First pallet of fuel for D&L’s extremely hungry pellet stove.
Used to be there were three of us to do this. Used to be we were all ten years younger. L is thinking about replacing their main stove with a propane-burner. I did not try to talk her out of it.
Yep, you need either liquid fuel or a dedicated fork lift. Propane sounds like a great idea, possibly with the pellets as a backup.
For about $150 on Ebay you can buy forklift tines for that tractor you got running a couple days ago.
Propane is a lot less work.
Here ya go….
https://www.ebay.com/itm/135294415843
Being seventy, I totally understand L’s dilemma.
The question of going to propane heat isn’t as straight forward as a person would think, especially where you folks are located. So, before she jumps, I hope she does her homework.
Mike asks, and answers, the same question I had.
“The greatest labor saving invention of the modern world is a gallon of diesel fuel.”
Why ignore it?
Worst case is the supplier puts half-pallets in the truck.
On the propane question, you’ve mentioned many times that to get delivery would require a propane truck with track, not wheels. Maybe it’s time to reconsider the concept of terrain modification to facilitate access. There will come a point at which schlepping 30 lb cylinders in the jeep and pallets of compressed and bagged wood waste just doesn’t cut it, and unless some easier form of maintaining interior temperatures is enabled, you’re going to lose what few neighbors you have to civilization.
Stove is hungry, because pellets lack energy density.
What is the weight of a bag?
40 pounds. 50 of them on a pallet. In full winter they go through 1.5 bags a day.
A forklift will indeed make getting the main delivery put away much easier, but doesn’t help at all getting each bag to the stove and dumping it into the feed bin.
Propane and diesel each have their problems also, but the logistics are simply much easier for both of them.
I have toyed with the idea of one of the 12V diesel air heaters. Vevor (and many others) sell them on Amazon for around $100.
My neighbor has one that he loves, uses a transformer to normally run it from mains power, but I don’t know if I want to deal with storing & manipulating diesel.
The issue is how much heat can be gained from how little expense – the ROI – but “expense” can be measured in multiple ways with multiple data types; “firewood” from a hand saw and splitting maul may be “dollar cheap” but “time expensive.” Wood pellets strikes me as closer to the “more expensive” end of the scale on both counts, but everything is a trade-off.
60 lbs/day for heat….the internet says 8 – 8.5K BTU/lb, so they produce ~500K BTU/day. 4.1 lbs of propane – one gallon – equals 91K BTU, so 500K BTU = 5.5 gallons of propane. Weight of a cord of white oak – 20% moisture – is an average of about 3300 lbs so it’s about 8K BTU/lb. Roughly the same weight for 500K BTU as the wood pellets. Not that white oak would be available within 3-400 miles, and even if it’s across the street and already split there’s still transport and time costs.
Assuming 120 heating days, that’s 660 gallons of propane. No idea what the local cost comparison between pellets and propane would be even if 660 gallons could be delivered, but given that the customer’s labor input for 660 gallons of propane is so much less than either form of wood, I’d think some time spent grading and filling the access road might be worthwhile. There will come a point at which the labor becomes prohibitive, and not because of the dollar or time cost.
Portable propane tanks can work for small sheds (though I have a PITA Ashley heater in the pumphouse that acts like the air intake is plugged. It was not designed to be easy to service). OTOH, at advanced years, 40 pound tanks are a bit much, and worse for 50 pounders. The 100 pound tanks can work with a hand truck, but they’re a challenge.
Kerosene fired stoves might be an option. I use a Toyostove in the shop/barn. Have a nightlight under the temp sensor so it only ticks over enough to keep things from freezing. When I’m actually using the barn in winter, I have a woodstove. (Also a lifetime supply of pine and juniper from our own trees.)
One of my neighbors uses a similar Toyostove for heat. She needed monthly fillups, and ran short until she got a pellet stove to supplement. (The house is not well set up for winter heat… I don’t know if the garage/basement was heated. It also uses kerosene for the water heater.) OTOH, the Toyos are dead reliable. Mine is 20 years old and is still on its first ignitor.
The house uses propane for backup heat (electric forced air for main heat, no practical location for wood heat), and another shed has a reliable propane heater (50 pound tanks, ouch). The shop/barn uses a kerosene-fired Toyostove to keep things from freezing. (Old school nightlight under the thermostat. 38 degrees works well.) When I want more heat, I use a wood stove. Have a lifetime supply of Ponderosa pine and juniper for that. FWIW, the Toyostove has been in operation for over 20 years, with no problems. I’m still on the first ignitor. Recommended.
Sorry about that redundant last paragraph. The joys of no edit button…