Stumps

[slowzuki]

You are correct, a dozer needs a bit of leverage unless you want to cut on either side then push it out of the hole.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I've tried the dig it out by hand route, and the burn it out, and pull it out, and wait to let it rot out method. Nothing beats a big old back hoe. It might be overkill for just one stump, but if you can line up a few other jobs for the hoe while you have it, rent or borrow one. I borrowed one last weekend and got as many as nine stumps out in one hour, without breaking a sweat. Left me wondering what a shovel and an axe are for. Another buddy loaned me his track hoe this past weekend. It was a compact Caterpillar with a 24" bucket. It worked fine, but the JD Back hoe from last weekend was hard to beat. I'm up to about fifty stumps out of the ground in the last two weeks and just about done for a while with the stumps. Time to start digging the footers for the new house, but when I get that done I'll still have plenty of stumps to deal with in the other two acres yet to be cleared. I'll resort to the backhoe again when that time comes.

On another note; I went to an equipment rental place to talk to them about stump removal. When I mentioned stumps they didn't want to rent me a backhoe. They said a backhoe was strickly for digging dirt and could be torn up with stumps. They would only rent me a dozer for stumps. He then proceeded to show me a fairly small dozer he assured me would do the job of pushing them over. I wonder. I have numerous stumps that were cut very close to the ground. It seems that a dozer would need some leverage and what happens when the stump breaks off without getting the root ball out of the ground? I didn't want to leave clumps under ground to rot and leave soft spots and sink holes. )</font>

 

[SkyPup]

I've removed about 100 stumps ranging from one foot up to six feet in diameter with our backhoe and never had any problems.

A BH will out stump a dozer any day of the week.

 

[wushaw]

I agree with SkyPup, I also have many stumps removed by BH. A dozer is like a bull in a china closet, if your being selective on your tree/stump removal a BH or excavator is the only way to go.

 

[Sully2]

</font><font color="blueclass=small">( I agree with SkyPup, I also have many stumps removed by BH. <font color="red">A dozer is like a bull in a china closet,</font> if your being selective on your tree/stump removal a BH or excavator is the only way to go. [/color:"blue"]

Perfect analogy IMHO. Want to rip everything up?..Use the dozer...want to be selective...use the BH.

 

[btolle]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( If I feel playful, I will give it another shot with my CJ7 - I6/4.2 could do better than 20HP tractor.)</font>

Bad news, I have used my Rubicon with an 8K winch on it to pull trees I was cutting and for "trying" to pull stumps. The first thing you will need to do is use a tow strap to hook the back end of the Jeep to a LARGE tree. Without that all I did was drag the Jeep around in the dirt.

When you get through trying that you will discover that even an 8K winch will only pull about a 4" stump at best. Oh, BTW, watch it if you pull small stumps, they can become missiles when they finally break loose.

At least I got to play with my winch.

If you can put up a "For Rent" sign and get a family of fireants to move into the stump they will eat all the cellulose out of it in about a year and then you can push it over with the FEL.

So far, that is the only known thing fireants are good for. I have several families of them on long term leases right now with some pine stumps. I will evict them and the stumps about this time next year! If you need fireants I have plenty I will be willing to give you.

Bill Tolle

 

[SkyPup]

I did use my 9,000 pound Warn winch to finally remove this massive six foot diameter live oak stump, but only after I had worked on it for days with the FEL... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[sonofczechgun]

Hello Jeeper

I had a good luck with a tree down and my Jeep. But it was an old and dry maple - not an oak knocked down green and still pretty much fresh. But i had to pull it one way and than the other way using the leverage of the trunk to brake the roots.

Fire ants sound good - but not sure how to get them to Virginia

 

[Sully2]

Now ya know where to dispose of the used oil you drain out of that Jeep or your tractor. TREE STUMPS!

Ive been working on a 40 inch ash here for more than a year.....soaking it with old oil and diesel fuel...and next week I'll be "laid up" because of an eye operation...so I figure I might as well break out the highway flares and light that booger off...while sitting in my easy chair watching it... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Marlowe]

Speaking of stumps becoming missiles:

A good buddy of mine, many years ago was helping another friend pull stumps from a pasture they were prepping for a horse arena. The stumps were mostly in the eight inch range with the normal ups and downs. The soil was sandy and easy to work with, so they would dig a bit, and pull a bit using a pickup truck for the muscle. All went well through many stumps, until this one pesky bugger.

When I saw the pickup the next day I noticed the rear window missing and asked the buddy what happened to his truck. He told me I hadn't seen anything yet, so we went over to have a closer look. The windshield was also missing. Then he showed me the dashboard. Broken pieces and parts everywhere from the flying glass caused by the rear window breaking. "What the heck happened," I asked.

That pesky little stump proved to be a stubborn little devil and they were tiring from all the digging. In fatigue inhanced desperation the pickup truck was backed up a bit farther, and gunned a bit harder, and the stump came loose. The tail gate was down so the stump sailed undisturbed through the rear window of the truck, smashing the interior from the force of flying glass, then flew through the windshield. But, it was not done. The rope, yes, the rope got tight again when the stump reached the end of the line, and back snapped the stump knocking out the front grill and bending the hood, before finally falling to the ground. Flight time total; about a half second. Fright time, they're still talking about that one, and lucky to be talking.

When the stump flew through the truck it hit pretty much dead center of the cab, barely missing the head of my buddy driving the truck. It would have took his head off. The truck was nearly totalled.

Moral of the story. Don't you use no stretchy rope on stumps.

Have fun.

Tom

 

[have_blue]

I'm from the school that teaches not to create stumps in the first place. Most 1 foot trees can be uprooted with a small tractor if the soil conditions are right. Too late for that, and it's not your fault. Blame it on the hurricane. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

If you can't mooch a back hoe, try this:

Buy a bottle of Green Light stump remover. It's 99% pure saltpeter (postassium nitrate). Follow the directions.

In addition to the directions, dig around the stump before treating it, and make sure it's good and dry before attempting to burn it. The season almost rules that out.

Do not use diesel, gas, or oil. The flames are impressive, but they only act as coolant as they evaporate. If you can get a big fan or leaf blower to blow on the stump while burning it, that helps a lot. Heavy firewood helps a lot too. I once melted a 2 footer with firewood and a leaf blower. It left a 2 foot deep ash pit that just begged for a 60 pound pig. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif