There isn’t one homeowner who isn’t looking for a way to save money on rising energy costs. Several winters ago we decided it was time to do the same thing ourselves. We were tired of ever rising fuel oil costs and decided to look into installing a wood pellet stove.
There are many things to consider before making your final choice, but there are things you need to know before you start looking. The first thing every homeowner needs to know to find the best pellet stove is just how much square footage they want to heat. Most pellet stove manufacturers sell stoves based on BTU’s and square footage heating capacity. Experts will tell you that you should pay more attention to the square footage capacity offered by a pellet stove and use BTU as a final gauge when choosing between two stoves.
There are many manufacturers. Some of the best regarded are Harman, Enviro, QuadraFire, Thelin, Jamestown and Englander. Harman has received very high ratings. Harman offers a wide range of furnaces, gas stoves, gas fireplaces, fireplace inserts and freestanding pellet stoves. They also sell multi fuel pellet stoves that burn pellets or corn. Some of their most popular stoves are the Harman P61, P61A, The Accentra and the Pellet Pro 38 Plus. Enviro offers models ranging in size from the smaller Empress to the larger Evolution, Meridian and EF2 Freestanding Stove. Breckwell offers the P22 Series, P24, P2700 and P2000.
All of these manufacturers offer things like large hoppers and ash drawers, whisper-quiet motors, digital control panels and wall or remote thermostats, electronic ignition and realistic fiber logs. Of course the more bells and whistles you get on your stove the more you will pay for it.
Ultimately you want a well built sturdy stove that comes with a good warranty. It’s imperative that you choose a stove that has a dealer in your area. Most homeowners have professional installation. Installation costs run between $400 and $700 depending on the stove and the area in which you live. You’re going to want a dealer nearby to do required maintenance and in case of problems.
As if cost savings weren’t enough, using a wood pellet stove is healthier for your family, and better for the environment than burning air cured firewood. Wood pellets burn CO2 neutral, meaning there are no harmful fumes in your home or in the atmosphere, unlike wood fireplaces. Wood pellets are manufactured using byproducts of wood manufacturing, again better for the environment. A ton of wood pellets has the same burn time as a cord and a half of wood, with much less mess.
If you’re looking for a way to help curb the costs of home heating you should be looking into wood or multi fuel pellet stoves.