If you’re looking for an effective way to heat your home, pellet stoves are a good alternative. It is a heating system that works with biomass such as pellets.
Therefore, you should know what types of pellets are available and what to look for when choosing one or the other.
Pellet types
Last year the Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) carried out a study on the pellets we now save. It explains what kind of pellets we find on the market. These are:
- Class A1. It is produced from forest wood and untreated wood waste with low amounts of ash, nitrogen and chlorine.
- Class A2. Pellets containing higher levels of ash, nitrogen and chlorine than Class A1.
- Class B. They can be made using recycled wood.
Therefore, there are also certified and uncertified pellets. OCU explains that the main advantage of buying a certified pellet is “more quality control.” The organization explains that, despite everything, it conducted an analysis on the pellets.”we found pellets Certificates that do not comply with the limits certification, And pellets uncertified which gives better results more than some certifications.”
Likewise, the available certifications are:
- ENplus: The most well-known one is implemented in Spain by Avebiom, the Association for Energy Evaluation of Biomass.
- DIN plus: From the German certification body DIN CERTCO.
How can you tell if a pellet is of good quality?
In this sense, OCU explains that there are signs that indicate that you are dealing with a high-quality pellet. To do this we will need to check that it is presented a homogeneous and bright colorthis is true It is compact and dust-free, and its density is greater than water.
You will need to read the label to make sure the pellets are of good quality. What should you pay attention to? Well, on the following points:
- ashes. A high ash percentage means more equipment maintenance and can lead to corrosion and higher emissions.
- Moisture. High humidity percentage reduces heat capacity. Ideally it should be less than 10%.
- heating value. It is the energy it provides. Ideally it should exceed 16.5 MJ/kg.
- Mechanical strength. It depends on the amount of powder in the pellet container.
- Pellet size. A pellet that is too long can cause problems in feeding and entering the combustion chamber.
Therefore, the ideal is to find a good quality-price ratio for pellets. You can find pellets in 12 or 15 kg packages, large bags or in bulk (unpackaged, usually delivered by tank or dump truck). When purchasing packages or bags, make sure they are in good condition to protect from moisture.
A 15 kg pack costs around 7.5 Euros (about 0.5 Euro/kg), but there are cheaper options. In our decoration section, we have previously told you about the prices of pellets at Leroy Merlín (click here), Bauhaus (here) and Obramat. Now it’s your turn to analyze each one and determine which one is best for you and your stove.