Other residential solutions for using the abundant wood resources available to us here in Maine have been limited to wood stoves, wood boilers and other stove-like solutions. Wood pellets have always been appealing because of their clean burning qualities and low cost. However, many homeowners were put off by the necessity of using wood pellets in specialized pellet stoves.

Like traditional wood stoves, the pellet stoves required a lot of attention and physical labor to stock the pellets and regulate heat output. Pellets came in bulky 40-pound sacks, and a dry storage area was required for the palletized sacks of pellets. The sacks were susceptible to mold and dampness.

Simplifying wood pellet heat

Making wood pellet heat as simple a system as oil heat, has long been a goal of sustainable energy enthusiasts in the U.S. Maine Energy Systems has taken on both the heat production and the delivery component of wood pellets. President and CEO Les Otten hopes to evolve heating in the U.S. away from foreign fossil fuels and toward fuels the country has in abundance. 

“Consumers have been limited by a lack of information and investment in making wood pellet systems work in the U.S.,” said Otten, who is passionate about his company’s approach to fuel. “In Europe, biomass fuels and pellet systems have been as simple to operate as adjusting the thermostat. These advanced systems are now available to the U.S. homeowner.”

Once consumers understand how simple and how inexpensive these systems are to operate, Otten believes they will catch on especially in the colder climates.

Automatic pellet boilers

Developing a reliable boiler system that efficiently burned the pellets and heated water both for the central heating system and domestic hot water was the first step. Otten’s company manufactures several models suited for new construction or to retrofit into an existing home’s hot water heating system. This design answers many homeowners’ concerns and misconceptions about using pellets for heat.

The boiler is rated at 87.7 percent efficiency and features a two-stage combustion chamber. The boiler has a programmable LCD controller to control output. The units are equipped with safety features that prevent burnback fires and sensors that continuously monitor burner efficiency.

Ash removal is clean and simple, requiring no boiler downtime to accomplish and is only necessary three to four times per year in a typical home. The ash is automatically collected in an external detachable ash box about the size of a large briefcase. The fine ash the boiler produces provides an inexpensive source of inorganic nutrients for lawns or gardens.

Pellet delivery and storage

Fuel storage is a unique system on its own: MESys fully-automatic pellet boiler systems feature a fabric storage bin. The fabric is constructed using carbon fiber and advanced weaving to allow air to circulate around the pellets without allowing any dust or pellets to escape. It works much like the collector bag in a vacuum cleaner does, just on a larger scale.

The permeability of the storage bin plays a role in the pellet delivery process. The pellets are bulk delivered to the home via specially designed trucks that are attached to the storage bin system through a 4-inch hose, similar to the fuel oil delivery set up. The difference is in the trucks, which have powerful pneumatic pumps in the cargo tanks. A typical home requires three pellet deliveries annually.

Short-term payback, long-term savings

Most heating systems for a 2,500-square-foot home can cost about $10,000. A comparable MESys boiler costs about 50 percent more installed, but the difference in initial investment is quickly recouped in fuel cost savings. Otten estimates that the average, well-insulated home can save about $2,000 per year in fuel costs, assuming the price of fuel oil stays the same.

Other benefits

The pellet system frees consumers from the economic hold that foreign sources of fuel have.

“We now have the capability to move toward a more self-sufficient method of keeping warm,” Otten said. “We just need to educate people that it really is as easy as turning the thermostat.”

For more information about wood pellet central heating, contact Maine Energy Systems at 207-824-6749 or MaineEnergySystems.com.