How to Use

Proper Air Flow

In order for your stove to produce the proper draft flow, primarily use the draft openings at or near the bottom of your stove. If you need to use your stoves loading door to light new fuel from embers, do so only briefly, and revert back to the lower draft vents once flames have spread over the top of the pellet fuel.

How to Load

When using the Pelleteer in your wood stove make sure to firmly position it towards the front of your stove to allow for easy loading and refueling. Use a standard hearth shovel or scoop to load the firebasket with wood pellets. Some smaller pellets will fall through when loading, which is normal, and will aid in overall combustion of the pellet fuel.

When loading and refueling the Pelleteer with wood pellets, be sure to maintain a slanted top surface. This helps create an optimal draft for a hot and nearly smoke free fire.

How to Light

Lighting wood pellets with the Pelleteer is easy, 100% reliable and almost effortless.

Unlike a cord wood fire, a pellet fire lights from the top. Place starter block, Fatwood or starter gel inside front portion of basket, allowing flames to rise and spread over the incline of the pellet surface. Open draft so flames quickly spread and heat your stove.

After flames have spread and are well established on the pellet surface, cut back the draft to prolong burn and avoid over-firing.

If pellets should smoke increase draft to allow more air into the stove to stoke flames.

How to Refuel

Refueling the Pelleteer is a little different than the initial lighting. After the burning pellets have become a thin bed of glowing embers of a couple of inches or so, drag them to the front of the basket.

Now, fill the basket with pellets behind the burning embers. Let the pellet fuel cascade down the basket bottom and abut the embers at the front of the basket.

Open the draft on your stove to allow enough air to bring the embers and new fuel to the point of combustion. Some smoking is normal, and can sometimes last several minutes before flames reappear. Be sure not to cover the top of the embers with pellets as this could cause undue smoldering.

If there are not enough embers to light pellets, simply add starter block or Fatwood. Adjust the draft on your wood stove to avoid smoking and over firing as you normally would with a cord wood fire.

Useful Tips

Keep your pellets dry

If there's one thing that can ruin a pellet fire, it's a bag of pellets that have been compromised by moisture. Store pellet fuel indoors and only buy pellets from retailers that do the same. Most pellet bags have tiny perforated holes throughout which allows for out-gassing after the manufacturing process, these holes also allow moisture back into the fuel, so keep your pellets dry!

Keep your pellets in a container

It is a good practice to keep your pellets in a container in close proximity to your stove. This keeps the fuel nice and dry, and will help pellets compromised by moisture to dry out.

Avoid over filling

With pellets, a little goes a long way. Start out by filling the basket half way or so, until you find the optimal draft settings on your wood stove for burning wood pellets.

Avoid over firing

Be sure to burn fuel from the top down, and avoid excessive firing from the bottom of the basket. Set draft to encourage a slow rolling fire that keeps the flames in the burn chamber. Don't burn too intensely as this will cause valuable heat to escape up the flue and add undue heat stress to the basket. Maintaining a low intensity fire is the most effective and efficient way to burn pellet fuel and will produce the greatest heat benefit.

Give stove ample draft

Pellets require sufficient draft for combustion to be complete. Give your stove plenty of draft at the start, this will spread flames fast and bring your stove up to temperature quickly. Cut back on the draft once the flames have caught the fuel.

Leave plenty of embers to re-light pellet fuel when refueling. It is normal for the pellets to smoke as they reach the point of combustion with embers. In cases where not enough embers are left to re-light, simply add starter block to top of pellet surface. Fatwood is also good for this purpose. Leave draft open until flames catch pellet fuel. Cut back on draft gradually to prolong burn time and open draft if pellets should start to smoke excessively.

On those cold days and nights

Set draft back to contain flames to the burn chamber and prolong heat output. Refuel when embers shrink to 3-4 inches deep.

On those REALLY cold days and nights

Refuel more often. After flames have quit, add more fuel and open draft to get flames going again.

Maintain your stove in good working order

Replace any gaskets that may need replacing and start with a clean burn chamber and flue system. The Pelleteer will help you keep it that way.