75hp or 85hp Backhoe or 9 ton Excavator

[viziers]

I second the grinding stumps for minimal disturbance to surrounding soil
Depending on the soil and tree type, removing the stumps can leave a large mess to clean up
I also agree a week is not enough time for an inexperienced operator on either machine

I can't grind the stumps out where the house foundation is going to be.


vizi

 

[IslandTractor]

What about using a chain that is wrapped around the stump and attache to the BH bucket to pluck it out of the ground of course depending on the type of tree and how big the stump is I know I may have to take 1 or 2 swipes on either side of the stump to loosen it... Does the BH have enough lifting force to pluck the stump out? vizi

To get a chain around a stump requires several feet of stump. If you have that much stump it is easier to just use the BH to lever the stump out of the ground rather than pull up with the BH. There are tricks like using an old truck or tractor wheel with a chain and tow bar to remove stumps but again it requires enough stump to secure the chain. Stumps cut short are most easily removed with BH or excavator.

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

Get the smallest bucket you can, hydraulic thumb a must for efficiency. An extend-a-hoe would help too but rare paired with thumb and thum would be more important for me.
Surface disturbance will be way less with the backhoe in my experience but slower.

 

[Streetcar]

With Ohio clay and rocks you would not be able to pull a stump of much size

What is your plan to dispose of the root ball and dirt surrounding it

I would only excavate stumps for foundation and grind the remainder of the stumps

 

[viziers]

Get the smallest bucket you can, hydraulic thumb a must for efficiency. An extend-a-hoe would help too but rare paired with thumb and thum would be more important for me.
Surface disturbance will be way less with the backhoe in my experience but slower.

Hydraulic thumb would be great but not sure how available that will be on a rental.


vizi

 

[viziers]

With Ohio clay and rocks you would not be able to pull a stump of much size

What is your plan to dispose of the root ball and dirt surrounding it

I would only excavate stumps for foundation and grind the remainder of the stumps

Disposal will be to burn the suckers however I know stumps dont burn too well but I still have a lot of brush to burn so that will make them easier to burn with a nice HOT bed of coals and more brush...lol

Been thinking about the grinding of the rest of them.


vizi

 

[IslandTractor]

Disposal will be to burn the suckers however I know stumps dont burn too well but I still have a lot of brush to burn so that will make them easier to burn with a nice HOT bed of coals and more brush...lol Been thinking about the grinding of the rest of them. vizi

Easier would be to dig a hole and bury them someplace convenient. If you are pulling stumps with backhoe or excavator it would be simple to dig a burial pit. Use the spoils from that hole to fill in where stumps were removed. When you're done spread some soil and toss some grass seed around. Worked well for me.

 

[Carl_NH]

Vizi,

Are you also doing the foundation excavation at the same time? If not I would contract the site and foundation work getting rid of all the stumps at the same time. Unless you have already looked at this and the cost is much higher?

Digging a foundation, grading and leveling in my experience usually clears an area 100x100 or 100x150 depending on the house size, then there is backfilling and grading the finished site.

Burning stumps is OK in some areas others not - they burn for days and getting then hauled away is $300 for a 20 yd load, $750 for a semi trailer load. So I would get some bids on all the site work you need first as $ can add up fast - Backhoe + stump hauling + Fill + Fuel + Time probably better part of $4K or more..

 

[redmt]

So any one with experience help out here? I am trying to make a decision based on both cost and effectiveness of the tool at hand.

Looking at rental prices an excavator is roughly 2k for a 1 week rental and a 75hp upto q 85hp backhow is roughly 1k for a 1 week rental.

Now the situation is I have roughly 4 acres of land that has been logged but maybe only 1.2 acres have the most stumps and are roughly 7" on down to 2" in diameter with a few in the 12"+ range. I do not want to use a bulldozer as I want to keep the land as undistured as possible. The other 3 acres the stumps are pretty sparse.

Will the BH work well in removing/pulling the stumps out and the added bonus of the BH FEL to fill in the holes and kinda tamp the loose dirt in the hole down or will the excavator be the tool to use?

Thanks for all your advice!


vizi

I've been running a 580 K since it was new. I haven't found a use for an excavator yet. I'd use a 12" bucket. Side cut all the roots and dig down behind the stumps. Get the bucket to catch under the stump and curl the bucket. Bucket curl is the most powerful action on the machine. I've removed 3' oak stumps and probably 5' in diameter pine. The older and dryer they are the better. A good operator would do it in a day. Might be cheaper to hire somebody.

 

[viziers]

Vizi,

Are you also doing the foundation excavation at the same time? If not I would contract the site and foundation work getting rid of all the stumps at the same time. Unless you have already looked at this and the cost is much higher?

Digging a foundation, grading and leveling in my experience usually clears an area 100x100 or 100x150 depending on the house size, then there is backfilling and grading the finished site.

Burning stumps is OK in some areas others not - they burn for days and getting then hauled away is $300 for a 20 yd load, $750 for a semi trailer load. So I would get some bids on all the site work you need first as $ can add up fast - Backhoe + stump hauling + Fill + Fuel + Time probably better part of $4K or more..

When we did the planning for the house/foundation they did want 2k more to clear any stumps in addition to digging the foundation. I have in the past talked to a few different contractors about clearing the land and most were in the 3k to 4k per acre to clear and I though that was kinda high and so I decided I have the time to prep the land as we wont be building on if for at least another year.

When they do the foundation work I planned on using the soil from that to fill in any areas that may need it to.

As for the stumps I am out in the country and the county only asks to be notified 1 day in advance of the burning.


vizi