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The benefits of pellet stoves

If you’re looking for a better way to heat your home — whether you’re looking to replace an existing fireplace or stove or looking to supplement your furnace with a more efficient heating option — you should consider a pellet stove. Pellet stoves burn dehydrated wood pellets, or sometimes other bio-fuels like corn or cherry pits. A lot of people choose a pellet stove because of its ease of use and because they are very environmentally friendly. Here are some other benefits of pellet stoves.

They provide convenient and consistent heat

The benefits of pellet stoves - Cincinnati OH - Chimney Care CompanyPellet stoves burn wood, so they have the warm glow and ambiance of a traditional wood-burning fireplace, but they’re easier to use. The wood pellets are often sold in 40-pound bags, which are simple to store and can be purchased as needed.

The pellets are placed in a hopper fitted with an automatic auger. The auger feeds additional pellets as needed. Depending on the size of the hopper, pellet stoves can usually burn up to 24 hours without being refueled or tended. Many stoves also come with automatic ignitions. Some stoves can be programmed to help control the heat output in your home.

They burn hotter than wood and are environmentally friendly

Because pellets are made from dehydrated wood particles, they burn hotter and are more efficiently than traditional firewood. Pellet stoves are highly efficient, with some models boasting efficiencies as high as 90 percent.

Pellet stoves are a favorite heating choice of environmentalists. Because they burn so hot, they release fewer pollutants than other heating sources. The wood pellets are often made from wood byproducts, which helps to reduce waste. Wood is also considered a “carbon neutral” fuel by environmentalists. They release equal amount of carbon into the atmosphere as when trees would die and decompose naturally.

They are super versatile

The options for pellet stoves are endless. There are ornamental ones that add style to your home, or you can find more utilitarian models that can fit in a utility space to pipe heat into your home. We also have pellet stove inserts that can fit into an existing fireplace space, or we can built into a custom hearth to mimic the look of a traditional wood-burning fireplace. Pellet stoves come in a variety of sizes to fit any home, and they can provide heat for any space.

If you think a pellet stove is a good option for you, call the Chimney Care Fireplace and Stove showroom. Our experts can answer all your questions about it. They can show you some options to help you find the best pellet stove that fits your heating needs.

Looking for an alternative to wood? A pellet appliance might be right for you.

Do you love the warmth and glow of a wood-burning fireplace? However, do you hate the thought of hauling, stacking and storing wood? Does your wood-burning appliance sit unused because of the work involved? Are you looking for a heat source that’s comparable to the look and feel of wood, but more efficient, easier to tend, and more environmentally friendly? If so, a pellet appliance might be the perfect home-heating option for you!

Alternative To Wood - Cincinnati OH - Chimney Care CompanyWhat do pellet appliances burn, exactly?

You might have heard of pellet stoves, or spotted bags of pellets at the local home-improvement store. However, what exactly are pellet-stove pellets? The pellets burned for home heating are made of dehydrated, compressed sawdust. Some of this sawdust is waste put off by wood processing. This makes wood pellets an environmentally friendly option. Some pellet stoves also will burn bio-fuels, such as cherry pits or dried corn kernels.

How much work does it take to use a pellet stove?

The biggest advantage of a pellet appliance over a wood-burning appliance? The work involved in keeping the fire burning. Pellet stoves are outfitted with hoppers of varying sizes. The hoppers are filled with pellets, and an auger automatically feeds the pellets into the fire. Depending on the size of the hopper, pellet stoves can burn for anywhere from 16 hours to more than a day – without being reloaded or tended! That makes pellet appliances an excellent heating source for people who are away from home for most of the day. Not to mention those who don’t like to spend their time tending a wood fire.

How much does it cost to tend a pellet stove?

The cost per ton of pellets averages around $250, and the average home burns about 7.3 tons of pellets per year. That does make pellets slightly more expensive than wood, which costs about $200 a cord, with the average home burning 6.3 cords of wood annually. However, the gap in cost is somewhat narrowed by the efficiency of pellet stoves. Since the wood is compressed and dehydrated, pellet stoves tend to burn hotter and more efficiently than their wood-burning counterparts. The cost difference also might be irrelevant for someone who doesn’t want to fuss with a wood-burning appliance; or someone who lives in an urban area where wood is harder to come by and more expensive.

