Best way to clear stumps?

[btuser]

Oak is a lot harder to dig out than pine because of the tap root. The layout of your slope will tell you how to do it, as well as the number of trees. Boulders? Ledge? Too steep to drive? That will tell you if you're better off using a dozer/excavator/stump grinder/dynamite (yeah, I tried it) or whatever. Around here in NH 99% of the stumping jobs are done with excavators, and even a 12,000 machine will have a dickens of a time with a 24" oak stump. Better off with a 24-30k machine, and an operator who knows his business.

If you can get a stump grinder to it, that's going to be your cheapest solution. It all depends on what you want your slope to look like when your done. After the excavator has done its damage it can fix/regrade the site easy enough.

 

[Dune]

Other method; If you can find a large wire spool, wood or metal, six feet in diameter. Remove the two sides of the spool from the center or drum. Space them about 18" apart and conect them with a 3" diameter solid steel shaft. Clamp a peice of 5/16" diameter wire rope to the center shaft, only need a few feet. Position rig near stump, uphill, block from rolling with chocks. Wrap wire rope around stump. Remove chock blocks and roll rig downhill. Stump will follow like a cat on a leash. The reason this works is the difference in diameters creates a large mechanical advantage.

 

[begreen]

Quick way, dynamite. Though it might shake up the neighbors a bit .

Slow way, drill a series of 3/4 to 1" holes with an auger or spade bit. Pour stump remover chemical down the holes, add water. Wait about 6 weeks. Then chop out the rotten wood.
(broken link removed to http://www.familyhandyman.com/DIY-Projects/Home-Repair/Exterior-Repairs/Other-Exterior-Repairs/how-to-remove-a-tree-stump-painlessly/Step-By-Step)

 

[jimosufan]

just heard this the other day. drill some holes put a penny in it then put gasoline on top. now the gas will evaporate.. but the reaction between makes the stump rot quickly

 

[ansehnlich1]

Leave stumps a couple feet high and a dozer will knock them out PDQ. A short day's work- all around cheapest, quickest way to do it, IMO.

If you are serious about totally clearing land of trees and stumps, this is the way to do it.

Orchards around here ALL get removed this way, the WHOLE TREE gets pushed over, then often advertised as 'free firewood cut your own", then stumps get pushed onto a big, and I mean BIG pile and burned, then dozer grades ground, and new orchard gets planted.

Big time orchard country in Adams County, PA

 

[golfandwoodnut]

Dig around the downhill half of the tree and knock over the tree without cutting it. It'll take the stump with it, then you cut off the stump and burn it.

How you knock over the teees depends though. An excavator is a good method because its a big, powerful, heavy machine that is on the pushing side...you could also use a really heavy rope and a truck, but you need to bend the rope around another tree so you're not doing anything dumb like pulling a tree over on top of yourself.

Mayhem, I hate to say I think you got this one wrong. You want to dig around the uphill side to the tree, to weaken the roots on the side you want to push. This encourages it to fall, then you put the machine (Skid Steer, Excavator, etc. on the uphill side and push down, using the weight of the machine to its full advantage. You want the uphill side of the roots to pop up as you push. I did a bunch this way. You can weaken roots on more sides if necessary but the downhill side is the side it is needed the least on and also this is the side it should be falling. On a larger tree you may have to do all sides unless you have a huge machine. When they cleared my land for my house they had a large CAT highlift and it could push of the largest of trees with little effort and no digging of roots. Otherwise as said before get a backhoe or excavator if you cut the trees down and dig later, but I would avoid that on as many trees as possible since just giving a push is alot easier if you have the equipment.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

Ya, my town is mostly orchards as well. Unfortunately, most of the trees they take out are apples etc as they replace the orchards with over-50 communities.

If you are serious about totally clearing land of trees and stumps, this is the way to do it.

Orchards around here ALL get removed this way, the WHOLE TREE gets pushed over, then often advertised as 'free firewood cut your own", then stumps get pushed onto a big, and I mean BIG pile and burned, then dozer grades ground, and new orchard gets planted.

Big time orchard country in Adams County, PA

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Leave stumps a couple feet high and a dozer will knock them out PDQ. A short day's work- all around cheapest, quickest way to do it, IMO.

If you are serious about totally clearing land of trees and stumps, this is the way to do it.

