Lignetics Blue Label Pellets

[CanadaClinker]

Man don't get me started on Lignetics. I've always bought green label (WV) bags with no problems. I bought 2 tons this fall and they have been total junk. Stove is dirty, barely holds a flame, gets clinkers all the time, and even shuts down. Don't know if Lignetics will try to fix the problem or not. They will not return my e-mails so I guess I will have to call. Tried a bag of Lowe's brand and the stove burned much better. Don't ask me what the hell I'm going to do with over a ton left. Damn oil has been burning alot lately because the stove isn't doing the job.

I wouldn't be surprised that last year when everyone was really hurting for raw material that some pellet producers 'temporarily' (I hope only temporarily) used whatever raw material they could get their hands on.... to get them buy... since there is a time lag between when the pellets are made and when they get to your door, we are now seeing the result of the corner cutting ...... I hope I'm wrong.....if they value their future markets and sales, they better get back on track quickly making a good product before their reputation falls into the basement..... IMHO.....cc :roll:

 

[coloradan]

I am burning off the last of the 4 bags of blue label Lignetics, and I must so that I'm not impressed. Along with my original comments, I have to say that these pellets create the most ash of any pellet I've ever seen. And that's an understatement. I went to open the door this morning to stir the pot and about 2 cups of ash dropped out onto the floor. And my stove has just been taken apart and cleaned recently, so it must be the pellets. Hopefully I got a bad batch of them, because I'd hate for anyone else to experience what I've gone through the past couple of days.

 

[jtakeman]

That looks like the brand of lignetics that I am burning .They are the best pellets that I have found so far .Hardly any ash ,and way more heat than Winnipeg forest products .

.....hey Excell .... I like my ligs too... they are now selling WPG F P pellets here too instead of ligs... are they any good?? .... cc

I posted this in the other thread but I want to post it here too.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/49742/

I am in no way saying the conifer blend is bad. But I worry some will buy the hardwood only and get the conifer blend in its place. Watch the advertising. I cought one place so far and gave them heck. Don't advertise the hardwoods and sell the blend.

The blend is still a good product, But it isn’t worth the full deal of the hardwood only. If its offered at a reduced price heck ya I will be buying to. I too saw very good heat from them as well. But Like I said they do contain a bit more ash.

Just a word of caution to my fellow pellet heads! Don’t fall for the bait and switch.

 

[Excell]

That looks like the brand of lignetics that I am burning .They are the best pellets that I have found so far .Hardly any ash ,and way more heat than Winnipeg forest products .

.....hey Excell .... I like my ligs too... they are now selling WPG F P pellets here too instead of ligs... are they any good?? .... cc

I find them to be very dirty ,lots of black ash ,black window . I don't think I will buy any more of them .Green label ligs are way better .

 

[cold front]

That looks like the brand of lignetics that I am burning .They are the best pellets that I have found so far .Hardly any ash ,and way more heat than Winnipeg forest products .

.....hey Excell .... I like my ligs too... they are now selling WPG F P pellets here too instead of ligs... are they any good?? .... cc

I posted this in the other thread but I want to post it here too.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/49742/

I am in no way saying the conifer blend is bad. But I worry some will buy the hardwood only and get the conifer blend in its place. Watch the advertising. I cought one place so far and gave them heck. Don't advertise the hardwoods and sell the blend.

The blend is still a good product, But it isn’t worth the full deal of the hardwood only. If its offered at a reduced price heck ya I will be buying to. I too saw very good heat from them as well. But Like I said they do contain a bit more ash.

Just a word of caution to my fellow pellet heads! Don’t fall for the bait and switch.

Good point. I read the pellet label from top to bottom every time I buy as if it’s the first time I have bought them. Especially in a competitive market Pellet ingredients can change quickly in my experience.

I never buy any from a pellet manufacture that does not list their main ingredients or wood sources, like “Wood Fiber Products” or “wood fiber byproducts”. I mean what the heck does that mean?? Plain paper is a wood fiber product and so is some types of blown in isolation or a ton of other fiber that I don’t want to burn in my stove.