What are my pellet appliance options?

If you think a pellet appliance might be right for your home, you’ll find plenty of options! There are free-standing pellet stoves, or pellet stove inserts that can be fitted into an existing hearth or built into a brand new hearth! Pellet stoves also come with a variety of styles to fit the look and heating needs of your home. If you’re ready to learn more about pellet appliances, or find the pellet appliance that’s right for your home, stop by the Chimney Care Co. showroom and talk to our hearth experts today!

How Can Zone Heating Reduce My Energy Bills?

How Can Zone Heating Reduce my Energy Bills - Cincinnati OH - Chimney Care CompanyThere are many different ways to warm your home this winter and avoid an especially high energy bill. Simple changes like keeping your temperature a few degrees cooler and bundling up with jackets and blankets, as well as lowering the temperature when you and your family are not in the home will save you a lot of money. If that just isn’t lowering your bill enough, it might be time to think about zone heating.

What is zone heating?

Though this can apply to both heating and cooling, cooler temperatures will have us thinking about staying warm, sooner rather than later. At its most simple, zone heating is a system of separating each area of your house into different zones, and allowing each area to be controlled individually. A more involved process of zone heating and cooling requires outfitting an entire house with a series of dampers in the air ducts, as well as have programmable thermostats to control each area. This can be pricey and time intensive. An easier alternative is using another heat source in the rooms that are most frequented. Using a gas or electric log set, a fireplace, or a stove in rooms with a high volume of traffic will allow you to lower your central furnace use and also the costs associated. Rooms that are not used as frequently, such as guest bedrooms and bathrooms, will remain at lower temperatures while the den, kitchen, and bedrooms can be outfitted with a series of aesthetically pleasing heating sources. We have a variety of options to choose from depending on if you want the ambiance and feel of a more traditional fireplace or log set, or if a vented stove is necessary for a larger room.

How is it going to help me save money?

By being able to control the amount of heat in each room of your house, the amount of wasted heat will be lowered, along with the price of your bill each month. The U.S. Department of Energy states that homeowners “can save up to 30 percent on a typical heating and cooling bill” and up to 40 percent of utility bills by switching to zone heating. That adds up to huge savings!

What are the benefits?

  • A beautiful addition to your home that perfectly represents your style
  • A new focal point for each room
  • Lovely new ambiance
  • Lowered heating costs this winter

Thinking about switching to zone heating can be a little overwhelming, but will be hugely beneficial in the long-term plan. There are many heating choices to choose from, and we want to help. Stop by the Chimney Care Company showroom and let us show you our collection of hearth products, and we can figure out together the best option for your budget and taste.

The Convenience and Savings of a Pellet Stove

The Convenience of a Pellet Stove - Cincinnati OH - Chimney Care CompanyYou may have heard a lot lately about pellet stoves as they have become a top choice in heating systems for homes over the past few years. The first pellet stove came on the market in 1930, and since then pellet stoves have gone through many changes, going from a large, boxy, workhorse design to a smaller decorative heating appliance to be used in residential homes. Since the heating industry has moved towards heating systems based on efficient combustible and renewable resources in the past 10 years, pellet stoves have seen a great resurgence, and The Chimney Care Company has been asked many questions about these stoves. We’re here to provide you with some of the more commonly asked questions we receive and the answers we’ve supplied.

WHAT IS A PELET STOVE? WHAT ARE PELLETS?

Convenient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly, a pellet stove is a sophisticated electronic appliance that gives you an economic and eco-friendly heating option for your house. Pellet stoves are fueled by wood pellets, which are made from recycled sawdust, wood shavings, and the other scrap pieces that have been swept up off the floors of sawmills. Cheap and easy to manufacture, wood pellets are compact, resembling rabbit food, and environmentally friendly because they have a very low pollution rate.

HOW MANY TYPES OF PELLET STOVE ARE AVAILABLE?

There are two different types: freestanding and insert stoves. You can get an insert if you have an existing fireplace, and one of our expert technicians at The Chimney Care Company will install it into the firebox and vent it through your chimney. If you do not have a fireplace, you can go with a freestanding stove with its own exhaust pipe.

