Click on “Download PDF” for the PDF version or on the title for the HTML version. If you are not an ASABE member or if your employer has not arranged for access to the full-text, Click here for options. A Comparison of Wood Pellet and Natural Gas Heating Systems for Broiler HousesPublished by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, St. Joseph, Michigan www.asabe.org Citation: 2017 ASABE Annual International Meeting 1700343.(doi:10.13031/aim.201700343)Authors: Douglas G. Overhults Keywords: biomass, environmental control, fuels, heating, poultry housing, Abstract. A study was conducted to compare the heating costs of 2 heating systems for broiler houses. The study was conducted on a broiler production farm which had wood pellet fired furnaces installed as the primary heating system for 2 houses. Two other houses used natural gas fired radiant brooders for the heating system. Gas and wood pellet use for the 4 houses was monitored for 54 weeks during the growout of 6 flocks of birds. Electrical energy for operating the pellet furnaces was also measured. The pellet furnaces replaced 57% of the quantity of gas used to heat the two houses that did not use the furnaces. Overall, the annual fuel cost for operating the two heating systems was nearly equal. (Download PDF) (Export to EndNotes)
|