How to buy high quality pellets - Advice from an expert

Scott Williamson

Scott Williamson has worked on pellet stoves for decades as a technician and retailer. He has burned just about every kind of pellet on the market and has seen firsthand what works and what does not in the homes of clients.

We asked to interview Scott because he is not affiliated with any stove or pellet brand. He also has a Facebook group called Pellet Stove Troubleshooting & Repair. The group has nearly 17,000 members and it’s likely to include every technician in the country that works on pellet stoves.

What’s your primary advice to people buying pellets?

Scott’s first piece of advice is simple. Do not buy in bulk until you have tried the fuel. “Buy whatever you can afford. Buy a little and test it.”

Even pellets labeled premium can perform very differently from brand to brand. The word premium typically just refers to ash content being under 1 percent. It does not guarantee high heat output, clean burning in your stove, or easy ignition. If it runs well in your stove, then it is worth stocking up.

Before committing to a large purchase, test a few bags and pay attention to:

• How much ash is created?
• Does the burn pot clog up?
• Does the burn out empty itself during a shut-down?
• Any unusual odors from the pellet fuel itself (off gassing)?

If you burn pellets long enough, you stop looking for the perfect brand and start looking for what works consistently in your stove. Pellets are fuel. Some are better made than others. Your stove will tell you pretty quickly which is which.

Softwood vs. Hardwood: Does It Matter?

Yes! Buy softwood if you can. Scott says, “Softwood pellets are generally cleaner and produce more usable heat per pound.”

Species matters, but manufacturing quality matters just as much, sometimes more.

Scott has made informal heat comparisons in his own stove and has seen dramatic differences between brands under the same conditions.

Which brands would you generally avoid?

“If a bag leans heavily on patriotic imagery”, Scott says stay away! “Words like, American, Patriot, Liberty…. ‘Freedom’ that’s a big one. Freedom fuel, Patriot fuel, Liberty fuel. It’s all absolute garbage, and that’s because they’re relying on a certain demographic of consumers to buy them. They don’t care.”

Should I look for the PFI Logo?

Some bags display the logo of the Pellet Fuels Institute (PFI) but it doesn't mean the pellets are

Only the logo on the left means the fuel is certified to
PFI standards.

PFI certified. A company can be a PFI member of have a Board seat without certifying their pellets through PFI. Even if it is PFI certified, certification also does not automatically mean that pellet will perform best in your stove. You may also see companies say that they are certified members of PFI, but their pellets are not certified.

I have seen excellent pellets with and without certification and poor pellets with and without PFI certification.

I have heard that some pellets smell like diesel fuel. Should people be concerned?

Yes. It’s rare, but there are some pellets out there now that smell terrible, like this one bag that was sold by Tractor Supply (see photo on left). If you open a bag and it smells like diesel fuel, that is not normal. Take it back.

“Sometimes pellets have a mild pine smell. That is normal. Douglas fir can have a sharper scent. But diesel is not normal.”

A strong fuel smell can point to contamination somewhere in the fiber stream or during handling. If something about the smell makes you uneasy, do not store two tons of it in your basement.

 

Extensive signs of paint in pellets almost
always come from recycled wood pallets.

How about pellets with a bit of color in them?

Bits of color in pellets usually come from manufacturers that reclaim old pallets to make their pellets. I don’t really know how bad it is. I suppose it depends on the extent of paint in your pellets and the degree to which you’re breathing it. Every home is different. Every situation is different. But I don’t think anyone should be buying pellets that have paint in them. I would not buy that brand again.

We know that some folks are finding a lot of paint in pellets recently made by Michigan Wood Fuels.

How about the eternal issue of fines (wood dust)? How bad are they for your stove?

The wood dust at the bottom of the bag is called fines. Every pellet bag has some. Too much can cause problems. Fines develop during manufacturing and transportation. The more pellets are moved, stacked, and jostled, the more they break down. In many stoves, fines settle at the bottom of the hopper. Over time, they can restrict the feed opening, contribute to missed ignitions, and reduce maximum heat output.

If your stove suddenly struggles to ignite and you have burned 40 or 50 bags without cleaning out the hopper, fines are often the reason.

The fix is usually simple. Once a month, let the hopper empty completely. Vacuum the bottom thoroughly. Then restart. Scott says it’s a simple thing to do but he often looks like a hero after fixing an issue by just vacuuming dust out.

Not all pellet stoves manage fines the same way. Harman stoves are known for being more tolerant of dust. Their bottom feed system, adapted from coal stove technology, helps push fines through the burn process rather than letting them accumulate as easily.

That does not mean you should ignore dust. Cleaner pellets are always better. But some stove designs are more forgiving.


Are Pellets Still Worth the Money?

Yes, if you heat with oil, propane or electric resistance heat. Pellets come out as the more practical and economical option, especially when bought in bulk in the spring, way before you need them, so that you can shop around for the best price.

