Bixby Corn Stove: Efficient And Expensive
Sam Streubel
The Bixby corn stove was introduced to the market in 2002 by
Bob Walker. His name may not ring a bell, but the Sleep Number
Bed, which he also invented, surely will.
Walker's vision of 21st century heating also includes a bio
mass pellet that can be manufactured locally from whatever
resources are available such as crop or animal waste. The
pellets would be distributed in much the same way heating oil
is delivered.
Although Mr. Walker's vision may not become reality tomorrow,
today's Bixby corn burning stove is already in its third
generation.
What really sets this stove apart from the competition is its
ease of use and exceptional 97% fuel efficiency rating. At 97%,
the Bixby is 12-17% more efficient than any other pellet stove
on the market.
To put it another way, the Bixby stove consumes 12-17 % less
fuel to generate the same amount of heat produced by similar
sized stoves.
Another benefit of nearly 100% efficiency is less ash.
Actually, there is no fly ash at all. Rather, an ash cake about
3 inches round is automatically expelled from the burn pot into
the ash drawer twice a day. With little waste to dispose of,
the ash drawer needs to be emptied only once a week.
Other drawbacks associated with owning a pellet fueled stove
have also been thoughtfully eliminated.
Rather than using kindling to start the fire, the Bixby uses a
flameless, hot air vortex system. Just push the ON button, and
the stove automatically dispenses the necessary amount of corn
to ignite the fire pot in minutes.
While traditional pellet stoves use an auger to feed the fuel
into the burn pot, the Bixby Ferris Wheel design feeder system
rejects foreign materials that cause jamming.
The hopper on the Bixby corn stove holds 106 pounds of dry
shelled corn, wood pellets or Bixby Certified Biomass Pellets.
This is sufficient capacity for once a day loading. Even on the
coldest days, the stove burns only 1.5 bushels of corn.
A stove owner from eastern Iowa says he heats his entire 2,100
square foot home with the Bixby stove aided by ceiling fans
running in reverse to help distribute the warm air. The total
cost to heat his home for the entire winter was only $250.
Depending on the outside temperature, 8 different push button
heat levels are available from 8,000 to 50,000 BTU's. This
feature is useful in controlling fuel consumption when the
outdoor temperature is fluctuating during season changes.
Bixby Energy Systems backs the quality of its MaxFire 115 with
an industry best 7 year limited warranty on
workmanship/materials as well as a 4 year warranty on
mechanical/electrical. Regional service technicians are also
available to fine tune the operation of your stove according to
climate and altitude.
As the title of this article implies, these stoves don't come
cheap. Bixby's latest, the Model 115, is priced from around
$3,995 and gets more expensive with the addition of deluxe trim
options.
Buying any pellet stove to supplement or replace your existing
heating system is a major decision. For many homeowners,
spending the extra $1800 for a Bixby corn stove is simply out
of the question.
Many consumers still prefer the looks of a traditional corn
stove over the Bixby, which makes considering the additional
expense a moot point.
About The Author:
http://www.Alternative-Heating-Info.com
provides unique information for geothermal heating and cooling,
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