Do I still have time to buy, ship, and install a pellet stove for fall? Yes, but get your stove ordered soon so you have time to install it and have it running when the weather turns cold. Get all your installation questions answered and call us with any questions you have about purchasing a pellet stove (800) 495-3196
Do I need to keep my existing furnace? You can also expect your flex-fuel stove to give your traditional furnace a run for the money both in heat efficiency and longevity, but don’t get rid of your furnace. While a pellet stove can heat your entire home, there are code compliance issues that require a primary heating system to be installed in your home. Today, there are no insurance or building codes that will allow a solid fuel appliance to be considered as primary.
Can I burn corn or wood pellets from last year? No, we strongly discourage this. While it seems like it would be the frugal thing to do, it can actually decrease the efficiency of your stove and increase fuel burning issues. Wood pellets and shelled corn need to be stored in a climate controlled environment. If kept through the summer the high humidity will spoil the fuel and cause burning issues. Here is a video on selecting good fuel for your pellet stove.
Can I buy and burn locally grown and shelled corn straight from a farmer I know? Absolutely! That is the beauty of owning a multi-fuel burning stove. You can burn shelled corn from the farmer down the street or family member. Just be sure they know to burn shelled corn in a pellet stove, it should be dried to 11-12%.
How much will the pellet stove hopper hold, and how long will it burn before I need to add more fuel? The hopper size of each pellet stove is slightly different, and the larger the size means longer time between filling it with pellets. For example, a MagnuM Baby Countryside pellet stove holds about 50 pounds of fuel and will burn for about 40 hours (depending on heat settings, etc).
What is the cheapest fuel to burn? That depends on the renewable fuel you’re considering, where you live, and a variety of other circumstances such as crop yield, etc. Also, corn tends to burn hotter than wood pellets, so if you live in very harsh winter conditions, it is often very efficient to burn corn or a wood pellet/corn mix (more bang for your buck). If you want to compare renewable energy to more traditional fuels, you can use our Cost Savings Calculator.
Do MagnuM appliances comply with newer EPA standards? American Energy Systems Inc. has led the industry in designing products that are environmentally clean and efficient. Typically our appliances are up to 10% more efficient than competitors in the industry and lab tests have shown that MagnuM and Country Flame product produce substantially less emissions than the EPA requires for clean burning. You can see American Energy Systems appliances on the EPA list.
Still have pellet stove questions you need answers? We recommend downloading our Free Guide that will answer many questions about switching to a pellet stove.