Stove Chow vs Green Supreme

[briansol]

Stove Chows are like a unicorn around here... kinda like somersets. you hear about these fabled bags of pellets, but i've never seen them with my own eyes.

 

[whitetailscout]

They have Stove Chow at the HD in Seekonk, MA and in Coventry, RI.

 

[Tonyray]

Stove Chows are like a unicorn around here... kinda like somersets. you hear about these fabled bags of pellets, but i've never seen them with my own eyes.

The Fame about stove Chows comes from the fact that they are a very hot low cost pellet that get a bad rap...
very ashy but if u vacuum your stove regularly, not a deal breaker...
also, due to being inconcistant in size, they may tend to cause a dam in drop feeders occasionally..

 

[ttdberg]

Can you clarify something? The part about them being very ashy concerns me. I have read that same comment repeatedly about Stove Chows on these forums. I don't care about fly ash that builds up outside the burnpot - no issues with that at all. However, if it's the kind of heavy ash that continuously builds up IN the burnpot, and you need to scrape the ash off the front of the burnpot every day, just to keep a decent flame burning, then these are not for me. Think: Green Supremes. One of the many reasons I bought the pellet stove was convenience, not to have another item to babysit every day.

 

[joescho]

Can you clarify something? The part about them being very ashy concerns me. I have read that same comment repeatedly about Stove Chows on these forums. I don't care about fly ash that builds up outside the burnpot - no issues with that at all. However, if it's the kind of heavy ash that continuously builds up IN the burnpot, and you need to scrape the ash off the front of the burnpot every day, just to keep a decent flame burning, then these are not for me. Think: Green Supremes. One of the many reasons I bought the pellet stove was convenience, not to have another item to babysit every day.

I have never found Stove Chow to have more or less ash than any other pellets I have burned. They have also never made any clinkers on me either.

Pellet stoves are a real nice convenience especially when compared to a burning stove, but like everything else, you really shouldn't expect to fill the stove and not bother with it for a few days. Even if its to make sure everything is working ok.

 

[Tonyray]

Can you clarify something? The part about them being very ashy concerns me. I have read that same comment repeatedly about Stove Chows on these forums. I don't care about fly ash that builds up outside the burnpot - no issues with that at all. However, if it's the kind of heavy ash that continuously builds up IN the burnpot, and you need to scrape the ash off the front of the burnpot every day, just to keep a decent flame burning, then these are not for me. Think: Green Supremes. One of the many reasons I bought the pellet stove was convenience, not to have another item to babysit every day.

Each morning I use the Harman supplied tool and pull ash down to the Ash pan [my OCD] and do a few burn pot scrapes after..
Having a harman that pushes the pellets into the burnpot the pellets do most of the ash moving so never had a problem keeping a good flame..
I do this each morning so not sure if that is what u concider baby sitting a lot....I mean pellets make ash so something has to be left behind unless the premo low ash pellets leave barely anything after 24 hrs of burning.
. [Some people here have Magic pellets that claim no ash]

I Do Understand your concern as some pellets make soooo much ash that they end up smothering the flame.....[which has never happened to me with Chows but maybe due to the Harman design...].
One good thing about HD is most times u can buy single bags to try as they usually keep a loose skid in The Nursury area..that's how I started by buying 5 bags as a newbie back then.
Never had heard of them before and if those 5 bags we're not burning good I would never have sprung for 2 tons last winter[before the Vortex induced shortage]..
Actually I just looked and saw you have a P68 So we have the same Harman Auger system.
I also agree with the poster who said, "but like everything else, you really shouldn't expect to fill the stove and not bother with it for a few days. Even if its to make sure everything is working ok.

 

[Tonyray]

Stove Chows are like a unicorn around here... kinda like somersets. you hear about these fabled bags of pellets, but i've never seen them with my own eyes.

funny....
lot of people concider them Shoulder pellets at best but I think the low price and fact that they come from HD gives them the low quality stigma...
on a scale of 1- 10 [best] I would give them a Solid 6 ....

 

[Tonyray]

I have no clue. They are the only ones I have ever burned so I have nothing to compare them to. They burn, the basement gets warm.

Good Honest answer Brother Bart...No Embelishment...

 

[BrotherBart]

Well, I could say they are the best pellet I have ever burned.

 

[Tonyray]

Well, I could say they are the best pellet I have ever burned.

yes.. u could have said that and it has been said here by some people who have only burned 1 brand.
could also say my Wife is the best women I could have married but I refrain also since I have only had 1 Wife so far.

 

[wazilian]

Stove Chow is the best I've burned in my stove. I tried a few tons of Hamer's last winter and it was a disaster. This year I'm just getting 5 tons of Stove Chow as soon as our Home Depot gets them in and being done with it.

 

[Tonyray]

Stove Chow is the best I've burned in my stove. I tried a few tons of Hamer's last winter and it was a disaster. This year I'm just getting 5 tons of Stove Chow as soon as our Home Depot gets them in and being done with it.

Wow..... Hamer's a disaster?
tell us more... seriously... never burned them but I always read posts about those being some of the "Magic Pellets" around the forum..

 

[Pellet-King]

Stove Chows are like a unicorn around here... kinda like somersets. you hear about these fabled bags of pellets, but i've never seen them with my own eyes.

