When you bring down a tree, a stump is always left behind. Tree services providers usually recommend that you get rid of the stump as soon as possible. This is because:
They are an eyesore: No one likes looking out into the yard and seeing old stumps. When you leave the stumps for a long time, they grow weeds and other plants. This makes them even more ugly to look at.
They take up a lot of space: If you are like most other homeowners, one of the reasons you might have brought down the tree is because you want to have more space in your yard. Cutting the tree and leaving the stumps on your yard doesn’t solve the problem as you still can’t use the yard.
For you to use it you should get rid of the stumps so that they don’t get in the way.
Stumps are hazardous: While you can clearly most of the stumps, there are some that are camouflaged by grass, weeds, and other plants. This makes them tripping hazards for both children and adults.
Do you want to have a safe, beautiful yard? You should get rid of the tree stumps. The cool thing is that there are many ways in which you can do it. Some of these ways include:
Removing the stump by grinding it away
Do you have time and you don’t want to hire a contractor to help in removing the stump? You should consider grinding the stump away by yourself. All you need is to hire a grinder and get to work.
A grinder is a heavy duty machine that weighs around 1,000 pounds so you must be prepared to carry a lot of weight. If you don’t own the machine, you will have to rent it. You can rent it between $100 and $200 for a single day.
When using the machine, you should be cautious as the machine is very dangerous as it can easily cut you. For you to protect yourself from any danger, always wear protective gear. If you have never used the grinder before, hire someone at the rental place to help you in using it.
Removing the stump by hand
Did you just put down a small tree and the stump is small? You don’t need to hire a grinder to remove it. If you have the energy to do it, you can easily remove it by hand.
You should start by using a chainsaw or limbing saw to remove any lower branches from the trunk of the tree. You should then remove the top portion of the trunk, while leaving enough of it to use as leverage.
Using a pick mattock, shovel, and digging bar, reveal the roots around the stump. You should then use a hose or power washer to remove all the dirt around the roots. Since the tree is small, the roots are also small. Cut them using an ax.
After removing most of the roots, try pushing the trunk. If it’s still held by more roots, cut them and push more. You should continue pushing until you have uprooted the entire tree.
Removing the stump using chemicals
If manual labor isn’t your cup of tea, you can always go the chemical route. For you to get rid of the stump this way you need a drill, potassium nitrate, an ax, chainsaw, and fuel oil, or kerosene.
You should start by cutting off as much of the stump as possible using a chainsaw then drill holes around the perimeter of the stump. Once you are done, pour substantial amounts of potassium nitrate into the holes then fill them with water.
Wait for 6-8 weeks or until the stump gets spongy after which you should break up the spongy stump with an ax.
If you have waited for six weeks and the stump doesn’t get soggy, consider saturating it with fuel or kerosene and allow it to sit for another week or so.
If you don’t like the idea of breaking up the spongy stump, you should put the stump on fire and let it burn and smolder until it completely disappears.
When you remove a stump, you should contact the city and find out whether they will come to pick it up. You also should consider confirming from the tree removal services Montgomery County providers whether there are local recycling centers where you can take the large stumps.
