Stump Grinding DIY vs. Hiring a Professional
So many services can now be done by intelligent and “handy” people who are able to research tasks and watch YouTube videos in order to handle do-it-yourself (DIY) projects. However, when it comes to the intensive, complicated, and sometimes dangerous job of stump grinding, there are reasons to hire a professional company to do the job for you, instead of doing it yourself. Below are items to consider when stump grinding on your property.
Cost of Time & Equipment
If you are trying to remove one or two stumps from your property, doing so would probably be considered the job of a “weekend warrior” who could rent the equipment and grind the stumps in a day or two. However, if you have larger or taller stumps, or multiple stumps to remove, then prepping the area, trimming the stumps, and checking for root growth around the stumps can take multiple days of work. Since renting stump grinding equipment can cost a hundred or more dollars a day, the cost will add up just for renting the actual stump grinder. These costs don’t include the safety equipment you will need to purchase to ensure that you are safe when working around sharp blades and flying debris. If you hire a professional stump grinding company, the company charges per stump, has all of the necessary equipment, and is faster and more efficient in prepping the stumps and surrounding areas to get the job done quickly.
Prepping the Stumps & Surrounding Area
Cutting down trees is an important part of protecting your property and your home or business. Trees that grow too close to the buildings on your property can be a danger during tornadoes, hurricanes, or even a strong summer storm. Once you have either cut the tree or trees down yourself, or hired a company to do it for you; you are left with tree stumps around your property. Removing these stumps can cost you as much or more than the tree cutting services you just completed.
Also, it’s not “quick and easy” to grind down stumps. There are a couple of things to check before you pull out the stump grinding equipment and start to chop everything up. The area around the tree stump needs to be inspected for rocks or manmade debris which can damage the blades on the stump grinder or even fly up and injure you during the process. Also, you need to check the existing root system of the stump to see if there is a possibility of regrowth. This applies mainly for large foliage that can regrow even after the bush has been completely chopped down. Finally, in order to save time, wear and tear on the blades, and for safety reasons, the leftover stump should be trimmed as close to the ground as possible to quickly and efficiently grind out the stump below ground level.
Stump Grinding Finishes
When thinking about stump grinding DIY, you will also need to remember that once you have rented the machine and safety equipment, prepped the ground, checked for roots, trimmed the stumps, and completed the stump grinding; you will be left with a small field of ground up stump chunks, debris, and dust that will either need to spread as mulch or removed from the area. When hiring a company like KNB Services, we are a one-stop-shop for handling stump grinding, mulching, or debris removal for your stump grinding project.
So, after evaluating the type of stump grinding job you have, use the information above to make a decision as to whether you should do the job yourself or hire a professional stump grinding company to handle it for you.
