[AT] Pellets

Sat Feb 23 15:42:12 PST 2008

Farmer how much wood chips and saw dust do you make a year in your 
wood shop. I have a blower system in mine and push out about 2 or 3 1 
ton truck loads a winter.
R Fink

At 12:29 PM 2/23/2008 -0500, you wrote:

>--On Friday, February 22, 2008 10:12 PM -0500 Greg Hass <gkhass at avci.net>
>wrote:
>
> > I also attended the National Machinery Show Friday.  (More on that
> > later.)  While I was looking at the display for Drill Bit City (we have
> > bought drill  bits from them in the past), I noticed the display for the
> > pellet-making  machine.  I remembered Farmer mentioning he was going to
> > see one, but I did  not know until tonight that it was the same one he
> > had mentioned.  I started  burning corn this year, but am keenly
> > interested in things such as these  pellet-making machines, and I spent
> > 20 minutes or so talking to the vendor  about them.  I came away feeling
> > a little discouraged about whta I found  out.  I do believe his machines
> > are extremely rugged.  However, if I  understood him correctly, (and I
> > think I did) he said they did not work that  great for wood pellets.  he
> > also said that commercial wood-pelleters run at  higher pressures using
> > 50 hp or larger electric motors.  His only uses  single phase motors.  He
> > talked more of making pellets out of things like  alfalfa, cornstalks,
> > certain types of grasses, etc.  He also said that all  of the material
> > they put in the pellet maker was first run through a  hammermill with a
> > very fine screen, all of which seems to me like it would  take a lot of
> > power.  As I said, I'd hoped it would do good with wood, but  he did not
> > make it sound that way.  Not trying to rain on anyone's parade,  it is
> > just what I understood the vendor to say.
> >
> > On a side note, I talked to a cousin of mine a couple of days ago who
> > used  to get several semi-trailer loads of sawdust a year to use as
> > cattle  bedding.  He said he is no longer able to get it, as it is being
> > bought up  by the wood-pelleting businesses.
> >
> > Greg Hass
> > Michigan's Thumb
>
>=============================================
>
>
>
>
>         Hi Greg:
>
>         I was originally going on Thursday but changed days due to weather
>concerns. It occurred to me early Friday morning that I should have emailed
>you Thursday and maybe we could have met for a Coke (I don't drink coffee)
>but by the time I thought of it early Friday I knew you were already on the
>road.
>         I did talk with one guy that was sort of a pessimist. but I 
> think they had
>been talking to a lot of people that think a pellet stove should not need
>any tending and want only perfect pellets. All that really matters is that
>the pellets hold together. I have one pellet stove that has an adjustable
>air intake that allows burning lower quality pellets. I have two pellet
>stoves from England's Stove Works (I don't care for them and will be
>selling them) and they do not have adjustable air intake. I am going to
>replace the pellet stove in my basement with one of these:
><http://www.amazon.com/USSC-Pellet-Multifuel-Furnace-Model/dp/B000FDTZCQ/ref=sr_1_1/104-1666970-2347936?ie=UTF8&m=AF8EGQ3KRZQB6&s=hi&qid=1203784060&sr=1-1>
>         The combination of the adjustable air intake along with the 
> agitator and a
>250 pound capacity hopper should handle lower grade pellets fine. The stove
>from the basement will move to the shop. Their hammermill is pretty pricy
>but I am thinking of picking up a used mixer mill. They sell very cheaply
>here. One should work fine both for grinding and mixing in other materials
>through the supplement hopper. I'm thinking that I can use both the mixer
>mill and the pellet mill for making fuel and also pelleted feed. If I can't
>get the tons and tons of wood chips I get now I can always grow some stuff
>for my use.
>         I have tried burning a lot of different stuff (even a left 
> over part bag
>of rabbit feed) and I think many of the folks on this list could could
>adapt and adjust a proper stove to burn about anything. Some folks should
>stay with gas or electric...   :-)   I am on a pellet stove email list and
>a fellow joined this week who was concerned that his pellet stove's burn
>pot needed cleaning every few days I guess he thought that you just filled
>it and let it go.
>         The stove I like is the one I have in the basement now and it is a
>Breckwell "Big E" with a glass door. I hate to brag on it for fear of
>waking Murphy and his jinxing laws but it runs 100% trouble free and has
>for about 5 years. I clean the burn pot about every 10 days to two weeks
>and the ash storage areas about once a month. Now that I said that it
>probably just burst into flames and melted down...   :-)
>         One fellow I talked with and I talked a lot about possible 
> binders and
>other "substances" that can make the pellets harder and hotter. He almost
>whispered that he knew of a case or two where someone was mixing their used
>motor oil in  tiny amounts. I had thought of blending in some soft coal
>dust with wood chips... One big advantage of corn/pellet stoves (as you
>know by now) is that since a controlled amount of fuel is introduced into a
>constant airstream instead of letting air leak into a fire pile that they
>burn much cleaner than a wood stove. Combustion is very thorough which is
>why creosoting is pretty much a non problem. If you burn wood pellets in a
>regular stove (and you can but not efficiently) The creosote problem at low
>fire is still the same problem.
>
>         I still have not committed to this pellet production but so 
> far I have not
>seen any large problems. I'll keep studying it all. I have 3 grown children
>living nearby and if they were involved in the labor and use of the pellets
>it might all workout well.
>         I don't think it is a system to go to to sell to the 
> general public...
>
>
>
>
>--
>"farmer"
>
>
>Francis Robinson
>Central Indiana, USA
>Robinson at svs.net
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>
>
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