Pellet Stoves vs. Fire Places: Which One is a Better Option?

If you happen to be on the lookout for the best solution to keep your home warm and comfortable during the cold season without coughing out a lot of money, investing in a stove might be good.

Stoves utilize wood or wood waste to burn, either as firewood or wooden pellets.

However, choosing between a pellet and a wood stove might be confusing and challenging. Knowing the similarities and differences between these two kinds of stoves should help you make an informed choice on which one is best suited to the needs of your home.

Let’s break down some of the factors that set these two apart.

The Burning Material Involved

One of the significant differences between these two stoves is the type of fuel.

You will need seasoned firewood for a wood stove, while pellet stoves simply use recycled wood in the form of pellets. The two types of fuel are better and more environmentally friendly than alternatives such as fossil fuels.

Wood stoves provide a big, crackling, luminous fire. But if you prefer something quieter, a pellet stove is your best choice. The furnace will still provide you with bright flames but will be more discreet than its wood alternative.

The Amount of Heat Produced

These two stoves produce heat in subtly different ways.

While the amount and length of heating produced by a pellet stove can vary depending on the quality, quantity, design, and the type of pellets you use on it, it can still produce and maintain a more consistent heat than a wood stove.

Some stoves even come equipped with a programmable thermostat to set the heat output and your desired temperature.

The Installation Design

You can find both pellet and wood stoves as insert and freestanding options.

However, picking a pellet stove insert may be the best option if your home has an existing traditional fireplace that isn’t used regularly. The insert stove can easily fit into the existing fireplace’s location and vent through the already constructed chimney.

However, if your home doesn’t have an already pre-existing fireplace, or if you are looking to install the stove in a different location, then a freestanding stove may be the best pick for you.

Ease of Maintenance

Both these two types of stoves require regular cleaning. This helps get rid of the ash from the interior and keeps the stove free of rust.

However, a pellet stove produces less ash than a wood stove, making it easier to clean. In addition, pellet stoves have less smoke than wood stoves, making them much more ideal for a fireplace in a common area.

To Sum It Up

Both pellet stoves and wood stoves are more friendly to the environment than other energy sources. However, between the two stoves, the pellet stove has more advantages in that it produces more heat consistently, is easier to clean, and produces less smoke.

Get one today and make your winters a lot less insufferable.