Pelletizing machines

[TxMex]

Anybody have experience with pelletizing machines? I saw some pretty cool videos of farm size models on youtube. I'm currently trying to get a price(I hate it when companies don't put the price on their web site!!). It seems that you can make your own wood pellets, manure pellets for fertilizer, alfalfa and other feed pellets.

I'm sure the machines aren't going to be cheap. Now that I have a pellet stove and with being able to make some of my own animal feed, I'm betting it wouldn't take that long for it to pay for itself.

I'd love to hear recommendations and experiences with these machines.

[Nevada]

Pellet stove pellets don't appear to have been pelleted to me. They look more like an extrudate.



Normally an extruder is an auger pump that forces a paste-like material through a die, similar to the way a kitchen meat grinder works.



Of course modern industrial extruding machines are much more powerful and sophisticated than a kitchen meat grinder.

http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&r...ruding+machine

I suspect that stove pellets start as a paste made of sawdust and a binding material of some sort, although some wood may contain sufficient pitch to bind the sawdust pellets. The sawdust paste would be extruded, broken to size, then dried to harden them. The same would be true of alfalfa pellets.

Extruding is a very different process from making true pellets in a press, as in manufacturing medication tablets.

[arcticow]

Machines are neat, but very expensive. Will take AWHILE to pay out, even with a large farm. Not counting parts that you go thru operating at that volume. But if you can pencil it, go for it. Sure will keep you busy.

[||Downhome||]

they are around 3000 and up.

pretty simple in design you have a die plate (similar to a meat grinder) , not sure on thickness that spins you have a captive "hammer" wheel that the wheel spins. the wheel has grooves that catch a bit of material and pull it under and force into the holes on the plate and through.

I would like one but like articow says bit pricey.

there's a manufacturer here in Michigan somewhere the price where on the lower side.

there are different designs but the one I described seems to be the one being pushed to the diy crowd.

http://www.biomasspelletmill.com/Hom...llet_Mill.html

heres a site in french with a mostly home built unit,enough pics so you can get the gist though. someone who was handy and had the tools could build, just buy the die plate and hammer looking round maybe.

http://www.aupoele.fr/index.php?opti...d=59&Itemid=79

heres the google translation

http://translate.google.com/translat...en%26prmd%3Div

[fishhead]

There's a market for wood pellets around here. One company in Duluth just increased it's production from 30,000 tons to 300,000 tons.

There's also a local guy who is making pellets from shavings and sawdust he collects from woodworking shops.

You can also make pellets out of grass or weeds. It is equal per pound to wood pellets.

[Lazy J]

Originally Posted by Nevada

Pellet stove pellets don't appear to have been pelleted to me. They look more like an extrudate.

They are the product of a pellet mill.