By Jay Thompson

Ever since Benjamin Franklin invented his first stove in 1774, the woodstove has been a fixture of rural New England living. While almost dying out with the advent of more modern technologies such as gas and oil heat in the decades after World War II, woodstoves enjoyed a resurgence of popularity in the 1970s thanks to the OPEC oil embargo and the resulting energy crisis – a concern that is still going strong today. However, there is new type of stove called the pellet stove that is making inroads into the woodstove market.

One of the most attractive things about a wood stove is the cost. When comparing the price of wood to oil, gas or electric, wood stoves are relatively cheap to use. Woodstoves are also more reliable; even though many of the newer stoves have electric blowers, they will still work when the power goes out, something that cannot be said for other forms of heat. In addition, wood heat is a renewable source of energy.

However, woodstoves do have several drawbacks. Although modern woodstoves now have catalytic converters and have to meet strict EPA guidelines, the smoke they produce is still dirty and contains greenhouse gasses. Woodstoves also require constant removal of ashes and other maintenance such as a yearly chimney cleaning.

There is much more physical labor and time commitment involved with wood heat then there is with other forms of heating.

There is much more physical labor and time commitment involved with wood heat than there is with other forms of heating. Usually when the wood is delivered, you will have to stack it yourself either outside or in a shed and later move it inside to be burned. You may need to split the wood as well. Woodpiles also take up more room than oil or propane tanks.

Wood stoves can’t be placed just anywhere in a house. A stove needs to be connected to a chimney and or pipe to vent the smoke, it needs to be located away from flammables (such as drapes or rugs) and it needs to be located on a hearth of brick or tile. Woodstoves do not use thermostats, so the amount of heat it generates cannot be controlled as well as other forms of heat. The fire requires constant tending or else it will go out.

An alternative to the conventional wood burning stove is the pellet stove. Although they are both called stoves and burn wood products, a pellet stove is closer functionally to an oil furnace than a woodstove.
Pellet stoves get their name from the fact that they burn pencil eraser-shaped pellets of compressed organic material – usually saw dust, wood shavings and other leftover material from saw mills. The pellets can also be made from corn or peanut shells.

With a pellet stove, the pellets are poured into a holding bin in the stove, then fed electronically into the stove’s combustion chamber where a blower fans the fire to create a super-heated flame. More expensive pellet stoves will have an electronic ignition system, but less expensive models may require you to start the fire yourself.

The size of the fire depends on the rate the pellets are fed into the fire. A rate of one pound per hour produces a small, slow burning fire. A rate of five pounds per hour creates a hot, raging fire. The feed rate can be set manually, but more expensive stoves can be controlled by a regular wall mounted thermostat. Depending on the pellet feed rate and the size of the holding bin, a typical stove can hold one to two days worth of fuel.

nce the fire is started, air is drawn into the stove by a fan, blown across a heat exchanger which heats it to about 250 degrees, then blown back into the room. This is different from a wood stove where the fire heats the sides of the stove, which in turn heats the surrounding air. As a result, most pellet stoves will not burn you if you touch their sides and, more importantly, there is less danger of nearby combustibles catching on fire. Most pellet stoves can be placed within one inch of the wall behind it and three inches away from side walls, but still need to sit on a non-combustible base, such as a tile or brick hearth.

Another benefit to pellet stoves is less exhaust gasses and the exhaust contains less heat. As a result, not only is this better for the environment but most pellet stoves do not require a full chimney, just a three- to four-inch stainless steel vent pipe to the outside.

There are some disadvantages to pellet stoves, the chief one being that, if the power goes out, the stove will not run. Some models allow you to hook up a car battery or some other type of battery as a backup, but if you live in an area where you suffer frequent power outages, you may wanted to consider a backup generator.

Although they burn cleaner than wood stoves, pellet stoves still generate ash which needs to be cleaned out on a weekly basis. Also, a typical stove will use about one to three tons of pellets per heating season. The pellets are sold in 40-pound bags, so each ton is about 50 bags. While they take up about a third of the space an equivalent woodpile would take, the pellets still need to be stored somewhere.

…many people who have used both woodstoves and pellet stoves believe that woodstoves are warmer. This may be because the constant air circulation in and out of the pellet stove makes it feel like there is a constant draft in the room.

The cost of running a pellet stove is cheaper than a wood stove, but only slightly. On the average, a cord of wood costs about $175 and a typical woodstove will go through three to four cords per year for a total of $700. Pellets, on the other hand, cost between $130 to $200 per ton and if the stove burns 3 tons for the year, the total cost will be about $600. Also because pellet stoves are a relatively new technology, the pellets may not be available in all areas.

While a pellet stove can generate between 10,000 to 40,000 BTUs of heat – enough to heat an entire house – many people who have used both woodstoves and pellet stoves believe that woodstoves are warmer. This may be because the constant air circulation in and out of the pellet stove makes it feel like there is a constant draft in the room.

As a result, many pellet stove owners also own woodstoves. They use their woodstoves as their primary source of heat when they are home, but rely on the pellet stove as a backup when they are not home or asleep and the wood fire burns out. Do some research and decide which stove best fits your needs.