 

[Jim H.]

I wanted to jump in also, my green label Ligs are hardwood only. I bought them in the summer/fall time frame from Miller Ace hardware in Northampton area of Pa. They burn great. I also am burning the tree cycle as well. I can't wait to try the newest formula they will have hopefully soon. They burn hot but do have a tendency to become a clinker....not a problem in the xxv, it will push them right off the edge! Love the information sharing!

 

[countk]

I wanted to jump in also, my green label Ligs are hardwood only. I bought them in the summer/fall time frame from Miller Ace hardware in Northampton area of Pa. They burn great. I also am burning the tree cycle as well. I can't wait to try the newest formula they will have hopefully soon. They burn hot but do have a tendency to become a clinker....not a problem in the xxv, it will push them right off the edge! Love the information sharing!

As I have mentioned also on other posts, I'm very happy with my hardwood only, Ligs!

On a side note, I purchased a couple bags of Marth from Lowe's the other day and I was extremely pleased with how they burn. I swear they were as hot as my Ligs and with no discernible fines! I would buy a ton in a heartbeat at the right price. In fact, I got one of the bags at 1/2 price as it was slightly ripped. Believe me, I was cautious to see if they were wet or frozen, but saw no visible damage, and as I said they burned great!!

By the way I would have never purchased these had it not been for Jay's pellet review. Good job Jay, your review on the Marth was right on!

 

[cold front]

Another thing, I wounder how much poly-glues we burn from our pellets that are made from saw dust from particle boards, MDF boards, chip boards and hardwood and soft wood plywood. I bet that glue in it is a poor dirty burn.

 

[cold front]

Another thing, I wounder how much poly-glues we burn from our pellets that are made from saw dust from particle boards, MDF boards, chip boards and hardwood and soft wood plywood. I bet that glue in it is a poor dirty burn.

Not all pellets are created equal........some of us use ONLY 100% wood...be it from a flooring plant, or a sawmill, it's still ONLY 100% wood. And that is why some pellets are much better than others.....this is not rocket science...good fibre in....good pellet out.....crap fibre in....you see where I'm going with this..............(the names have been changed to protect the guilty..)

I agree, I think most all of us want the good stuff but the pellet manufacture is at best misleading consumers when they print all over their bags "Premium pellets" (which was traditionally 100% hardwood) and than print nothing about the source wood or in fine print "wood fiber products" or "wood fiber byproducts" which we know is probably crap saw dust from MDF boards, OSB board or other composite wood products, crap, crap and crap source wood, IMHO.

 

[jtakeman]

Another thing, I wounder how much poly-glues we burn from our pellets that are made from saw dust from particle boards, MDF boards, chip boards and hardwood and soft wood plywood. I bet that glue in it is a poor dirty burn.

Not all pellets are created equal........some of us use ONLY 100% wood...be it from a flooring plant, or a sawmill, it's still ONLY 100% wood. And that is why some pellets are much better than others.....this is not rocket science...good fibre in....good pellet out.....crap fibre in....you see where I'm going with this..............(the names have been changed to protect the guilty..)

I agree, I think most all of us want the good stuff but the pellet manufacture is at best misleading consumers when they print all over their bags "Premium pellets" (which was traditionally 100% hardwood) and than print nothing about the source wood or in fine print "wood fiber products" or "wood fiber byproducts" which we know is probably crap saw dust from MDF boards, OSB board or other composite wood products, crap, crap and crap source wood, IMHO.

Hard to beat the pellets manufactured with the quality fiber BTU is referring to. Just like night and day.

Hopefully with the new PFI grading system there adding. We may see a few changes. But I emailed them and never got an answer to what the changes are(Kinda ticked me off too!). So we just wait for now!

The fast food places have there mistery meat, So I guess its OK for the pellet mills to have there version too!

 

[cold front]

Another thing, I wounder how much poly-glues we burn from our pellets that are made from saw dust from particle boards, MDF boards, chip boards and hardwood and soft wood plywood. I bet that glue in it is a poor dirty burn.

