With the rising costs of fuel and our typical cold weather, homeowners are looking for alternative energy sources to help supplement or replace their heating needs. Corn-fed or pellet-fed stoves and furnaces are becoming popular.
Frank and Lois Cernohous, friends of our family, recently installed a new corn-burning furnace in their 100-year-old Wisconsin farmhouse. For a farm family that has an abundance of fuel in the form of corn, this type of heating system is a perfect solution. But is a corn-burning furnace a viable, logical option for those of us without the advantage of having a fuel resource right in our back yard?
The furnace system that the Cernohouses used is from a Minnesota company, KC-Cornburners. Several other companies also sell the model called the A-Maiz-Ing-Heat Furnace. This localized manufacturing means that the cost of shipping the systems and the environmental impact are reduced, making a corn-burning furnace a green option. Additionally, because it is designed to burn both corn and wood pellets, this system has advantages over stoves that burn only corn.
However, it may not be that easy to have access to corn to meet our fuel needs. Crops can be an unpredictable resource -- ask any farmer-- with various factors affecting the season's yield. At the same time, the growing popularity of E-85 and other ethanol-based auto fuels has driven up demand and the cost of corn to new highs in the past few years.
Biomass wood pellets can be used as fuel and come from various manufacturing sectors as a waste product. The demand for biomass pellets has resulted in pellet plants opening nationwide, making this fuel resource a viable alternative for many more people.
How does a corn or biomass pellet furnace work? It can be tied into conventional duct work. The systems are thermostatically controlled and have a hopper that holds and feeds the fuel into the furnace to regulate temperature and fuel consumption. The system's storage hopper holds 14 bushels of fuel. On average, the hopper will hold five to 10 days' worth of fuel, depending on the area being heated. The system does require regular maintenance, but certainly less than a wood-burning fireplace. The ash from burning the fuel falls into a pan below the burn pot. On average, the ash pan is emptied once a week. Corn burns a little cleaner than wood or other biomass materials.
Fuel pellets can be purchased from a variety of online dealers. Earthtech Energy in New Brighton manufactures biomass fuel pellets and posts a list of dealers at www.earthtechenergy.com. You also may be able to get corn from local feed mills or grain co-ops, depending on your area.
Corn-fed or pellet-fed stoves and furnaces are sold by dealers around the country and at furnace and fireplace stores. The system that the Cernohouses used was supplied by Freier's in Wisconsin (www.freiers.com). The cost of the furnace varies and is based on the size and installation required. The Cernohouses' system cost about $3,200 for the furnace; additional parts and duct work came to about $850 and Frank did the installation himself.
After doing research, I discovered that these heating systems aren't for everyone. But if you don't mind doing a little maintenance and can find a dependable source for your fuel, it's worth investigating.
To learn more about Jason Hammond's new house and to see photos and previous blog posts, go to www.startribune.com/newhouse. Or e-mail him at hammond@mojosolo.com.