How to Clean a Pellet Stove

When cold weather hits, your energy bill goes up because heating makes up 29% of your home’s energy bill. One way to keep your house toasty while saving costs is by heating your home using a pellet stove.

A pellet stove is a freestanding stove that burns wooden pellets to heat your home. The pellets are efficient and less ashy than traditional wood.

You’ll have to maintain your pellet stove to keep it running smoothly all winter long. One of the most basic pellet stove services you’ll need to perform is to clean it out.

If you are wondering how to clean a pellet stove, you’ve come to the right place. We go over the cleaning steps in this pellet stove guide.

Why You Should Clean a Pellet Stove 

Cleaning a pellet stove is easy and necessary for your stove to function. There are three main reasons you need to keep up with this maintenance.

1. Function 

When a pellet stove burns the pellets, ashes build up. If you don’t clean the ashes out, you can damage the inner workings of your stove.

2. Safety 

Ash that isn’t taken care of can become a hazard. Too much ash can put you at risk for a fire. Ash also causes a chemical, creosote, to build up, which can harm your health.

3. Longevity 

Taking care of your pellet stove will make it last much longer. You’ll get the most out of your investment.

How to Clean a Pellet Stove 

When it comes time to clean these pellet stoves, there are several areas that you’ll focus on.

• The outside of the stove
• The burning pot
• The glass window
• The ash pan

Step 1: Loosen the Ash

Find the burn pot on your pellet stove and use a chimney brush to loosen the ash. When you brush the inside of the burn pot with the brush, you can knock down some creosote buildup. Make sure to vacuum these deposits up in the next step.

Take the ash pan out and dump it into a trash can. To get rid of any ash in the exchanger tube, push and pull on the lever in the front of the pellet stove. This will help to remove any buildup.

Step 2: Vacuum

Once you have loosened the ash, it’s time to vacuum it up. Make sure to get any ash that fell on the floor during the cleaning process.

Step 3: Clean the Window 

Using a fireplace glass cleaner and a soft cloth, clean the inside and outside of the window. Wipe up any ash around the pellet stove, and you are done with your cleaning.

Keep Your Pellet Stove Clean to Keep Your Home Warm 

It’s best to do this clean at least once a week to keep your pellet stove running at its best. When you know how to clean a pellet stove the right way, you’ll keep it running problem-free all winter long.

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