had to stop using Matra which are very high btu due to too much fines in the bags.. looked like they we're sticking to the sides of the hopper but in my case so much sawdust would backup at the slide plate that the pellets could not get thru thereby looking like it was funneling on the sides.. and of course the stove would shut down after a while due to lack of fuel.. next to douglas firs these we're the hottest pellets in my stash if that helps. yeah I could have sifted each bag as many suggest but got this thing about moving 40lb bags more than 2x. un-load and stack. not OCD enough to go thru each bag.. didn't answer your wood/son question but little inside baseball on the Matras...
I bought 2 tons of matras last year. Still have a bunch. Small pellets, burn hot, nothing for ash. 365 matras a hell of a lot better than Home Depot ash at 349.
Glad I looked at those pics! Ugh! Totally my bad. Thank for the feedback everyone. Think I may order soon.
Bought a few tons of Wood & Sons in 2021, have 1 ton left. Heat was OK, a little more ash and lots of fines in the bags compared to the Vermont we burn. And it may only be the batch produced that year but the bags were not sealed well, had a lot that started to pop at the seams. sam
We have burned and had a great experience with both Wood & Sons and Matra. They are two of the better products available in New England these days. Would buy and burn either of them again, with no hesitation, but would give a slight nod to the Matra. Tap your inner pig and grab a sample pack so you can try both. You won't be disappointed, especially if your baseline is GS NE Blend. They are both white pine products, and the resin makes them tacky so they don't slide in the hopper as well as hardwoods or blends do. They will funnel, it's to be expected. Lots of home remedies on here to deal with that, but for me the easiest is simply to keep the hopper topped off and sit back and smile at how little ash there is to cleanup when burning them. The Matra are $350 which is the same price as HD is charging these days. If you do go over to A1, say hi to artc for me.
No change in my corner since TSC lowered theirs to $329.50/ton. I expected Lowes and HD to also follow, But nothin yet! Oil down to $3.10/gal and likely the route I'll go with. Hey its 20% biofuel these days! I read somewhere it is supposed to go to 50% biofuel by 2030?
Oil here is still $3.59. I bought 300 gallons at 3.49 which gives me leeway on which way to go. Anticipated more oil that pellets, like last year. So far the stove hasn't been lit yet. Last year it was January before I used it at all and this year is looking the same.
That matches my local TSC, which always has the cheapest pellet prices. TSC bags are filled with MWPs. For me though, the Keene store shows $349/ton - and delivery tomorrow. That is showing as a promotional price with a limit of 4 tons. I have a 10% off coupon, so if I were to buy it would be $314/ton. And, if I bought 3 tons that would pay for delivery (they show delivery charge of $79, which is a bit less than what I paid almost 2 years ago).