The first stove that comes to mind is the PelPro model HHPP2BD wood pellet stove. This unadorned stove, known alternately as "Cheap Charlie" and "Franklin 120 Home Heater" has a 120 lb hopper capacity and generates 15,000 ? 50,000 btu's per hour; enough heat for 800 ? 2000 sq.ft.



This popular stove can be purchased online at Homeclick for $1802.95, shipping included. However, you can purchase the same stove for $1499 by visiting an Aubuchon Hardware store in person. Further savings can be realized if you purchase your stove in a state with no sales tax, such as New Hampshire.

How you pay for your stove is equally important as how much you pay. If you finance the purchase of your stove with a credit card, the money you saved by being a savvy shopper will be spent on credit card interest.

The best time to buy a wood pellet or corn stove is during the summer when everyone else is looking for air conditioners. There's no reason you can't bargain with the salesman just as you would when buying a car.

However, if you wait until January, when demand is high, you won't be in a position to bargain. It's hard to bargain when there's nothing left to buy.

Likewise, you should be finalizing your wood pellet or corn fuel purchases no later than September. Considering the combined corn harvest of Canada and the United States, you would think there was corn to burn. The problem is - corn to burn can't have more than 15% moisture. This requirement eliminates most corn as fuel, and adds a hefty premium to "dry corn" once winter settles in and demand is peaking.

Another cheap pellet stove is the United States Stove model #6039 multifuel stove. A multifuel stove offers the versatility of burning either corn or wood pellets, whichever is cheaper.

At usstove.com, the model #6039 multifuel stove is selling for $2200. Going back to Aubuchon Hardware, it's $1799.99. And if we do just a little more shopping around, we can find the exact same stove on sale for a limited time at Orscheln Farm and Home for only $1599.

One more cheap pellet stove worth looking at is the Breckwell Big-E Utility pellet stove. This 50,000 btu stove heats 2,000 sq. ft. and comes equipped with high priced stove features such as automatic ignition and a large 140 lb. hopper for $1549.

While I was doing the research for this article, I came across some reviews for the Big-E stove. The only common complaint was keeping the window free of soot.

If this was the only problem, I wanted to know if the reviewers were still enthusiastic about their Big-E stoves. I sent out some emails, and the next day two of the original reviewers were kind enough to respond.

M. T., from Belchertown, MA., gives some excellent advice to first time stove buyers.

"Sam:

Yes you can use my comments. I swear by this stove, one of the best investments I have ever made. I burn almost 3 ton a year in my 1400 sq ft ranch with a temp of about 75-78 degrees in the living area and 70 in the bedrooms.

It runs just like a furnace. I have it on a milli-volt thermostat that can be set to different temps 4 times a day. It turns on and off on its own to satisfy the thermostat. It just does its own thing and keeps us toasty. The hopper is also big enough that I don't have to feed it daily.

Breckwell is very fast to respond. I called Breckwell last week to order some combustion gaskets, They picked up the phone on the 2nd ring and I had my gaskets in a few days.

One last note, people need to do plenty of research on who they buy the stove from online. I did a lot of research on the type of stove to get, I didn't do a lot of research on the online store. That is my only regret."

From Tipton, Indiana, W.F. had this to say about the Big-E.

"Hi,

No, I don't mind if you use the info, that's what it's there for, to help others. As for further comments, I would just say that installation is pretty simple, the stove is very reliable so far, and that the only hassle is the same as with any other, Clean up. Ugh."

Finding a cheap pellet stove to warm your home is easy with these tips for success: Know how much you can afford. Be on the look out for a sale. Know who you're buying from. Pay cash or find a dealer that offers 90 days same as cash. Buy lots of Windex.