Orchards around here ALL get removed this way, the WHOLE TREE gets pushed over, then often advertised as 'free firewood cut your own", then stumps get pushed onto a big, and I mean BIG pile and burned, then dozer grades ground, and new orchard gets planted.

Big time orchard country in Adams County, PA

Ya beat me to it.

The easiest way to remove the stump is to push the tree over BEFORE you cut it. But that also makes the cutting easier too so it is a winner in two ways.

I've pushed a lot of stumps with a dozer but I'll still take the whole tree rather than just the stump if at all possible.

 

[Highbeam]

I owned a dozer, smallish like a JD350 but IH made it and it was about useless for tree or stump removal. You'd get lucky every now and then but to really do significant removel of even smallish trees you'll need a very big dozer. Big dozers do lots of damage due to their weight and drink lots of fuel while accidentally removing a good bit of your topsoil. Burning dozer "stacked" brush piles is a big pain due to all the soil.

Your whole operation will be much better off with land cleared by an excavator. Fires will burn better, less compaction, less cost, and better salvage on the timber.

An excavator (aka trackhoe) can pluck out a stump, pick it up, shake it or drop it to remove dirt, then throw it ito a pile of other stumps stacked taller than your house. That clean tall pile will dry out quickly and burn well. The same machine can also load the clean stumps into a dumptruck for removal. Try that with a dozer. The trackhoe can also dig a deep hole and bury the stumps so deep that they won't rot.

 

[Wood Duck]

After reading all of this I am thinking that if I was doing this project, I'd just cut the stumps real short and grow alfalfa or something of similar height in the orchard. The cost and damage (to the soil and to my yard) of these solutions doesn't seem worth the benefits.

 

[Danno77]

After reading all of this I am thinking that if I was doing this project, I'd just cut the stumps real short and grow alfalfa or something of similar height in the orchard. The cost and damage (to the soil and to my yard) of these solutions doesn't seem worth the benefits.

If I had that many, that's what I'd do. I'd just lop them off as low as I could possibly get them and let nature do the work. I generally find that it's easy enough to take a tree off low enough that it doesn't run the risk of hitting a mower or something. Just don't ever try to plow the field until you are sure they are rotted away!

 

[mtcates]

Grinding the stumps is the best way to go. I have a backhoe, a 40,000 pound excavator and a stump grinder with 60 Horsepower. I've cleared many lots in the last 10 years or so. I would much rather grind stumps that size than pull them out. The key is to find someone who will do the job at a reasonable price with the grinder. Renting is an option but most of the time I can grind the stumps as cheap as the rental price and do a much better job. If you hire someone to grind the stumps, look for someone with a 50 or more horsepower diesel powered grinder. The price will be less than the guys with the small gas powered machines and they will do a better job. Look for someone with a tracked machine and the slope should not be a problem for them. A good operator with a tracked machine and 60 horsepower could clear 3000 square feet of moderately spaced stumps that size in about 1 to 2 hours grind time. Price should be 300 to 600 dollars.

 

[benjamin]

If you had a backhoe, trackhoe or dozer sitting around you probably wouldn't have asked, so if you do want a cheap way to do it, I'd burn them out.

Charcoal will work, but you can use moderately dry firewood also. Fully seasoned wood would be great but it's not needed. The secret to getting enough heat to dry out the stump and burn it, is to use a blower. I have a small centrifugal blower (like a small furnace blower) attached to a 5' piece of 6" ductwork that's flattened to about 2" at the end, a miniature brush burner. I just get the fire started until it's going strong enough not to be blown out and turn on the blower, it will burn the funkiest, wettest wood you'll find, if there you add enough dry wood to keep it going.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I'm planning to clear a 3000 sq foot area of forest on a slope near my house. Trees are 80% oak, 20% mix of pine and beech. Plan is to replace them with apple trees. However, I'm not sure how to remove all the stumps. Trees are moderately spaced, 8-12" in diameter.

I want a quick, safe, inexpensive solution, if at all possible (and must pass the Wife's veto, so no explosives . I've seen numerous suggestions online, but rarely by people who have actually ever done it.

What do you guys do?

-Nate

If I were planting other trees I'd just leave the stumps. Projects just don't get any easier than not doing them, eh?