Convert Wood Stove to Pellet Stove – What You Should Know
In the past, it was unheard of trying to use wood pellets in a wood stove. You would always need a pellet stove to burn them. But with the way they burned cleanly, there was a need to look for ways to convert wood stove to pellet stove.
While traditional firewood is ideal for wood stoves, you can’t compare its burning efficiency with wood pellets. Furthermore, it is usually bulkier and might be hard to handle.
So, if there is a way you can avoid that, you need to know it. Let us see how you can convert and use a wood stove as a pellet stove.
Can You Use Wood Pellets in a Regular Wood Stove?
While it would seem outlandish, it is possible to convert a wood stove into a pellet stove. That doesn’t mean making the wood stove necessarily a pellet stove. You don’t need to perform any structural changes on the woodstove.
What you do is change the medium by which you create the fire in the stove. They call them wood stoves because they use wood—the traditional firewood. Stove pellets would therefore use wood pellets.
Therefore, if you need to convert a wood stove into a pellet stove, fire it up using wood pellets instead. And is it possible to use wood pellets in a regular wood stove? Absolutely. Here is how you can do that.
Read Also: How To Move a Wood Stove: 11 Best Steps That You Can Follow
Converting a Wood Stove into a Pellet Stove
You can convert a wood stove into a pellet stove by using a pellet insert or basket. The most popular pellet insert is the Prometheus from Energex, a company based in New Hampshire.
This is probably the most popular way of converting a wood stove into a pellet stove. A pellet insert is a basketlike structure that you can buy and insert inside the wood stove to burn wood pellets.
A typical wood stove has a fireplace surface that wouldn’t be ideal for pellets. That’s why you need the metallic pellet insert to ensure the pellets aren’t in direct contact with that surface. The insert can be steel or any other metallic material that is an excellent conductor of heat and can withstand heat.
Pellet inserts are available for buying either online or at your local stores. However, before burning them, you need to know the dimensions of your wood stove. To know the dimensions of your stove, clean it of all the trash, then use a tape measure to take those measurements.
Provided you get the measurements right, the pellet insert shouldn’t be too hard to install. You only need to ensure it doesn’t touch the walls of the woodstove. Once you fit it into your stove, adjust the vents accordingly to ensure ample airflow.
Once you have the flue open, you can add the pellets and use the wood stove as a pellet stove. That wasn’t so hard, was it? The only issue with pellet inserts is that they might be quite expensive.
How Does the Prometheus Work?
The Prometheus is a steel basketlike structure with lots of honeycomb-shaped holes. The holes enable air to pass through to assist in the clean running of the wood pellets.
The Prometheus has several channels that allow more air to pass taught and allow constitution. They also vary in size, starting from 10 inches to 26 inches. Therefore, if you want one, then you’d have to measure the dimensions of your wood stove.
The largest amount of wood pellets the Prometheus can hold is 30 lbs. If you have it full of pellets, the stove might provide you with heat and warmth for close to 12 hours.
Read Also: Pellet Stove Blowing Smoke Into House – 4 Best Hacks
Why Should You Consider Converting Your Wood Stove to a Pellet Stove?
Wood stoves have been with us for some time. That’s why you are more likely to find them in most people’s homes. Although an excellent heat source in homes, they don’t measure up to wood pellets for several reasons.
The most obvious one is that pellets are less bulky. Wood pellets being compressed sawdust are more compact and less likely to take up more space in your home. That makes them easier to transport since you’d only need a bag to carry them.
On the other hand, the traditional firewood would need you to have stacks of wood in your home. That takes up a lot of space that you could have put to some other use. That’s beside the fact that most people don’t have large spaces in their homes.
Wood pellets also burn more cleanly than traditional firewood. That’s because they usually won’t have too many impurities in their composition. That allows them to burn more cleanly, producing heat with less smoke. They are therefore less likely to pollute the environment.
Wood pellets are also cost-effective. That’s because they are heat efficient, which would reduce the number of pellets you’d need to use in a stove relative to the amount of firewood. Additionally, the heating efficiency makes them easier to use and more cost-effective.
To top it all off, the pellet stove is easier to use than the woodstove. That has much to do with them being less bulky as to the efficient burning.
So yes, you should consider converting that wood stove into a pellet stove. You will benefit in so many diverse ways.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q – What’s the most annoying thing about converting a wood stove into a pellet stove?
A – Although the wood pellets might be cost-effective, it might cost you more to maintain the pellet insert. The insert needed for the conversion also doesn’t come cheap.
Q – Is converting a wood stove into a pellet stove cheaper than buying a pellet stove?
A – It is comparatively cheaper to convert a wood stove into a pellet stove than to buy one.
Let’s Wrap Up
Now that you know how to convert wood stove to pellet stove, you can enjoy the efficient burning that comes with it. Although it will set you back a few bucks, you’ll find that it is worth it.
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