ELGIN, Man. -ÊWith commodity prices at dismal lows, Steve and Lisa Tufts have found a novel use for their grain.
They burn it.
The Tufts installed a heating system in their farm home last month that uses grain as its fuel. The grain-burning stove generates enough heat for the house, which has 1,380 sq. feet on the main floor and equivalent space in the basement.
During a cold, windy evening last week, Steve poured a bucket of rye into the stove’s small hopper. As little as one bushel of grain can heat their house for a day.
Read Also
Russian wheat exports start to pick up the pace
Russia has had a slow start for its 2025-26 wheat export program, but the pace is starting to pick up and that is a bearish factor for prices.
“I don’t see the grain being any different than firewood,” Steve said. “I’d rather burn grain than go and chop down a tree that took 50 years to grow.”
But he can’t overlook the sad irony of burning some of his grain rather than shipping it to an elevator. Steve remembers rye prices hitting $4.50 per bushel two years ago. He’s now lucky if he can get half that.
“That’s really good quality rye,” he said, while pouring grain into the stove’s hopper. “It’s a shame to burn it.”
When burning good quality rye, the Tufts spend an average of $3.37 a day to heat their home in winter. When burning poorer quality rye, their heating cost drops to about $1.50 per day. They have tried a variety of other fuels, including wheat screenings.
The grain-burning stove, manufactured by a company in Blyth, Ont., works similar to stoves that burn wood pellets. Every few seconds, an auger in the stove spits some grain kernels into the fire. The stove’s heat exchangers draw room air in and then expel warmed air into the house.
A pipe leading to the outside of the Tufts’ house brings cold air in to fan the fire. Within that pipe is a smaller exhaust pipe that carries smoke out of the house.
The burning appears to be fairly efficient, with only thin wisps of smoke released from an exhaust stack outside. There is no scent of smoke in the Tufts’ home.
A clump of residue left from the burned grain gets removed from the stove twice a day. Called a clinker, each clump of residue weighs about as much as a hockey puck.
The Tufts still have electric heat in their home as a backup. Their basement has baseboard heaters while the main floor has radiant heat, if needed.
Steve said the grain-burning stove is cheaper than hydro or electric heat. “Even using the good quality stuff, it’s still about half price.”
The stove cost the Tufts $2,250, including the pipes that draw outside air into the stove and dispose of the exhausts. They believe the stove is the first of its kind in Manitoba and are considering putting one in their workshop. If they find enough interest for the product in Manitoba, they may become distributors for the manufacturer, Grain Stoves Inc.
Like most sources of heating, the cost of fuel can fluctuate according to supply. In the case of the Tufts, a doubling of their heating costs would likely be viewed as welcome news.
“We’ve been farming for 11 years and grain prices haven’t doubled yet,” observed Lisa. “It would be nice if they would.”
