# Wood Stove Pellets - Smoker Fuel



## linn (Nov 19, 2010)

I am glad you asked this question because I am also wondering about Part B of this question. Is it alright to dump the wood stove pellet ashes on the compost bin or on the lawn? Well, I am talking about the ashes from the pellet stove.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Mike is going to love this little diversion of his thread, but hardwood ash is a relatively good source of potash, which is a form of the potassium (K) referred to in fertilizer N-P-K ratings.

In _moderate _amounts, ash can be applied to a lawn. I distribute mine over the vegetable garden where it gets dug/rototilled in before planting.

Some wood pellets advertise that they have no added binders. There could always be the exceptions.


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## linn (Nov 19, 2010)

The wood pellet ashes are almost impossible to get off your hands and I wear gloves. The ashes almost have a greasy feel to them. It seems like you will get this greasy residue inside your smoker.


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## burns375 (Jul 15, 2013)

Yes. Very easy to use and store. I combine them with magnolia stamens. If you're concerned about nasty binders you may want to check the bag or buy organic smoking pellets for smoked meat ($$$$) or those marked all natural. For me i wasn't concerned just bought whatever was at the store. 

Natures pellet, magnolia grandiflora . I love the smell, sort of a pine, rosemary, nice herbal incense fragrance. 








Hardwood will obviously last longer than something like pine or poplar. Would love to find hickory pellets local, love the smell.


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## Mike Gillmore (Feb 25, 2006)

If Universal Forest Products is making a point to advertise that their pellets are "*100% Natural, 100% Additive Free*", that tells me there are pellets out there which are "not". I wonder what the "unnatural" and "additives" might be?


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## linn (Nov 19, 2010)

The pellets I use are 100% hardwood, fines less than .25%, moisture content less than 6%, ash .75%, premium grade. Still the ash is hard to get off your hands-even with gloves.


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## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

Eric< Lem Products sells hickory chips, they call them chips but they are pellets. and they have a great hickory smell. they are compressed all natural wood.. I had some left over from smoking bear bologna, and was out of my usual smoker fuel so I used them they worked fine.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

A paper that discusses binders that could be used in pellets:
http://www.ncsu.edu/bioresources/Bi..._Chem_Tech_Binding_Agent_Wood_Pellet_1782.pdf

As I see it, whether a binder is needed depends on the kind of your wood your source material is, and possibly also on how high a pressure (and heat) your pellet manufacturing process generates.

I would guess that smaller producers are more likely to use binders than large producers.


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## odfrank (May 13, 2002)

You need a starter like pine needles under them, they fall out the nozzle of the smoker so you have to screen it. They smell a bit less than pine needles. I tried them and went back to pine needles.


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## BeeGhost (May 7, 2011)

Wood pellets are pretty good. I put a couple handfuls in the smoker, use a portable torch to light them till they start to glow and then add either pine needles or fresh cut grass.
The good part about them, they are really cheap and you can put a coffee can full in the tool box.


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## burns375 (Jul 15, 2013)

odfrank said:


> You need a starter like pine needles under them, they fall out the nozzle of the smoker so you have to screen it. They smell a bit less than pine needles. I tried them and went back to pine needles.


I use a wad of cardboard or newspaper. No screen here. Do you normally turn your smoker upside? ;-) 

Wood or woody plants are great for keeping the smoker going for long periods of time. Pine, grass, leaves, shavings are good starters or toppers. 



linn said:


> The wood pellet ashes are almost impossible to get off your hands and I wear gloves. The ashes almost have a greasy feel to them. It seems like you will get this greasy residue inside your smoker.


Never had grease issues, normally I don't touch the ash to test, maybe the manufacturer used oil as the binder. 

Creosote will build-up inside the can with just about all fuels, sometimes is a bit tarry before hardening. Overtime the layer acts as insulation keeping the outside of the can a bit cooler, so far no chimney fires. ;-)



BeeGhost said:


> The good part about them, they are really cheap and you can put a coffee can full in the tool box.


Exactly what i do. A can lasts a while,


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## KevinR (Apr 30, 2010)

I would "assume" that any of the pellets ranked for cooking food, would be "relatively" safe....

I usually burn twigs/grass that I pick up near the hives... I enjoy pine needles, which once lit correctly doesn't every want to go out... 

I've considered using the pellets, since I was thinking about buying a pellet stove for the shop.. Might work out as a good optional use.


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## beeware10 (Jul 25, 2010)

we rip up an old piece of cloth and put on top of the pellets to keep them from falling out. also I think it helps cool the smoke.


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## Stephenpbird (May 22, 2011)

I don't know if you get Straw pellets, used when keeping rabbits, as a litter on the bottom of their cage. Quite popular here in Germany as smoker fuel. Very easy to light and last a long time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXQ1ZmeRLNo


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## jim lyon (Feb 19, 2006)

Wood pellets are about all we have used for the past 10 years. We've used lots of different kinds, seems like the darker hardwood ones might last a bit longer but be a bit more difficult to start but they all work well as long as you keep them dry. I keep strips of cardboard in the bucket with the pellets for starting them though dry grass or pine needles also work well. Paper alone is pretty difficult to get enough heat generated for lighting pellets. After your fire is going (and that is the secret, lighting a hot fire) we usually just top them with green grass to keep the pellets from blowing out and your good for most of the day. 
Kona Queen, where lots of people are lighting lots of smokers, has the slickest setup I have seen to light their pellets. A central air compressor with a cluster of little hoses that can be inserted in the bottom of the smoker. No puffing required, just stand there and build your fire.


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

Normal wood has over 200 toxic gases emitted while burning. I cant imagine how many additional gases are formed from the "binders" associated with the pellet making process.

