Which pellet heaters can take
Red Hot Pellets?
There are so many different types of pellets and so many rumours about what kind of pellets your pellet heater can take. Lets put it to bed once and for all..
A lot of pellet heater resellers will tell you that some pellet heaters are tuned to take a specific pellet whilst others can take most on the market - this statement is incorrect. There are a lot of pellet heaters that lack the function of detecting or adjusting for pellet quality which means it will process whatever pellet you put in it whether it be good or bad. This is a significant risk to your pellet heater and can impact how dirty it gets, ash output, may wear components faster or damage your pellet heater in other ways.
Higher quality pellet heaters come with functions that can adjust based on pellet quality. If you put softwood pellets, which tend to be less dense, put out less heat and have a higher ash content, in your pellet heater you can adjust the settings to account for the softer fuel resulting in a more efficient burn. The same applies to hardwood pellets as well. If your heater was tuned to take softwood pellets and you put hardwood pellets in you risk damaging the motor attached to the auger. If your heater was tuned to take hardwood pellets and you put in softwood pellets you would not get as much heat output.
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What is tuning a pellet heater and how is it different?
Tuned for softwood: Auger turns faster, delivering more pellets per minute because softwood burns faster.
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Tuned for hardwood: Auger turns slower, delivering pellets in slower as hardwood pellets burn for much longer.
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For more information on pellet heaters and how your fuel can impact their performance contact our team or contact your local pellet heater supplier!
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