I am happy to argue points of this, but in the interest of not hijacking the thread, why not start another one for just that purpose, if Lake Girl, Bart, etc., will allow it? Then those who don't want to listen to us can just ignore us, and we can whallop each other in good ole' debate all we want, without bothering others?
I agree, But it is still only a temporary solution. We have to learn not to rely on exhaustable resources. Unfortunately we have demonstrated, repeatedly that we won't do anything about our energy supply until there is none.
Harvey, I was burning pellets, two bags for the day. The burner has a .65 gallon per hour nozzle in it. The first time it came on it burned about 40 minutes ( cast iron radiators) and that was about 3 am temp set at 69. The second time it came on was around 10am and it ran maybe 30 minutes temp set at 72. That was it for the day. The stove was in Stove temp mode. Around noon the outdoor temp got up over 10 deg and I switched the stove back to room temp 72 deg. The house has been 73 deg all winter at that setting and last winter as well ( pellets only).. Other than my foray into stove temp the other night and letting the oil take over I have used no oil in a year to heat the main house. Give me a break !! I used a lousy gallon, I don't think the planet is going to evaporate over that.
No thanks. I have my opinions, you have yours and we could debate until we've turned every tree into sawdust and pellets and sucked every drop of oil out of the ground, which won't happen either, without changing any minds much less ours but thanks for the suggestion.
If you were referring to my rough table, I excluded those who were also burning corn.
Not really. My house really is like two separate houses, almost like a townhouse. When the temps drop below 30*, I shut a door between the two halves, effectively separating the heating systems.
Fuel oil here is $3.19 per gallon. In order for me to burn it the price will need to get very close to $2.00 per to equal the price I pay for pellets at $250 per ton delivered. And another reason for heating with pellets is just as you say in reference to the renewable fuel vs. the fossil. I agree.
Good point. Also, heat losses through ductwork are greater than most people realize for forced air systems, if run through unconditioed space. I have a heat pump, and use it only when temps are over 40-45 because of this, even though in theory it is more efficient than pellets at those temps. Duct losses are rarely factored in, but always present.
The same is true of hydronic systems. The heat losses in the pipe runs are almost never accounted for. Pipe runs go up through exterior walls to the second floor. The insulation on those pipes is minimal. Even the short segments of the first floor loop that travel through the mostly unheated basement are responsible for unaccounted for loss.
Welcome Overlook.
Fuel consumption most certainly will change. I can tell with our Harman on a day to day difference but we have had some wild swings. Now if one had a fixed feed rate stove one would just be warmer or colder. I am running the Harman same as you.
What did you use before pellets? If you used heating oil, then they typically calculate a K-factor for your oil use based upon degree days. Then you can compare your pellet use vs your oil use.