Brian Glastonbury HD has Chow's $239, I'm not buying let'um sit there and lower the price....ripoff, there capitalizing from last season's glut, If this winter is warm they'll be giving them away

 

[TimfromMA]

Brian Glastonbury HD has Chow's $239, I'm not buying let'um sit there and lower the price....ripoff, there capitalizing from last season's glut, If this winter is warm they'll be giving them away

It was 55 this morning when I left for work and its the 15th of August. Im starting to suspect a winter even longer and colder than last.

 

[Jocko1]

Brian Glastonbury HD has Chow's $239, I'm not buying let'um sit there and lower the price....ripoff, there capitalizing from last season's glut, If this winter is warm they'll be giving them away

Yea but if it's gonna be cold again like I expect your gonna be S.O.O.L! 48 here this morning.

 

[Pellet-King]

price of oil is dropping $3.18 here today, I'm not falling for or jumping the gun on pellet's

 

[Jocko1]

You got to get below 2 bucks per gallon before your even with pellets and if you think that's gonna happen I got a bridge for sale for ya in Brooklyn

 

[wazilian]

Wow..... Hamer's a disaster?
tell us more... seriously... never burned them but I always read posts about those being some of the "Magic Pellets" around the forum..

I have an Englander so getting more air through the burn pot is not really possible so the Hamer's don't get that extra air they need to burn properly. Hamer's need more air. All they did was gunk up the burn pot and I was consistently having to clean the burn chamber and get up on the ladder in the middle of winter to clean out my flue liner.

With the Stove Chow, sure there is a lot of ash, but if I can get to a weekly cleaning (instead of every day or 2) and the burn pot stays relatively clear and I get decent heat, I'm happy.

Hamer's are probably still one of the better pellets, if you have the right stove. Others can attest to that like you mentioned. I got all excited when I found them local to me. Even bought 3 tons just to play with some of the settings on my stove....but nothing really changed.....sigh...... Who knows, I may try again some year....

 

[Tonyray]

I have an Englander so getting more air through the burn pot is not really possible so the Hamer's don't get that extra air they need to burn properly. Hamer's need more air. All they did was gunk up the burn pot and I was consistently having to clean the burn chamber and get up on the ladder in the middle of winter to clean out my flue liner.

With the Stove Chow, sure there is a lot of ash, but if I can get to a weekly cleaning (instead of every day or 2) and the burn pot stays relatively clear and I get decent heat, I'm happy.

Hamer's are probably still one of the better pellets, if you have the right stove. Others can attest to that like you mentioned. I got all excited when I found them local to me. Even bought 3 tons just to play with some of the settings on my stove....but nothing really changed.....sigh...... Who knows, I may try again some year....

I guess the Air problem would make sense....
hey... bright side is the Chows have to be cheaper priced...

 

[Pellet-King]

What I know of last season was FSU are hotter than Chow's, there more lighter in color, they seem to be same as energex canadian premium softwoods, when i got mine nobody was buying the SC at Westfield Mass HD, I had to have them sell me 3 tons from the inside of there big display in front.....but.....they gave me what you all call clinker's and I never had clinkers in 15+ year's of burning....only downside.

 

[Tonyray]

What I know of last season was FSU are hotter than Chow's, there more lighter in color, they seem to be same as energex canadian premium softwoods, when i got mine nobody was buying the SC at Westfield Mass HD, I had to have them sell me 3 tons from the inside of there big display in front.....but.....they gave me what you all call clinker's and I never had clinkers in 15+ year's of burning....only downside.

Interesting..
The Chows are bagged/distributed by Energex here in Upstate Pa...

 

[Pellet-King]

Interesting..
The Chows are bagged/distributed by Energex here in Upstate Pa...

Yes the SC is Energex American and FSU is Energex Canadian

 

[Tonyray]

Yes the SC is Energex American and FSU is Energex Canadian

I burn both Energex hardwoods and Chows..
Although they look alike the Chows Pellets size are a bit longer,[kind of inconcistent] and the smell is different out of the bag
and burned... much sweeter smell..
.My Wife likes the smell of Chows in the Fall when she is outside on the Porch neat the Exhaust.
[That would be Her Endoresment

 

[Tonyray]

Yes the SC is Energex American and FSU is Energex Canadian

hardwood vrs Softwood...

 

[dlehneman]

Stove Chow is the best I've burned in my stove. I tried a few tons of Hamer's last winter and it was a disaster. This year I'm just getting 5 tons of Stove Chow as soon as our Home Depot gets them in and being done with it.

We have the same stove, I haven't tried Stove Chow's or Hamer's since I haven't seen them here, but last years FSU's from HD burned very hot and with average ash content (really good bang for the buck). Green Team Platinums from Lowe's burned a somewhat hotter and cleaner, but you do need to be creative with discounts to get reasonable pricing on them (I'm only paying $221 a ton this year/ versus the $299 regular price). MWP Softies worked great for me and were probably the hottest and cleanest I've tried in my stove (I have new stuff to try this season).
If your signature is correct, your setting are much higher then mine though...I'm running at 2-2-1 after lots of experimenting (depending on the pellet and season I change the first 2 to 1-1 or 2-2). I wonder how much the basement install effects the best way to run it though, since mine is a relatively short exhaust run through 3" (4ft vertical to a 90 degree bend with 2ft horizontal through the wall), OAK about 18-24" off the ground below the exhaust.