With skyrocketing gas prices and growing concerns about depleting oil reserves, pellet fireplace inserts offer a better and safer alternative for heating solutions. Pellet inserts are more economic and convenient than gas, oil or electricity for heating solutions. Pellets are not the normal form of wood and no trees are cut to make pellets. These pellets look much similar to rabbit food. These products are made of wood such as sawdust, wood shavings, walnuts, peanut shells and other biomass wastes.
After going through the processes of grinding, compressing and extrusion, the pellets get their final shape that we use as fuel for stoves and fireplaces. Size of theses pellets varies from 3/8 inch to 1 inch. Generally, the pellets for fireplace are available in 40-50 pound bags, which make them portable and convenient to handle. Some stoves also use corn in place of wood pellets (and some can use both).
Refueling
Using pellet fireplace inserts has many advantages. Unlike other heating appliances, you do not have to add fuel every while. The model of fireplace you choose and your heating requirements decide the frequency at which you have to refuel the fireplace. However, in any case, the frequency for inserting pellets in the fireplace is much less than the equipment’s using other fuels. You may have to refuel every day, if you need more heat; on the other hand, if the heating requirements are modest, biweekly refueling is more than sufficient.
Procedure for refueling pellet inserts is convenient. All you have to do is to pour the pellets into a hopper. Depending on your stove or fireplace, the capacity of the hopper ranges from 35 to 130 pounds of pellets. The auger, a cock-screw shaped device regulates the movement of pellets towards the fire chamber. Using wood pellets instead of other traditional form of fuel offers you a perfect combination of traditional grandeur with contemporary convenience. You need not worry about the quantity of fuel burning. The appliances that use fireplace inserts come with sophisticated computers and circuit boards for controlled insertion of pellets. These electronic accessories and the thermostat regulate the amount of fuel or pellets required.
Pellet fireplace inserts are highly efficient and less polluting. They may produce 10000 to 50000 Btu of heat per hour depending on the model you select. Distribution of heat takes place through forced air system. Some of the models burn wood pellets so efficiently that even a small hole in the wall is sufficient to expel fumes outdoors dismissing any requirement of installing the chimneys at all. Two types of mechanical air supply systems are used to expel the air out of home. In the forced air draft system, air is forced into the combustion chamber with the help of a fan. On the contrary, induced draft system works just the opposite way. It exhausts the air from the combustion chamber with the help of a fan.
When you compare the price of pellet inserts and that of other alternatives, you should also count the price of installing a chimney. Using pellet fireplace inserts means that you do not require installing chimneys. Hence, these are less expensive than other form of fuel. However, as burning wood pellets is comparatively new concept, it is advisable that you find a reliable supplier of pellets in your area, before buying any appliance that use Pellet Fireplace Inserts. However, you need not worry because you can use corn as an alternative for pellets if you run out of pellets.
