Can You Use Corn Cobs With the Kernels As Fuel for Wood Stoves?
Today's home and business owners are more interested than ever in finding alternative fuels with which to heat their spaces. One of the older developments was the manufacture of wood pellets and the eventual popularity of the pellet stove, but many people might be surprised to learn that corn stoves have been used in the South and West since 1969. More recently, manufacturers have been producing multi-fuel stoves that can burn wood pellets and corn kernels; however, burning whole corncobs with or without kernels is rarely recommended. Does this Spark an idea?
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Corncobs
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Burning corncobs is sometimes necessary to produce charcoal in locations where fuel is scarce, but it is prohibitively smoky. The pryolyzing process, which requires burning organic materials to make charcoal, produces excessive smoke and dirt. The resultant charcoal made from the corncobs, however, burns efficiently and produces little or no smoke.
Corn Kernels
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While corncobs have not proved to be satisfactory when burned in a fireplace or woodstove, corn kernels are often used as an alternative fuel in specially designed stoves. This fuel consists entirely of shelled corn -- dried kernels removed from the cob, usually by a mechanical process, and sold by the bag or bushel. This fuel is likely to be called "fuel corn" as opposed to other types of corn used for human or animal consumption or production of ethanol. Farmers are producing the corn in increasing amounts all over the United States.
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Corn Stoves
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Fuel corn and wood pellets produce equal amounts of heat per pound of fuel. There is little smoke from corn fuel, and no dangerous gases are released during combustion. There are no ashes, only a "biscuit" of hardened clinker released at the side or bottom of the stove. This solid waste is neither dangerous nor difficult to dispose of in a compost pile. Because the corn stove can draw air from outside of the house for combustion, it does not dry the indoor air. It must have a simple vent, not a chimney, and the vent is easy to clean.
Multi-Fuel Stoves
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Manufacturers have recently developed the multi-fuel stove which can burn wood pellets and corn fuel together or separately. Because of the possibility of winter shortages of wood pellets or corn fuel, the ability to switch from one fuel to another is an advantage. The multi-fuel stove is more expensive than the single-fuel stove, which, as of January 2010, is priced around $2,000 for a 1,200- to 1,500-square-foot space.
Other Factors
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While the corn stove has some obvious advantages in terms of cleanliness, the stove that uses wood pellets may be a better choice for those far from corn-producing areas, who might find corn fuel excessively expensive and scarce. Storage of large quantities of wood pellets is relatively uncomplicated in a garage area or shed, but fuel corn may attract rodents and insects and will likely require the use of large, sealed containers. One other important factor may be comfort. The corn stove can be equipped with a thermostat, so that fuel is not wasted and the room is not overheated, but the wood stove offers the familiar coziness of a wood fire.
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References
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- Photo Credit fire image by ivan kmit from Fotolia.com