Not all pellets are created equal........some of us use ONLY 100% wood...be it from a flooring plant, or a sawmill, it's still ONLY 100% wood. And that is why some pellets are much better than others.....this is not rocket science...good fibre in....good pellet out.....crap fibre in....you see where I'm going with this..............(the names have been changed to protect the guilty..)

I agree, I think most all of us want the good stuff but the pellet manufacture is at best misleading consumers when they print all over their bags "Premium pellets" (which was traditionally 100% hardwood) and than print nothing about the source wood or in fine print "wood fiber products" or "wood fiber byproducts" which we know is probably crap saw dust from MDF boards, OSB board or other composite wood products, crap, crap and crap source wood, IMHO.

Hard to beat the pellets manufactured with the quality fiber BTU is referring to. Just like night and day.

Hopefully with the new PFI grading system there adding. We may see a few changes. But I emailed them and never got an answer to what the changes are(Kinda ticked me off too!). So we just wait for now!

The fast food places have there mistery meat, So I guess its OK for the pellet mills to have there version too!

Found this from PFI:

Product Labeling
Information that will allow purchasers to make informed decisions must be provided on each bag
of fuel. This information should be provided in a consistent, standardized format. See Appendix
E for an example showing the use of a bar scale to represent the mean value ± 2 Std. Dev.
1. It is required to print the mean higher heating value in BTU per pound as well as the ash
content in % on the fuel bag label using a bar scale to represent the mean value ± 2 Std. Dev.
2. The bag must be labeled indicating which PFI grade of material is in the bag.
3. The bag label must also disclose the type of materials as well as all additives used. For this
purpose, additives are defined in 3.1.10 of the PFI Standard Specification for
Residential/Commercial Densified Fuel.
4. It is required that manufacturers include on their bags the PFI logo and in a printed block the
guaranteed analysis of the fuel.

And

 

[jtakeman]

I emailed a local pellet house who advertised the green labels as a Hardwood pellet. This is there reply:

Good Evening,

The Lignetics that I sell are the blend, a hardwood with conifer. I have spoke with the plant manager at the Virginia plant about the blend, cause I was first told that the pellets were a 100% hardwood not a blend. That was not the case and was told they don't produce a 100% hardwood. I was given alot of info on the % ratio used which depending upon the incoming trucks of dust per week the softwood added is between 2%-5%. Regulations state that as much as 15% of softwood dust can be added to hardwood dust and still be called a hardwood pellet.
My understanding of Lignetics is that the Western plant produces all softwood and the Southern two plants produce the hardwood blend. So its very interesting that you have found a 100% hardwood pellet from Lignietics. I'd love to sell those and wish that Lignetics would drop all together those incoming trucks filled with the cheaper conifer dust.
If you want a 100% oak hardwood pellet then I'd recommend trying Turman. These pellets are produced from Turman Hardwood Flooring Company in Virginia. A very LOW ash pellet with high BTU's and have become our #1 selling, along with highest customer satifaction.
If you have any questions, please contact me again,

Thanks
Pat
CJ's Pellets Depot

Looks like they are frustrated too, So they must be getting complaints from the consumer. Funny thing is the Turman's she is plugging is 7 dollars cheaper a ton. So its a no brainer for me. Don't pay the full price for the ligiies if at all possible. Buying an inferior product at the same cost just doesn't make any sense at all.

jay

 

[derrickp]

Wow I am surprised everyone is having issues with the Lig Hardwood blend, I have burned them and they are not giving me any issues and the heat seems really good. Didn't measure it but the house is staying at the same avg temp on the same stove settings. I would buy them again.

