $2,200 stove + $150 base + $500 insulation + $200 vacuum = $3,050 so far. Oh, and that isn't counting fuel. That's about $3.80 per 40 lb. bag and so far we have used about 30 bags. We've bought 1 ton already, and expect to use 2 -3 more tons before winter is over.

So, yes, it has cost quite a bit more than we planned to start with. And we'll still have to use propane as a back up when we get down into the single-digit temps that are bound to come.

Would we do it again. Well, yes, I think so. We don't want to be so dependent on propane and we love the feel of the radiant heat. It feels good to know we are using a renewable source of energy, in a manner that is very efficient with minimal environmental impact. It's really nice to watch the fire and the stove looks great! And considering that we spent over $3,000 on propane last winter, we are at least investing the money in something that should give us years of service with only the cost of fuel and occasional maintenance from here on out. And we really don't mind the chores that come with using wood pellets - they really don't take that much time out of your day. The insulation should have been done years ago, and it is very obvious that adding it has improved the ability of the pellet stove to keep our home warm. I just want to caution anyone considering a pellet/corn stove to study it carefully. It isn't mess-free or work-free by any means, and there will no doubt be a few extra costs to plan on.

Heating Dilemna

The 90+ temps we've survived this last week should be enough without stewing over how best to heat our home this coming winter. But, that is what has hit the top of our priority list, considering we spent almost double last winter over the year before. Propane has been our only heat source since 1999, except for a small electric radiant heater (looks like a radiator) we have used on the coldest days to warm the bathroom before a shower.

I've been researching and have found lots of interesting information - maybe too much. It's confusing trying to understand it all, and enlightening to find things I wasn't aware of. Like a masonry furnace. They can be gorgeous, use a renewable resource - wood - and do it very efficiently and cleanly. They resemble a fireplace but work differently in that you burn a very hot fire to burn up the wood quickly and then you are done for the day. The heat is absorbed into the masonry (brick, stone, etc.) and radiates warmth for the next several hours.


Far less expensive is an outdoor wood heater that pipes heat directly into your home through a tube. Cheap, unsophisticated, not pretty - but worth consideration when you don't have a lot of money to throw at this problem. There are other types of outdoor furnaces - mostly boilers that run heated water through pipes - lots more expensive, and far more work to install. Worth it? Wish I knew.

And solar - seems that our house is all wrong for that choice. Our covered porch blocks all the southern sun exposure and gorgeous mature trees in our yard shade the house in winter too! And after suggesting to hubby that they should probably be replaced with shrubs and shorter landscaping and getting a resounding "no way!" I guess that idea will need to be tabled for a while.

We want to avoid high propane bills this winter, and in the future. We want comfortable warmth, for a reasonable trade-off of time and money. We want to be earth-friendly. We want it to be easy to determine which way to turn - and that certainly doesn't seem to be in the cards! Suggestions welcome - especially if based on your own experience!