Pellet Stoves are not selling

It's also important to realize the major source for pellets is "waste" wood from the lumber industry. Not a lot of people building new homes with busted economy and a housing price slump. If no one is making lumber, then no one is making pellets either. Pellets are pretty scarce around here in upstate NY and people with pellet stoves are in a pinch. Plus, even the corn burners are in trouble because corn is being used to make ethanol so corn is pricey too.

Oil is down, how far will it go? For how long? Here in Boston area, fuel oil C.O.D is 2.19. 3 Months ago, the markets
were telling us that we did not matter, the rest of the world is using more and more. Then look, we trip, the world folds.
8 weeks? Oh and our beat up dollar was worthless. Things get rough, everyone screams, and the US dollar rises.
" Who you gonna call?"
Lots of reasons why oil jumped, most of it market manipulation allowed to happen because of a few key but obscure
"deregulation" moves. The Enron gift that no one noticed....until it was too late. Well some noticed.....and went to the
bank. The world economies that 8 weeks ago were on fire, are tanking, ours included. Why? Energy costs sucked them all
dry. The run up in the last 4 years drained the world economies. We have seen it before, and we are seeing it again.
Oil may stay cheap for a while, at least a year, maybe two. But as recovery starts, and it will( we may have already bottomed), demand will rise, and so will the price. How far and fast? What ever the market will bear. It is funny to see
oil go from 147 bl to 52 bl, in 4 months. Because of what? Maybe a 10% decline in use? Please 10% drop in use equals
60+ % drop in price? While this spring a "projected" 2 % increase in use lead to 100% increase in price ? The funky math
shows there is more at play than " supply and demand".
Bottom line, for me anyway, frugal is good, during both fat and lean times. It is the oldest of all American virtues. Nice
to see it come back, like a fricken Hurricane. Oil needs to drop to 1.30 gal to equal my cost to heat with coal. I like my odds
of saving money this winter, and many more to come. The drop does allow you to shop for bargains for equipment this summer. There will be lots of machinery around looking for a home. Coal On !

I agree with UpStateMike. Housing industry tanked so no saw dust.
Now on the Gas prices. It just hit 1.99 in WI for Regular. Now look back before Bush ... 1.50 and now after Bush ....1.50? We are adults here ....do the Math. Bush is an oil man and always was. Hmmm. Filled the oil mans pockets and interests..

I'm getting off the Soap Box..........
HDFXR1991

Boy, Some of you guys can make anything POLITICAL. Pellet Stoves are not selling! It is George Bush to blame. Oil Prices rise, Blame Bush. Oil Prices Fall Blame Bush. Please, stay on topic.

The volitility in oil is only going to worsen....

With any luck some of the stoves that were ordered will get cancelled and move mine up the list. Thank god for the price respite or I would be in major trouble already.

I was told pellets are made out of hardwood sawdust mainly from furniture makers who all are moving to China (or were).
My local dealer had them on sale for $199 a ton in June! And that was when oil was well north of $100. Now they are $265 and oil is $50, go figure.
I know people that are burning pellets that cost more than their nat gas

Paying more to burn pellets seems crazy. Pellet stoves have there place, but not for what you pay for one and the current cost of pellets.

Guy in work bought a Harman pellet furnace, went thru 1.5 tons as of last week with ~ 1250 degree days consumed. When I told him that at that rate of burn considering a typical 6000 degree day winter in Northern CT he'll go thru 7-8 tons he was not tooooo happy as he purchased 5 tons. If it was coal he could call our local bulk guy and drop off 3-4 more tons of whatever type of coal.

He's trying to do stack temp vs feed rate assessments to get the optimal efficiency, it seems he was having some issues with feed rates and the burnt ash not willing to drop into the ash pan. This ash not willing to drop caused the furnace to shut down.

It was amazing to see the # of adjustments on these type hot air pellet furnaces. He noted that each lot of pellets has their own burn characteristic (kinda like coal) though I'm maybe thinking that these pellet furnaces may be less resilient to the burn variables of the pellet material vs a stoker though I do not own a stoker.

Unfortunately pellets have several human interventions between the tree and basement whereas coal pretty much has 1-2 interventions especially if the coal is bulk. Each intervention whatever the material burnt has economic variables and cost added.

Food for thought

Pellet stoves (or coal / wood) not selling has nothing to do with George W. It has to do with most Americans and the lack of forward thinking. Right now people fill up @ under $2.00 a gallon and get heating oil under $1.80 in my area. Doesn't light a fire under anyones butt to run out and look for ways to reduce thier energy bills. Next month people will be flocking to buy gas guzzling sport utility vehcles again and they will be complaing about the gas guzzling nature come next spring when the economy is starting to turn and demand is going up for oil.

I think someone owes someone else a bag of coal......


Putt...