I've never used them so I can't really say how well they work. I really don't like the idea of the creosote that is formed when burning most tree products. Therefore I have used (and stuck to) old blue jeans which are 100% cotton. They burn a real long time, much lighter than pellets, can be used as rags, sweat band, extra pair of dry pants/shorts if needed and will not creosote the smoker.


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## Michael Palmer (Dec 29, 2006)

Mr.Beeman said:


> Normal wood has over 200 toxic gases emitted while burning. I cant imagine how many additional gases are formed from the "binders" associated with the pellet making process.


There are no added binders in wood pellets. High pressure used in the extrusion process of the pellets causes the cellulose to bind the pellets. Nothing added.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Certainly _some _wood fuel pellets have binders. Here is a manufacturer offering binders for use in manufacturing pellets:

http://www.lignotechfeed.com/
While the site linked above is primarily selling binders to the animal feed industry, some of their binders get used in fuel pellets. Here is a site discussing production of fuel pellets that includes a reference to using Lignotech binders:

http://www.pelheat.com/Pellet_Binders_Lubricants.html

In my view, it is more likely that large pellet manufacturers are binder free than smaller pellet manufacturers.

.


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## beeware10 (Jul 25, 2010)

there is a difference between wood pellets and pellets made for cow feed. the wooden ones dont taste as good. lol


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## jim lyon (Feb 19, 2006)

To me they at least all smell like wood burning. This thread could get crazy pretty fast if it would turn into a discussion about whether there are more toxic chemicals involved in cotton production than wood pellet production. Wood pellets are made for burning I trust these things have been thought out by the manufacturers.


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## Mike Gillmore (Feb 25, 2006)

So the "100% Additive Free" advertisement is simply a marketing tool targeting the "organic" crowd? 

I appreciate everyone's comments. I've always used pine needles and pine animal bedding as smoker fuel with good results. But it doesn't last as long as I like, so pellets sounded like a good fuel to add to the mix. Sounds like the hardwood pellets might be the best choice to give me more time.


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## Mike Gillmore (Feb 25, 2006)

jim lyon said:


> This thread could get crazy pretty fast ..


Wouldn't be the first time. 

If it goes that direction, so be it.


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## Mike Gillmore (Feb 25, 2006)

Rader Sidetrack said:


> http://www.pelheat.com/Pellet_Binders_Lubricants.html



Rader, I don't know how you do it. Is your middle name "Bloodhound"? 

** Skimming through, it appears most binders that may be used in processing are derived from plant sources. Sounds pretty harmless to me, unless I missed something.


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## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

beeware10 said:


> there is a difference between wood pellets and pellets made for cow feed. the wooden ones dont taste as good. lol


Bull, They taste better. Kind of a nutty nuance


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## Mike Gillmore (Feb 25, 2006)

If I were to eat a bowl of wood pellets for breakfast, I think I would prefer the sweet flavor of Wild Cherry pellets.


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## TWall (May 19, 2010)

Mike,

I too have used wood pellets for the past year or two. I use either straw or pine needles to start the fire. I often put unburned pellets from previous use back in first, they seem to light easier. I them add more pellets if needed. And, finally, some more pine needles over the top to keep pellets from rolling out the spout if I tip the smoker down. Burning wood pellets are pretty hot and will burn for a while on their own.

Wood pellets are nice when you have outyards, they tend to keep burning. I usually set my smoker in a metal can. I have had people tell me my truck is on fire.

Tom


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## burns375 (Jul 15, 2013)

Mr.Beeman said:


> Normal wood has over 200 toxic gases emitted while burning. I cant imagine how many additional gases are formed from the "binders" associated with the pellet making process.


IMO a little over cautius here. Im sure cotton also realeases some "bad" gases. I used organic cotton a natural beekeeper friend bought because its "all natural" safest for the bees, its decent but you need alot of product and its not nearly as cheap as a 40lb bag of pellets at $5/each. Many many more btu/$ 

I agree with everything Jim Lyon says. I really like pellets, especially if you have several hives to smoke. Very good for big operations. 

I've misplaced my lighter a few times and used a smoker without burning anything. After the creosote has built up, just the smell of burnt wood will push the bees around.


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

It may be fair to note here that the "smoke" that is the whole point of of using the smoker in the first place is likely toxic to humans, regardless of any binders that may be present or whether the primary fuel is wood or cotton.

Here is an investigatory report on the toxins that killed 14 people from inhalation of toxic gasses resulting from a fire in a _towel _storage room in a nursing home. Of course, those towels were _cotton _towels.
https://www.engineering.leeds.ac.uk...Toxic emissions folded cotton towel fires.pdf

These people did not get burned in a fire, they simply were breathing toxic fumes from cotton towels burning.


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## TWall (May 19, 2010)

I don't usually use enough smoke to leave any residue in the hive. 

I'm sure there are toxins in anything we are going to burn in a smoker.

Tom


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## linn (Nov 19, 2010)

It seems like wood pellets are "ultra" smoker fuel. Years ago I did laundry at the Laundry Mat. The posted instructions were " add 1/4 cup of detergent to washing machine." I put in more then 1/4 cup of detergent. I sat down and started reading a magazine. Well, after awhile someone started yelling. It was the manager. Suds were pouring out of the top of the machine and onto the floor. Well, my point is that some of the posters said use only a few pellets. Also, some of the posters, odfrank and others, said make sure those pellets don't fall out of the smoker.


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## Saltybee (Feb 9, 2012)

Paper out of the shredder is what I use to light the wood pellets that then lights the coal stove. No, do not use coal in your smoker. The paper, yes.


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