[imafirecracker]

Hi - sorry for the delay in response.
The wood pellets are actually compressed sawdust leftover from other projects, so they are very environmentally friendly. I get them in 40 pound bags. I need about 3 tons per year - which is pretty heavy. So, you need to be able to pick up heavy things if you want one. On my stove, the lid opens on the top and you just pour in the pellets. You can choose how hot you want it to be, and pellets come down a chute, and then burn in plain view so you can enjoy the flame.
There are different sized stoves. Mine can heat the whole house, but I do supplement it with my furnace which I need to keep on anyway for hot water. I placed it strategically in my house so that the hot air would go into several rooms, and it is definitely warmer in those rooms. Its very cozy in the winter to sit next to the fire, which you can see from the glass window. The stoves make some noise though.
I bought a floor model as the store was moving, and it cost me roughly $1100. They come in all sizes though. I just saw an ad on Freecycle for one in my area though, be on the lookout for free ones!

Also, get the hardwood pellets which produce less ash (I only had to dump my ash container once last Winter and I run my stove 24-7). The bags are between $1.50-$2 each so there is an investment that needs to be made up front.

Let me know if you'd like to know anything else.