How do I Make a Leaf Pellet to Burn in a Stove?
Pellet fuel is one of the newest forms of heating fuel. It is made from organic biomass such as dried leaves pressed into a small, hard cylindrical form resembling rabbit feed. You can burn pellet fuel in special pellet stoves or conventional wood stoves adapted for the purpose. Pellet fuel burns more efficiently than regular wood. You can make it from many types of recycled sources such as crop waste, newspapers and cardboard. You can buy pellet fuel at feed stores and online, but it is less expensive to make your own with the leaves that fall from your trees each year. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Rake leaves into low piles. Make sure they are dry enough to crumble when you rub them between your palms. Use the lawn mower and run over the piles several times to chop the leaves into small pieces. The pieces should be no larger than a quarter coin. Collect the pieces of leaves in buckets.
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Turn on your pellet mill and give it time to heat up. The heat of the mill turns what little moisture is in the leaves into steam. The steam turns the natural lignin in the leaves into the bonding agent of the pellets. Place an empty bucket at the exit chute of the mill.
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Pour the crushed dried leaves into the pellet mill hopper. Pour slowly enough so that the leaves do not accumulate in the hopper. The mill will press the leaves into pellets and eject them through the chute into the empty bucket.
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Let the pellets cool. When they are cool you can burn them in a pellet stove or a pellet insert basket for a conventional wood stove or fireplace.
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Store unused pellets in a sealed bag. Put the bag in a dry place until you are ready to use the pellets.
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Tips & Warnings
Pellets should be hard and shiny. Dull, mushy pellets mean that the leaves are too wet. Let the leaves dry before making pellets.
If the pellets break into very small pieces, the leaves are too dry. In this case, add water to the dried leaves with a spray bottle and mix well before feeding them into the pellet mill.
In addition to leaves you can use recycled paper, dried grass, corn stalks and almost any other dry, clean organic biomass to make pellets, using the same procedure. The biomass must be shredded to the proper small size. You may need a hammer mill to shred it finely enough. Wear safety gear to protect your eyes and lungs from leaf dust.
Make pellets outside. The pellet mill generates stale, dusty air.
References
- Photo Credit leaves image by pearlguy from Fotolia.com