I think that's the main reason that this industry still exists… Let's think of all the ways that it saves people money, right? Because it's not just on how much you pay for fuel or how much you use, but the pellet stove has long been a stop gap measure that fills a need that maybe prevents a more expensive repair in your central heater. Or you're building an addition, you can put a pellet stove in and that is a heat source for the bonus room. That is way cheaper than having to pull in duct work or infrastructure to bring heat to a system that you may have to update, because now it's not big enough, right? It's a stop gap.”

Scott’s Bottom-Line Advice

1. Test the pellet before committing to buying a lot.
2. Ignore patriotic marketing.
3. Vacuum your hopper monthly.
4. Don’t panic over a little dust—but don’t ignore it.
5. Buy the pellets you can afford and manage.

“I’m 54 now. I don’t obsess over the type of pellets anymore. If you have a good enough stove, and keep up with maintenance, let your stove deal with it. Everything reasonable is manageable."

More resources on wood pellets

Sustainability of wood pellets, AGH website.

PFI Qualified Pellet Producers, PFI website.

Wood pellet data is vital to understand contribution of pellet heating in America

 The Alliance for Green Heat submitted a public comment on the EIA's Densified Biomass Fuel Report earlier today. The EIA was gathering comments on a proposed three-year extension on the report along with specific questions on its function and use.

"The Alliance for Green Heat (AGH) would first like to thank the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) for giving the public an opportunity to submit comments on the proposed three-year extension to Form EIA-63C, “Densified Biomass Fuel Report.” As a national nonprofit that advocates for the reduction of fossil fuel heating through the responsible and sustainable use of wood and pellet heat, we are deeply invested in the outcome of the EIA and DOE’s decision to continue to collect data on pellets.

Summary: The EIA does not need to collect more information from pellet manufacturers. However, it does need to publicly release much more of the information it is gathering.

It is important for policymakers, environmental organizations, and the public to have a far more accurate understanding of the differences between how utility pellets are made, how premium heating pellets are made, and the carbon impacts of how they are used. Utility pellets have biodiversity, equity, and carbon impacts that are more serious than premium heating pellets based on their feedstock, the size and location of their manufacturing plants, and the enormous amount of waste heat that is lost when making electricity. Data gathered by the EIA provides some of the underlying metrics to understand those different impacts.

Wood pellets are an excellent low-carbon heating fuel for homes, businesses, and institutions. They will likely become an even greater complement to heat pumps in the future, based on the different pros and cons of each heating pathway as our energy grid seeks to keep up with increasing electric demand. Wood pellet production and use are also extremely important for better understanding air quality and whether states and air quality agencies have been able to increase the percentage of pellet stoves compared to wood stoves. Also, EIA data from their housing survey, part of the Residential Energy Consumption Survey, shows that wood pellets serve many very low-income homes. The 2020 data shows the income bracket with the highest reliance on pellet stoves compared to wood stoves is the $10,000 - $19,000 household income bracket. This makes wood pellets very relevant to the energy equity community.

Our industry and stakeholders have become used to seeing top-level data such as the wood pellet production capacity by region, overall production of heating vs. utility pellets, and domestic vs. foreign pellets. But to really appreciate the various roles this industry plays in providing renewable heating in America, we should all be versed in more granular detail.

For example, it is very important for government agencies, pellet stove manufacturers, pellet fuel distributors, retailers, and consumers to know the volume of:

• PFI certified domestic heating pellets made year-by-year,

• Non-PFI certified pellets made year-by-year if the percentage of bagged vs. bulk domestic heating pellets is trending up or down,

• Utility pellets used domestically,

• ENPlus A1 or A2 bulk heating pellets are made in the US (these would likely be bagged in Europe for residential distribution), and

• Compressed bricks, compressed logs, and briquettes made, year-by-year.

The EIA could also provide more detail about where wood comes from. It provides summary, top-level data, but we believe there is more data available that does not infringe on confidentiality.

A breakdown by state also tells an important story of pellet production in the United States. North Carolina, the top producer of industrial pellets for export, makes nearly as many pellets as the bottom 20 states combined - which produce heating pellets.

Response to EIA questions:

1. In response to the invitation to comment on the following statement: “(a) The proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions, including whether the information will have a practical utility,” AGH would like to highlight the value that the Densified Biomass Fuel Report provides to hundreds of stakeholders in the renewable energy space who need this information to assess the capacity of this sector. The data provided through the reports helps track trends in pellet production and increases the ability to produce accurate, science- based assessments on pellet heating. Without the Fuel Report, organizations would lose one of their most reliable and unbiased information sources on pellet data.

In the energy transition landscape that our nation is currently undertaking, being able to account for, and have accurate information on, all forms of renewable energy is paramount. If our nation’s leading agency on energy information is missing data and research on a large, mainstream, and established renewable energy source like biomass, the agency is failing to carry out its mission.