 

[jtakeman]

I emailed a local pellet house who advertised the green labels as a Hardwood pellet. This is there reply:

Good Evening,

The Lignetics that I sell are the blend, a hardwood with conifer. I have spoke with the plant manager at the Virginia plant about the blend, cause I was first told that the pellets were a 100% hardwood not a blend. That was not the case and was told they don't produce a 100% hardwood. I was given alot of info on the % ratio used which depending upon the incoming trucks of dust per week the softwood added is between 2%-5%. Regulations state that as much as 15% of softwood dust can be added to hardwood dust and still be called a hardwood pellet.
My understanding of Lignetics is that the Western plant produces all softwood and the Southern two plants produce the hardwood blend. So its very interesting that you have found a 100% hardwood pellet from Lignietics. I'd love to sell those and wish that Lignetics would drop all together those incoming trucks filled with the cheaper conifer dust.
If you want a 100% oak hardwood pellet then I'd recommend trying Turman. These pellets are produced from Turman Hardwood Flooring Company in Virginia. A very LOW ash pellet with high BTU's and have become our #1 selling, along with highest customer satifaction.
If you have any questions, please contact me again,

Thanks
Pat
CJ's Pellets Depot

Looks like they are frustrated too, So they must be getting complaints from the consumer. Funny thing is the Turman's she is plugging is 7 dollars cheaper a ton. So its a no brainer for me. Don't pay the full price for the ligiies if at all possible. Buying an inferior product at the same cost just doesn't make any sense at all.

jay

WoW...you can learn something new everyday.. So, when is a hardwood wood pellet not always a hardwood?...When you can put up to 15% softwood in with it... I never knew mills did that and still call their product 100% hardwood....Who knew?

PS.. Jay ... Pat is a "he" not a "she" at CJ's...

Oops, Well I had a 50/50 shot. Sorry Pat!

By the way. I to had no issue's burning them. And will burn them if the price is acceptable. We jumped to conclusions that the conifer was the issue with the increased ash amount. Maybe it doesn't have anything to do with it. It could be the hardwood fiber there using is the issue. I really don't know. But I don't think the blame should souly rest on the conifer fiber. There are several good conifer only pellets that burn just fine and are very clean.

I also think the new PFI standard is calling for a ingredients list to be shown on the bag. If you read this(link) you will see what I mean. Read #2 truth in labeling!

(broken link removed to http://www.pelletheat.org/2/quality.html)

 

[richkorn]

I currently have both the green Hardwood and green Hardwood and Conifer bags. These are my findings:

1. They both burn hot.
2. The blend bag has more fines and produces a dust cloud when I dump them in.
3. The Hardwood bag is very clean, no dust cloud at all.
4. The blend bag produces slightly more ash.
5. I like the Hardwood better but the blend is just fine.
6. My dealer said the only reason the blend is labled as Hardwood and Conifer is that it is manufactured in the VA. facility that also manufactures softwood (conifer) pellets, so there will always be residual in the mix. Don't know if true or not.

 

[jtakeman]

I currently have both the green Hardwood and green Hardwood and Conifer bags. These are my findings:

1. They both burn hot.
2. The blend bag has more fines and produces a dust cloud when I dump them in.
3. The Hardwood bag is very clean, no dust cloud at all.
4. The blend bag produces slightly more ash.
5. I like the Hardwood better but the blend is just fine.
6. My dealer said the only reason the blend is labled as Hardwood and Conifer is that it is manufactured in the VA. facility that also manufactures softwood (conifer) pellets, so there will always be residual in the mix. Don't know if true or not.

Thanks rickhorn,

Good info, Thanks for sharing with us.

Do you see any temp difference? Just wondering if the conifer blend is equal, hotter or not up to snuff!

Still a good pellet, Not sure if the extra ash amount will cause anyone stove issue's. Blue labels have been reported to clinker.

jay

 

[richkorn]

I currently have both the green Hardwood and green Hardwood and Conifer bags. These are my findings:

1. They both burn hot.
2. The blend bag has more fines and produces a dust cloud when I dump them in.
3. The Hardwood bag is very clean, no dust cloud at all.
4. The blend bag produces slightly more ash.
5. I like the Hardwood better but the blend is just fine.
6. My dealer said the only reason the blend is labled as Hardwood and Conifer is that it is manufactured in the VA. facility that also manufactures softwood (conifer) pellets, so there will always be residual in the mix. Don't know if true or not.

Thanks rickhorn,

Good info, Thanks for sharing with us.

Do you see any temp difference? Just wondering if the conifer blend is equal, hotter or not up to snuff!

