Pellet Heat

Today's Bloomberg Energy headline:

Bodman Says $80 a Barrel Oil Prices Are `Troublesome'

Oil futures rose to (a record HIGH) $80.18 a barrel in New York after a report today showed a larger-than-expected drop in U.S. oil inventories. The rise in prices follows yesterday's announcement that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries would increase production by 500,000 barrels a day. Full Story

Also on this day our bulk feed bin for our pellet boiler was installed. Last fall we were so thrilled to start our new addition by ripping out the ugly, drippy, slimy, and smelly oil tank and boiler. We had our Harman Pellet Boiler installed. It heats our 3,000 sq. ft. house and hot water with ease. It has a 200 hopper. This means that last winter we filled it every ~2-5 days. This fall Harman created a bulk feed bin that holds 1400 pounds of pellets (35 bags of pellets or about 90 gallons of oil heat equivalent). Now we will only need to fill it once a week in the coldest months, and maybe a couple times a month or less otherwise! Imagine what this renewable fuel could do with government support and incentive! Either way I am saving a couple to few thousand dollars this year alone by heating with pellet, not to mention the saved carbon emissions since I am no longer burning oil or propane.