How to Burn Corn in a Pellet Stove
Corn is a renewable and abundant fuel source that has the potential to reduce American dependence on foreign oil for heating. To burn corn in a pellet stove, the stove must have the proper attachments. Corn pellet stoves are built differently then other types of heating stoves with additional attachments including a hopper, auger, circulation fan and different venting requirements. Before burning corn in your pellet stove, make sure that you have a stove equipped for burning biomass. Wood stoves will not burn the corn and trying to do so may result in operational difficulties. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Find a corn dealer in your area. Not all geographic areas of the United States are economically viable places for heating with corn, and thus prices vary. For example, the Midwest and Great Plains regions have abundant corn, but New England does not. To locate a corn dealer in your area, visit local feed and seed stores, grain elevators, county extension offices and local farmers.
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Discuss the quality of the corn with the dealer. Purchase corn where the moisture content is no higher then 15.5 percent or it will not burn as efficiently. It is vital that the corn is clean. Corn retailers often have special machinery for this, but it can be done, albeit painstakingly slowly, by hand. Clean corn is free of all dirt and debris and is washed and shelled so there are no cobs or husks present. This debris causes the stove to become clogged and malfunction.
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Place the corn into the hopper on the stove. Depending on the model, you will be able to manually or electronically adjust the auger (the screw that feeds the corn into the burning chamber). The more corn you burn, the more heat you produce.
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Clean the stove after use. The only by-product of burning corn is a hard ash called the clinker that is composed mainly of silicon dioxide. The stove will come with a special tool for suspending the clinker in the unit. Clinker removal is done with a pair of tongs. The clinker can be brought outside to cool and can be left in the lawn to neutralize acidic soil without damage to the environment.
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Store the corn in a moisture- and pest-resistant metal or plastic storage bin. If you have the means and space, building or utilizing an existing storage shed for the corn is the most economical option, enabling you to buy in bulk and spend less money and fuel for shipping.
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Tips & Warnings
It is least expensive to buy corn in bulk directly from the farmer so you are not paying for packaging.
Corn pellets come ready to burn and are the least labor intensive method for burning corn.
If you insist on burning corn in your wood pellet stove, you can try a mixture of 50 percent corn and 50 percent wood with mixed results.
