Owners of country houses, solving the issue of heating their homes, are increasingly choosing a pellet fireplace. This allows you to create at the same time a unique atmosphere and take care of space heating, and even save a lot on fuel.
However, despite the prevalence, such fireplaces are not given due attention, believing that they have low efficiency. In addition, there is an opinion that this heating equipment is difficult to operate and maintain. Is this really so, we will try to figure it out.
Design features
A pellet fireplace is nothing more than an ordinary cast-iron or metal stove, only in place of a solid steel damper that blocks access to the firebox, there is a neat little door with heat-resistant glass. This solution allows you to enjoy the play of light and shadow, as well as the exciting "dance" of the flame.
Another design difference is the fuel delivery system. If you have to load firewood manually in a conventional oven, then this happens here.automatically by means of an electric motor and auger. A pellet fireplace uses pellets as fuel - small pellets made from compressed and dried wood. It is they who move along the conveyor belt.
Working principle
All that is required for the functioning of the fireplace is to load a special hopper with wood pellets and set the necessary parameters on the electronic control panel. After that, the system switches to the "ignition with heating" mode - the auger begins to feed the pellets into the furnace, where they are ignited. This opens all air channels (chimney, “blower”), which creates the necessary air draft for quick ignition.
After that, the pellet fireplace switches to normal operation - the air ducts partially overlap so that the heat "does not fly out into the street." Heating of the room, most often, occurs in a convection way. The cold air of the room, due to the difference in pressure, penetrates through special slots in the fireplace body into the cavity between the firebox and the casing. There it heats up, goes back into the room - begins to circulate. After a complete change of cold air to hot air, the room warms up.
Pellet fireplaces with air duct
Due to the low rate of space heating by convection, models have been developed that use slightly different heating methods. These are specimens with air ducts and a pellet fireplace with a water circuit. In the first case, a special air duct system is installed for space heating, which is connected directly to the fireplace.
Air ducts can penetrate into other rooms. At the same time, the chimney can also diverge throughout the house. Then, at the request of fire safety regulations, the systems are equipped with exhaust fans to create normal air draft.
Fireplaces with water heating
Fireplaces with water heating have several design features. Firstly, they have a water jacket, which is located between the body and the firebox. Secondly, a pellet fireplace with a water circuit has a closed combustion chamber, and air is supplied only from the street using a special exhaust fan or turbine.
Thirdly, this design is combined with a water supply system, which must necessarily have a circulation pump. The principle of operation of such fireplaces is simple: cold liquid under pressure enters the water jacket, where it heats up and enters the heating circuit through the pipe system - radiators, underfloor heating and other heat exchangers.
Advantages and disadvantages of pellet fireplaces
The main advantage that pellet fireplaces have is the ability for long battery life. After loading the bunker with the required amount of fuel and setting the setting, the system itself will maintain the set temperature in the dwelling. The automatic system for removing ash residues and feeding pellets into the furnace rarely fails due to a simple device.
The second major benefit is reduced operating costs. cost of wood pelletsthe average is only 6,500 rubles per 1 ton. Given the fuel consumption (less than 12 kg for 30 hours of operation of a 6 kW device), this amount of pellets will be enough to heat a home for 4 months.
High cost is the main disadvantage of a pellet fireplace. User reviews report that the purchase and installation of the device cost them much more than the purchase, installation and configuration of any other heating equipment. In addition, such a fireplace can only work with one type of fuel.
Overview of manufacturers
If your goal is to create an original atmosphere in the house and at the same time solve the heating problem, then you should pay attention to FlumenFire, a company from Scandinavia. This manufacturer is one of the few who exclusively produces pellet fireplaces. All models are characterized by a combination of "home design" and impressive technical characteristics. The CITRINA fireplace can be called a bright representative.
If you are looking for an inexpensive, but at the same time reliable copy, then you should look at the models of the domestic company Vesuvius. This manufacturer is just setting up production, and so far cannot please with a rich assortment.
Models are marked as PKP, they differ in size and power (7-8 kW). Pellet fireplace "Vesuvius" will suit you if you are looking for an inexpensive solution for a country house that you leave for the winter. The cost of copies varies, and in different regions it can range from 32 to 45 thousand rubles.
