High Capacity Hoppers for Corn Stoves

Types

• Today’s top-loading, high-capacity hoppers make it easy to refill your stove with heavy bags of corn kernels. Some stoves require that you place the bag of corn at the bottom of the stove, but these hoppers tend to be the smallest of the high capacity hoppers. The corn is stored in the hopper until it falls from above or moves into the stove from an auger below. The corn then enters the burning chamber where it creates heat. Some stoves feature dual hoppers, including systems that use wood pellets in the first hopper to ignite the corn that you pour into the second large-capacity hopper.

Sizes

• Most high-capacity hoppers for home use take bags of corn that weigh up to 100 pounds. Models suitable for use in a home have a capacity ranging from 90 pounds to 106 pounds. For garages or workshops there are models that hold up to 300 pounds, or 5.4 bushels, of corn at one time. Some outdoor models hold up to 600 pounds, or 11 bushels, of corn, ideal for heating a large building.

Burning Time

• A 100-pound bag of corn lasts 37 hours on a corn-burning stove when set at the lowest setting. If you set your stove to the highest setting, expect to get about 13 hours of heat from a 100-pound bag of corn. A bushel of corn, weighing about 52 pounds, lasts almost seven hours when set on the highest setting on most stoves. Stoves can vary in their efficiency as well. In general it takes 250 bushels of corn to heat a 2,000-square-foot home for one year, according to the Corn Marketing Program of Michigan.

Fuel

• The best corn for a high-capacity hopper includes shelled corn with a 15 percent or less moisture content. Dry, clean, high quality corn produces the best results when combined with proper stove operation and consistent maintenance. If you use poor quality corn, you’ll get less burning time from each bag of corn. The corn burns best when you fill the hopper when starting up the stove. A cup of wood pellets with about an ounce of starter gel makes lighting the stove much easier since corn is difficult to ignite on its own.