Still a good pellet, Not sure if the extra ash amount will cause anyone stove issue's. Blue labels have been reported to clinker.

jay

No, they both burn hot and I don't see a difference. Just the amount of fines and a bit more ash from the blend.

Burned a bag a Barefoot today and I really like those, great heat and about same ash as Lignetics Hardwood.

Burned a bag of O'Malley hardwood yesterday and not as good. Less heat and big fluffy black ash. Glass didn't get too bad though.

 

[jtakeman]

I currently have both the green Hardwood and green Hardwood and Conifer bags. These are my findings:

1. They both burn hot.
2. The blend bag has more fines and produces a dust cloud when I dump them in.
3. The Hardwood bag is very clean, no dust cloud at all.
4. The blend bag produces slightly more ash.
5. I like the Hardwood better but the blend is just fine.
6. My dealer said the only reason the blend is labled as Hardwood and Conifer is that it is manufactured in the VA. facility that also manufactures softwood (conifer) pellets, so there will always be residual in the mix. Don't know if true or not.

Thanks rickhorn,

Good info, Thanks for sharing with us.

Do you see any temp difference? Just wondering if the conifer blend is equal, hotter or not up to snuff!

Still a good pellet, Not sure if the extra ash amount will cause anyone stove issue's. Blue labels have been reported to clinker.

jay

No, they both burn hot and I don't see a difference. Just the amount of fines and a bit more ash from the blend.

Burned a bag a Barefoot today and I really like those, great heat and about same ash as Lignetics Hardwood.

Burned a bag of O'Malley hardwood yesterday and not as good. Less heat and big fluffy black ash. Glass didn't get too bad though.

All good info, I found the same with the Omalley and the barefoots.I haven't burned the all hardwood yet. macman is holdin 2 bags for me. I will post the info I get in my testing new thread.

stay warm

 

[malibuman00]

I have been shopping around for pellets to buy. I found the Lignetics for $280 a ton, which in my area is the going rate for a good premium pellet. The lesson I have learned is try a few bags to try, so I bought two bags. These are the the blue label pellets. I asked how everyone has liked them, he replied, no complaints. These pellets are horrible, I will not be putting the second bag in my stove. To put it into perspective, they are far worse than the Maine Woods pellets from last year that I burned! I woke up to find my burn pot completely full, with four huge clinkers. The color of the pellets are almost black and the bag was loaded with fines. I though Lignetics had a great reputation

 

[coloradan]

Sorry to hear about your bad experiences with the blue labeled Lignetics too, fireitup. My bags were also dark brown/blackish, with lots of fines. I couldn't believe how much ash and clinkers that they produced. By far the dirtiest pellet I've ever burned. I'm hoping Jake can get his hands on one of them to do a "proper test". He might need to get 2 or 3 jars to hold all the ash these things produce.

 

[twojrts]

I've got the Ligs Blue label bags. They burn fine. No clinkers, but LOTS & LOTS of ash. Stove seems to really like them. I get more heat with the stove set on 2 or 3 than I do at a higher setting.

After reading all this, do I have a bad batch of Ligs?

 

[coloradan]

You may want to alter your air flow settings, that seemed to help me out with the clinkers a bit. As for the ash though, I don't think there's any way to avoid it - they just seem to burn dirty no matter what you do.

 

[twojrts]

Thanks, nectardan.

I checked the bag and they are "mad from the finest hardwood & conifer sawdust". Clinkers are not a problem, I haven't noticed any. Unless they are buried under all the ash!!

 

[coloradan]

If you want to stay with the Lignetics, try the green blend. They have similiar temperatures, but less ash. I'd personally recommend you try out some Barefoots or Somersets though. Check your local Agway for the Barefoots and your local Lowes for the Somersets. You'll be surprised how much cleaner they burn, when compared to the Lignetics.

 

[twojrts]

I checked Agway and there isn't one close by. Our Lowes doesn't carry pellets! I'm almost caught between a rock and a hard place with finding a supply of pellets.

I got the Ligs from my installer. I will mention to them about the green label ones. Or the Barefoots.