ARE DIFFERENT STYLES AND OPTIONS AVAILABLE?

Available in all sorts of sizes, shapes, styles and colors, you are sure to find the perfect pellet stove for your home, no matter your taste. As for options, you can go with the standard model or with the super deluxe version with a programmable, controlled feeder and a remote control thermostat. Our staff at The Chimney Care Company would love to show you our wide variety of pellet stoves available. Other options include the hopper location, heat output levels, and manual or automatic ignition.

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF HAVING A PELLET STOVE?

The advantages and benefits of a pellet stove far outweigh the disadvantages of an open wood burning fireplace. Pellet stoves are easy to operate, convenient, environmentally friendly, and safer, as they give off less smoke and creosote. They give off far greater efficiency of heat allowing you to use your centralized heating unit less to heat your home. This lowers your heating bills and reduces harmful emissions. In addition, the fuel—the pellets—are inexpensive and easy to store and usually made from recycled materials, such as unused sawdust.

One disadvantage of a pellet stove is that it runs on electricity, so you will need to prepare for alternative heating sources in case of a power outage. Another disadvantage is that you might need to buy your fuel in advance for the season and keep it in a safe dry place as pellet fuel is not available everywhere. Pellet stoves and heating systems are becoming more popular and pellet fuel is becoming more available in more places everyday.

We hope you’ve found this information to be beneficial in your decision making process. If you have other pellet stove related questions, please don’t hesitate to come by the showroom and discuss your heating options with the professionals at The Chimney Care Company today. Our knowledgeable staff will be more than happy to answer your questions!

All About Pellet Stoves

Opt for a cleaner, safer, and cheaper heating system -- a pellet stove.

Opt for a clean-burning, safer, and cheaper heating system — a pellet stove.

Looking for an economical way to burn wood? A pellet stove is recommended by the US Department of Energy as a cleaner-burning and more efficient way to heat your home. What exactly is a pellet stove? Our knowledgeable staff at Chimney Care Company., as well as the Department of Energy, are happy to explain exactly what a pellet stove is, its benefits, and how you can enjoy this environmentally-friendly and cost-conscious method of heating your house.

What is a pellet stove?

According to the US Department of Energy, a pellet stove is an appliance that burns compacted pellets made of wood or other organic materials, like nutshells, corn kernels, and small wood chips. More convenient to use than wood-burning stoves, pellet stoves are also the cleanest solid fuel heating appliance on the market, with EPA-certified units boasting efficiency ratings of 70 to 80% and heating capacities of a range between 8,000 to 90,000 BTUs an hour.

How do you operate a pellet stove?

Equipped with every pellet stove is a fuel hopper, which will hold about a day’s worth a fuel at a time. A feeder device drops a few pellets at a time into the burner, and the rate of speed the pellets are fed into the burner determines the heat output. Exhaust gases are vented through a small flue pipe out the roof or an exterior wall. At Chimney Care Company, we have pellet stove models with a small computer and thermostat that control the feed rate automatically.

Is the fuel inexpensive and easy to store?

Sold in 40-pound bags for three or four dollars a piece or a ton for about $180 to $250, most homeowners who use a pellet-fueled appliance as their main source of heat use two to three tons of pellet fuel a year, much cheaper than any electric, oil, or propane-fueled appliance. As for storage, two tons sounds like (and is) a lot, but you do not have to buy all of your pellet fuel at once. Also, the pellets are very compressed and do not take up a lot of space. Compare the space taken up by firewood or propane tanks.

What are the drawbacks to pellet stoves?

More complex with expensive components that can always break down, pellet stoves must be cleaned weekly by the homeowner and annually by a professional. Also, these stoves require electricity to operate fans, feeders, and controls, so if your power goes out in a winter storm, you will be without heat in your home, unless you have a back-up power supply. Under normal usage, pellet stoves consume approximately nine dollars of electricity per month.

If you are interested in a pellet stove, contact Chimney Care Company today to schedule an appointment to come in and look at all of the pellet stove options we have for you. We are happy to answer any more questions you might have about this economical, clean-burning heating system.

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Chimney Care Company | 413 Wards Corner Road, Loveland, Ohio 45140