Lowtech Graph lists low-tech options for every need of a home. Here you can compare them, find tutorials to build them, and link them together into a circular system. Why low-tech?
Gravity-fed pellet stove (no electricity)
Passive
One of 5 ways to meet this need. Cost, carbon, footprint and rankings are relative to other solutions for the same need, not absolute.
What your site needs
A flue, and dry storage for bagged pellets.
A pellet stove with no motor and no fan: pellets fall from a hopper into the fire by their own weight, and the fire draws its own air. It gives the steady heat of a pellet stove without electricity, so it keeps working in a power cut. A commercial one runs up to about a day on a full hopper; a home-built one from an oil drum runs about six hours.
Levels are relative to the other options for this need, not absolute. Fewer dots is lighter.
Gravity-fed pellet stove (no electricity) (This page) Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Medium · Skill to build: Intermediate · Upkeep: Heavy · Change to daily life: Daily · Works without the grid: Yes Choose it if you want steady pellet heat that keeps going in a power cut.
Wood stove / mass heater Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Medium · Skill to build: Basic · Upkeep: Heavy · Change to daily life: Daily · Works without the grid: Yes Choose it if you want a familiar wood fire that heats the house without electricity, from local wood.
Heat pump (air- or ground-source) Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: High · Skill to build: Specialist · Upkeep: Heavy · Change to daily life: None · Works without the grid: No Choose it if you have reliable electricity and want efficient heat with no fuel to handle.
Rocket mass heater Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Low · Skill to build: Intermediate · Upkeep: Heavy · Change to daily life: Daily · Works without the grid: Yes Choose it if you want the most heat from the least wood, stored in a bench for hours.
Gas boiler (condensing) Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Medium · Skill to build: Specialist · Upkeep: Light · Change to daily life: None · Works without the grid: No Choose it if you are on the gas mains and want steady heat on demand from a system every installer knows.
We don’t list sizing or quantities, as the yield of each technique depends on the quality of its build. The catalogue compares options but doesn’t dimension them. Regulatory notes are indicative, with a French example, and need to be confirmed locally.