Looking for a little style in your pellet heater? Price of Piazzetta pellet heaters got you down? Then the Bianca Lux pellet heater made by Palazzetti could be just the thing for you. Palazzetti pellet heaters are excellent value European made pellet heaters. You get great style and design light years ahead of Chinese made heaters but you won’t have to sell a kidney to buy one, like you do with other European brands like Piazzetta. Below is a quick look at the Bianca Lux to see how it stacks up against other models on the market.
I think the Bianca Lux is a great value heater for anyone looking for a lot of heat with amazing European design and style but doesn’t want to pay the kind of prices Piazzetta pellet heaters demand. The Bianca Lux has enough heat for just about any home. Below is a quick look at the specifications of the heater:
- Price $4690 – $6200
- Heat Output High: 12.04kw
- Heat Output Low: 3.68kw
- Heat Area m2: 110m2
- Efficiency: 90%+
- Hopper Capacity: 22kg
- Low Burn Rate Kg/Hr: 0.83
- High Burn Rate Kg/Hr: 2.79
- Dimension cm (WxHxD): 56 x 120 x 55
- Weight Kg: 183kg
Heat Output
This is a big heater, big as in the amount of heat that it can pump out. The low heat is 3.68kw, which is actually a bit higher than most other models on the market, and it maxes out at just over 12kw when running on high heat, which is pretty much standard for most large pellet heaters that max out around 11kw to 13kw. Don’t let the 12kw number put you off if you only have a medium sized area or house to heat. I’ve said it many times in other posts but pellet heaters, unless you live somewhere that snows for months on end and has really cold winters, usually run on low heat.
So most of the time this heater will be putting out just over 3kw. I prefer to have more heat than I need. Even though the heater will be running on low most of the time, if you wake up to a super cold morning, maybe a cold snap or winter has come early, then having that extra heat is worth it. You can quickly heat up an area in no time. If you are after a large heater that can pump out plenty of heat when you want it, the Bianca Lux can definitely deliver.
Heating Area
Obviously the larger the heater the bigger the space it can heat. Palazzetti documents recommend you heat an area no smaller than 60m3 with the Bianca Lux. That’s about 25m2, so walls that are 5m by 5m long. Retailers list the Bianca Lux as capable of heating up to 110m2. Take this with a grain of salt because similar sized pellet heaters are sometimes sold as being able to heat up anywhere from 120m2 to 170m2 despite being the same kw heat output. There’s heaps of factors that affect if a pellet heater can heat your house, such as insulation and house layout.
Having said that, I think the Bianca Lux would be able to heat and keep just about any house warm. Obviously if it is a multistory home you are going to find the upper floors cooler but pellet heaters are space heaters and shouldn’t be compared against central heating systems. My house is just over 100m2 and I have a Maxi 12kw pellet heater which heats my entire house fine. That’s why I think just about any house will be nice and warm with a Bianca Lux installed in it.
Hopper Capacity
I love large hoppers. The Bianca Lux has a 22kg hopper, which matches the Maxi pellet heater and the Grace pellet heater sold by Pellet Fires Tasmania. Most 10kw pellet heaters come with a hopper of around 20kg to 25kg, so the Bianca Lux matches other models. Why do I like big hoppers? Because I’m lazy. The truth is even small pellet heaters will probably only need to be refilled once a day, but a big hopper means you can go for several days without having to worry about refilling.
If you don’t care about how often you refill the hopper, then obviously a large hopper isn’t important. I like the idea of knowing I have enough wood pellets to keep me warm for a few days and don’t need to check on it. How long a 15kg bag of pellets last depends but it’s about 8 to 24 hours, so you’d get 2 to 3 days with this hopper. Obviously it depends on how many hours a day you run your pellet heater and how hot you run it. But if you are planning to run your heater on high a lot then you want a big hopper and the Bianca Lux has a good sized hopper.
Burn Rate
The more heat your pellet heater is pumping out then the more pellets it’s going to burn. Interestingly, the Bianca Lux has a slightly higher burn rate than other models, such as the Bass 09 pellet heater which is a 12kw heater also sold by Bass Pellet Heaters. However, take these numbers with a grain of salt. Feed rate is averaged out because pellet length directly impacts how fast pellets are fed through your pellet heater. It’s why I wrong an article on the importance of wood pellet length.
Nonetheless, the Bianca Lux has a burn rate that is fairly close to other models. It’s actually a bit higher which means you would burn more pellets but again don’t read too much into these numbers. Instead, more important is to understand that if you run a pellet heater on high, no matter the brand or model, you are going to burn more pellets. So instead of worrying about “claimed” burn rates I would try to use my pellet heater efficiently and switch it off when I’m not at home or at night when sleeping if I want to save wood pellets.
Dimensions and Weight
The Bianca Lux is about the same size as other 12kw+ pellet heaters, such as the Maxi pellet heater, or at least other European style pellet heaters. At 183kg it is also a heavy one with other models being around 120kg. Keep in mind that the Bianca is 120cm high. That means you’ll have to lift a bag of pellets that high when filling it up. If that doesn’t sound like fun then some people put pellets in a bucket or storage container near their heater and use a scoop to transfer pellets in. Obviously this will be slower than dumping a whole bag into the hopper but at least it will be easier.
If you don’t like using a storage container and don’t want to lift a bag that high off the ground, then it’s probably best to look at either a smaller, meaning less kw heat output, or a different style pellet heater. European pellet heaters are designed to be slim and tall. American style pellet heaters look more like wood heaters, so they are typically lower but wider. The Bianca is definitely, at least in my opinion, not the best tiny house heater or heater for any small space.
Alternative Heaters to Consider
If you are looking to buy a pellet heater that is similar to the Bianca Lux, and by that I mean heat output and price, either a bit more or less, then there are a few options. First, probably the best Chinese made pellet heater I’d suggest looking at would be the Maxi pellet heater. It’s a 12kw heater and similar in just about all aspects but is cheaper. If you prefer European made then Piazzetta pellet heaters offer some 11kw heaters but they do cost around $9000, which is obviously a lot more. You can get cheaper Piazzetta heaters but the heat output and hopper capacity is considerably smaller.
If you’d like a few more options then definitely check out my other pellet heater reviews. If you live in Tasmania then we have a different range of pellet heaters to buy. That’s why I have my top 5 pellet heaters in Tasmania article because Chinese branded heaters are popular here. However, outside of Tasmania the most commonly sold heaters are European made. So my best pellet heater in Australia post focuses on Piazzetta heaters and other European brands found commonly outside of Tasmania.
My Thoughts
I think the Bianca Lux pellet heater is great for anyone looking for a high quality European designed heater that doesn’t cost a fortune. Piazzetta pellet heaters are beautiful but they are extremely expensive, especially when compared to Chinese heaters and often cost twice as much. I understand why some people don’t want to buy Chinese heaters, they often look very dull and have limited designs and styles. The Bianca Lux not only looks great but has a good sized hopper and plenty of heat.
So if you want some style at an affordable price and need to heat a very large area then check out the Bianca Lux. Sadly, however, there aren’t many Palazzetti pellet heater retailers in Australia. In Tasmania we only have one dealer as most European pellet heaters sold in Tasmania are Piazzetta and sold by Tas Energy & Heating. The same is true in other states. Most retailers in other states around Australia also sell Piazzetta or HAAS+SOHN pellet heaters. However, if you do live near a retailer who sells Palazzetti pellet heaters, then I definitely recommend checking the Bianca Lux out.
Resources:
Bass Pellet Heaters website
Enviroheat WA website
