Wood Pellets

Basics

• This page aims to go over Wood Pellets mainly in regards to use as Fuel

Types

Cooking Oriented

• Much of the commonly available pellets are intended for cooking, and are made from Cherry Wood , Hickory Wood etc
• These are great for use in Pellet Grills and will be covered there
• HOWEVER from a sustainability…and cost standpoint, they aren’t the best option

Fuel

• Typically either Shortleaf Pine or similar fast growing wood from Tree Farms or “hardwood blends” (From Sawdust at sawmills potentially?)
• Should be more sustainable, although the proof is in third party certification, and even then Large Scale Tree Farms for wood pellet production are not the best environmentally, and wood pellet export for baseload power generation is especially dubious
• For certifications though look for:
  • All the Sustainable Forestry Labels on other wood/paper products ( Sustainable Forestry Initiative etc)
  • Pellet Fuels Initiative
    • Unsure on if this counts as a sustainability rating, but it ESPECIALLY covers Ash Content , Moisture Content , and even maximum allowable Heavy Metals etc
    • Different Grades

Bedding Material for use as Fuel

• ”Pine Bedding” for Horse Stalls / Rodent Enclosures / Pine Pellet Literboxes etc can be easily found at Farm Supply Stores etc (way cheaper than pet store bedding by the way)
• Need to find out:
  • How sustainable it is
  • If it is less “compact” / fused (to be more adsorbent)
  • If it is less Dense
  • Ash Content etc
• All in all though this may be a more accessible and/or cheap option

External Links

• The Wikipedia Page on Wood Pellets