How long can you store them before you see a decline in performance? Building a new shed that could store like 3 or 4 years worth. Is this advisable? I would think it would be ok but others may have different experiences. I should note that I live in PNW where things can get dank but we don't have the humidity as -- say the east coast or South.
As long as you keep them dry, they will last many years, perhaps indefinitely. I don't think there is a "best by" rating, so to speak. To give you an idea, some of the pellets in my horde were bought in 2014, and they are still in the same condition and burn the same as when they were new.
What would concern me is the condition of the bags. If they are air tight, you should be fine. If they aren’t, moisture could condense inside the bags if a cold snap is followed by a warmer period with high humidity, I.e. it’s raining outside. I think about the stuff in my garage that “sweats” during weather changes like that... if it happened multiple times, it could affect them. If the shed is fairly airtight, you should be fine.. JMHO.
I got 11 tons during the fire sales a couple of years ago. I kept most of them under a tarp for a couple of years - actually brought the last of them in last summer. I double palletized them to keep them well of the ground. I live in a humid area and even my basement is damp. I didn't have any issues burning the pellets although I can't say whether or not there was degradation - kept my house plenty warm and that was all I cared about.
I still have 1.5 ton of LaCrete in my basement that are from 2014 or so as well. Thats after I burned about 20 bags this season and they were good as new
There is more pellet knowledge in here than I could spend hours hunting down answers. You's guys are awesome sauce. Thanks.
B used to be a pellet hoarding addict like the rest of us, but she’s reformed now. Well, at least until the next sweet deal comes along!
Yeah, pellets have become too $$$ to be stocking up like that any more. Hopefully another fire sale will come along
I'm building a raised platform that can support thousands of pounds. I plan on sticking a 12x12 shed on there and storing like 6+ tons on/in it.
Lately its more like 2+ as oil is cheap enough to mix with the pellet heat. When oil spikes high, its 4.5+ ton. I always try and have more than I might need and start off with the idea that oil can spike at any time for no good reason. As usual, I have 3 ton of good stuff (Lacrete from 2014) but wont use it unless we get some real cold temps (20 bags last year). Otherwise I will add to the stash with lesser/cheaper pellets and use those first.