2. In response to the invitation to comment on the following statement: “(c) EIA can improve the quality, utility, and clarity of the information it will collect,” AGH would like to suggest that the EIA publish more of the data that it collects. Assuming no confidentiality conflicts, we believe publishing all gathered “Product Type” information is essential (e.g. amount of “Wood Pellets Premium (PFI certified) Bagged,” Wood Pellets Premium (PFI certified) Bulk”, etc.). Similarly, publishing data on “FeedStock Type” (e.g. “Roundwood,” “Sawdust,” “Waste Wood,” etc.) would be helpful when explaining to policymakers and the public the different supply chains in the pellet industry. This is particularly important for policymakers and the public to differentiate how heating vs. utility pellets are made. This would also provide industry and organizations with a clearer vision of the current capacity of biomass for heating, helping provide decision- makers with valid, data-driven information. Because this information is already gathered in the monthly reports, this would not add any time burdens on the pellet manufacturing companies.

Wood is a diverse and vital renewable energy source for America. Many Americans do not seem to know that up until 2015, wood produced more renewable energy than any other renewable source. Since 2016, biofuels have been the top producer, but the intensive process of converting solid biomass to biofuels sharply reduces its carbon benefits.

Many Americans may also be surprised that wood still produces more renewable energy than hydroelectric solar and geothermal combined. As recently as 2015, wood produced more energy than hydroelectric, solar, geothermal, and wind combined. It is a vital part of America’s transition to renewable energy to know that the use of wood as a renewable energy has been relatively stable but shrinking since 1985, and the amount of solar and wind energy has been rapidly growing. Part of this story is understanding and managing all the different feedstocks that go into wood energy - mainly pellets, wood chips, and wood logs.

The EIA can do a better job using the data that it collects from pellet manufacturers to tell a more detailed story about wood pellets made in America and pellet heating in America."

US to begin mandatory survey of wood pellet varieties, volumes and ingredients

Rosalie Bianco founded Boulder-based
New Earth Pellets using bark beetle-damaged
trees to make the pellets.  Her company, like
others, will  have to start filling out this
survey in 2016. 

Dec. 2016 update - The EIA released its first data set showing production of wood pellets by state, region and capacity. Reports will be issued monthly.

June 2015 - The US government is poised to begin a monthly survey of pellet producers, much like it conducts similar surveys for coal, oil, gas, and other renewable technologies like solar panels.  The Alliance for Green Heat has been part of a coalition urging the government to include thermal biomass in reports, policies and data collection initiatives.

Some pellet manufacturers may say, “be careful what you wish for, lest it may come true.”  Efforts by the Pellet Fuels Institute and others to gather information about how many pellets are being produced each year have been met with resistance by many manufacturers. 

In contrast, response rates to surveys by the Energy Information Agency (EIA) are often 100% according to EIA staff because response to the EIA energy surveys is mandatory pursuant to Section 13(b) of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974.  Failure to respond to EIA surveys is punishable by significant fines.

The EIA-63C "Densified Biomass Fuel Report” will require any company that produces more than 10,000 tons (the EIA expects there to be about 150) to fill out the survey monthly, which the EIA estimates will take one hour to complete.  The EIA aggregates the survey responses and does not release any company specific data, a strict rule that follows with all energy surveys.

The EIA is an independent information agency within the Department of Energy.  Its long hallways are filled with wonky number crunchers who produce some of the most important data that industry and government rely on to understand energy markets.  Thermal biomass being selected at long last to join the club of major energy producers shows recognition of its contributions to heat homes and institutions across America is growing.

The EIA wants to know how much PFI certified and non-certified pellets manufacturers are making for both the bulk and bagged market.  For the PFI certified pellets, the EIA wants to know whether they are premium grade, standard or utility grade.

The survey also asks if pellets are being sold domestically or to foreign markets and even why plants may not be operating at full capacity.  The survey asks if extrusion machinery was not fully utilized, was it a shortage of raw materials, drying capacity, grinding capacity, or lack of a market for them?

As pellet exports for European electric plants have become more controversial, one relevant part of the survey covers the origin of wood fiber.  The survey lists 10 possible sources of fiber: from pulp wood quality roundwood to wood chips to logging residues to sawdust.  Then, it asks if this fiber is from a natural private forest, a planted private forest, or public land.  See more in chart below:

In addition to pellets, the survey includes other densified biomass such as wood bricks, wood logs and briquettes.  The results will likely show a rapidly expanding wood brick/log sector, which has the potential to produce far cleaner fuels than cordwood in residential wood stoves.  However, there is no quality certification process for these types of densified biomass in place yet, as there is for pellets.  As this market matures and supply begins to meet demand in upcoming years, there is likely to be more focus on the ingredients used in the fuel, just as there is now with pellets.

“This survey is a sign that the US government is taking thermal biomass more seriously,” said John Ackerly, President of the Alliance for Green Heat.  “Pellets can provide a clean and efficient alternative to fossil fuels to heat our homes and buildings.  We applaud the EIA for agreeing to undertake this survey so that all stakeholders can have a level of detail and transparency,” Ackerly added.

The survey has already been through one public comment period, where major stakeholders, including the Alliance for Green Heat, provided feedback and suggestions to the EIA.  It is now being sent out for a second 30-day public comment period.