Pellet Stove Hard vs Soft Wood?

I am buying a house, and plan on using the pellet stove in the living room as the main source of heat for the downstairs.

Looking around, its the same price for a ton of Hard, or softwood pellets. Growing up my dad always bought hardwood pellets for his stove.

What is the better option to burn though, and why?

 

Hardwood.

It has more BTU per cubic foot than softwood.

 

Had a pellet stove for years before swapping it out for gas.
In my experience.....Softwood needs more cleaning.
I always tried to find Barefoot pellets. Burned really nice. Not sure if they are still around.

 

Same here went from harwood to pellets to propane.
Hardwood was good burning but it was messy, sand , bugs and debris to bring into the house and smoke every time you open the front door and dust OMG. Chimney cleaning ( once a year if burning good dry wood ) and emptying ashes is a job in itself. I am talking a standing stove not a furnace with duct work.

Pellets was good burning too, not messy, dusty and not as much ashes as wood and no need to clean chimney. Ashes a small pail after 50 bags.Cleaning the stove involves brushing sides of burning box and vacuuming the fly ash.

Propane is good heating. No mess, no cleaning of chimney or stove, no dust and nothing to haul in like cords of wood and bags and bags of pellets.

At my retired age it is better on my back with propane if you know what I mean.

 

If hardwood pellets are better, why would the same place sell both hard and soft at the same price?

Whats better about soft?

 

A pound of hardwood will weigh more than a pound of softwood

 

I switched last year from burning Oak pellets to burning Douglas Fir pellets. The Doug Fir pellets burnt Much Cleaner and my 50 pound hopper would last longer hour wise. The Fir pellets did cost more then the Oak but the price difference was worth it.

 

WHAT?!?!?!

I thought a pound was 16 oz. 1 lb ribeye steak weighs the same as 1 lb of lettuce.

 

A 1lb. Rileye tastes alot better than 1lb.of lettuce

I burn hardwood pellets. If I can get softwood at a good price I'll buy them.
Prices this year are just ridiculous.

 

............ I hope youre just making a joke.

 

Pellet stoves generally suck.

I had 2 of them, and tried every kind of pellet available in my area.
These are my observations from the last 14 years of use:
- pellet prices continue to go up more than other things
- pellets are inconsistent (even within the same brand)
- pellets seem to have gotten dirtier and lower quality over time (more ash, and more frequent cleaning this year than when I first started)
- hardwood is generally better than softwood, but see comments above
- no manufacturer in my area defines what species of hardwood or softwood is used

Personally I can't wait to complete my house addition and install a real wood furnace, and stop using a pellet stove

 

Pellets tend to degrade in storage. The more moisture gets in them the looser the pellet gets and at some point it’s just clumpy sawdust that clogs the auger. I’d rather deal with buying firewood than listen to a noisy pellet stove that doesn’t put out a lot of heat.

Spend your money on good windows and doors and insulation. I prefer wood as a backup off the grid fuel, and natural gas or oil for my main heat source.

 

I have had a Pellet stove as my main heating source for my house for the past 14 years. Hardwood Pellets, In my experience, will burn longer at a slower feed rate resulting in hotter and more stable burning rates. I have noticed as well that the "ASH Rate" can differ from company to company regarding the quality of their Hardwood pellet so we can not make a blanket conclusion that hardwood is cleaner. Softwood pellets burn easier but have been cleaner overall.

This is correct.

Hardwood pellets are generally cheaper per ton and per bag. The can also create more of a "Soot" that makes it harder to clean requiring more cleaning maintenance. But once again, this also depends on the Brand that you buy. Okanagan Pellets are softwood pellets and they have produced the smallest amount of ash that I have ever seen out of any of the pellets that I tried.

I generally like to use a Hybrid Mixture of soft and Hard like "New England" Brand pellets to try to get the best of both worlds.

It really boils done to "you get what you pay for." If you are paying more per ton in one pellet than another......There is a reason for this. Buying cheap pellets at the local grocery store or Hardware store may be a good deal at the time but you will pay in the long end with more Maintenance, more cleaning, and the pellets will burn through quicker requiring more to buy at the end of the season. Once again, I am no expert in the matter, this is just what I have experienced.

 

Comment was made on Thursday. Apparently, more and more places are successfully trying the 4-day work week

 

There is no truer statement than this. Get your house energy tested, have better insulation, and have your pellets stored in the driest place possible.

 

@Taco critter What do you burn in yours?

 

OP don’t remember the name of the brand but I also use to burn Douglas Fir in my stove. More heat less cleaning than the soft I burned before. No longer have a pellet stove but I see more and more places selling pellets since I got rid of it.

 

100% Agree with this. Douglas Fir is literally the best pellet to burn in the stove.....once again though.....it will cost more. But it will pay HUGE dividends in the long run.

 

HUH????