A few months ago, I wrote about our family considering switching to an alternative heat source for our Minnesota home. We are convinced that a flex fuel, corn stove is what we want, and our decision to move forward is prompted by three key factors: our current fuel bill, the projected rise in fuel costs next year, and the money saving opportunties available to families like yours and mine.
Our Current Fuel Bill
I’m sad to say that we currently pay over $800 to fill our gas tank (we live in a rural home), which lasts us two months during the winter season, if we’re lucky. I estimate we spend about $3,000 /year filling our fuel tank.
Breaking News
I welcome all ways to save on heating costs; a relief with the recent news about gas prices. Oil is projected to go up to $100 a barrel, and the tax bill that passed its first hurdle this week, the Cap & Trade Bill-HR 2454, is threatening to raise everyone’s home heating bills by up to 60% this next year! This worries me. A lot.
Earn Free Fuel for a Year
According to American Energy Systems offering this opportunity, your entire fuel bill could be free in 2010 just by referring your friends and family to their website. If they purchase one of their products, you will get a reward check in the mail. Refer 50 friends (and if they buy) that is $2500.00 in YOUR pocket. To get started, fill out the referral section here.
Bonus Tax Credit
Some alternative energy appliances, like flex-fuel stoves qualify for a major tax refund (up to $1,500) making this option very affordable for us. We will be selecting a stove or fireplace that qualifies for this tax credit.
Extra Bonus Heat Savings
Flex-fuel stoves, like the ones that burn corn, often save owners up to 60% on their heating bill. I’ve taken the time to talk to several corn stove owners, who all love their stoves and verify the savings. Any way that I do the
math on this one, I calculate that the savings from these three facts (referral reward, tax credit, lower fuel cost) will help us pay for the cost of our stove in a year. The cost of the Magnum Baby Countryside stove we are considering is about $1,800. I would like to have the Magnum Fireplace Insert, but I’m not sure if it will work in our existing gas fireplace spot yet or if it will be enough to heat our entire home like the Baby Countryside. I’m excited for next week, when the owner of American Energy Systems is coming to our house for a visit. I’m even more excited to embark on our journey to use corn to heat our home!
You can follow along on our jouney, as I plan to blog our way into a greener way of heating our home and saving money. Like you, I have more questions than anything about how this will all work. I do know this, we can NOT use popcorn in a corn stove. 
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I’ve had a corn stove in my basement for 4 years now. We do not have it hooked up to the duct work, just let it keep the basement warm. When the basement is over 75 degrees you know we are getting some warm in the rest of the house.
I ran my exhaust vent into an old chimney. I could have been just run out of the wall, but the chimney was there and in good shape. Some corn stoves do vent quite a bit of “fly ash” which can make a mess outside. Mine used to, but an update cut the ash a lot.
I run a bit under a bushel of corn a day through my stove. Since I can just go out to the bin and get more this is great.
It MUST be dry corn. Over 18% moisture corn is a pain.
If you do not screen the corn expect to find junk stopping the auger. I’ve found rocks and bolts in mine. It’s my fault, I combine the corn, things happen.
Excess fines in the corn can cause some problems in the fire box. I run about a pint of wood pellets and a tea spoon of oyster shells per 5 gallon bucket of corn to keep the auger clean. The wood pellets seem to help keep things moving.
It’s easier to light the stove with wood pellets than corn. I wrap a handful of wood pellets in a piece of newspaper to light mine. It usually takes three of these starter bundles to get mine started.
Good luck.