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Is there any money in tree stump grinding?

the conservative atheist

the conservative atheist

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I'm guessing most people just use the same company they hired to take the tree down, unless they cut it themselves. Can you make $1,000 a year doing grinding only, with a $3K grinder, or is this too optimistic? I had a stump ground, and they used some massive tracked thing the size of a skidsteer. Not sure I could commit to that type of investment.
 
Do it. If it needs sharpening, there's a guy here that can do it.
 
A $1000 a year, that's it? I had a buddy that did that as his side job for years. He contracted for several construction companies and the big one was the Forest Service. He'd get a contract to go in to various remote areas to do that at camp grounds and for tree thinning areas. He said he made good money, enough that he bought a new Power Wagon and trailer to haul his equipment. I have no idea what his process was for getting those gigs though.
 
Most of the stump grinding is done by a 3rd party here, I know a couple guys that do it full time. The bigger the machine the better it is, bigger is faster, time is money. Not to mention, its easier on the machine. Most of the bigger machines here are tracked
 
Wheelerfreak said:
A $1000 a year, that's it? I had a buddy that did that as his side job for years. He contracted for several construction companies and the big one was the Forest Service. He'd get a contract to go in to various remote areas to do that at camp grounds and for tree thinning areas. He said he made good money, enough that he bought a new Power Wagon and trailer to haul his equipment. I have no idea what his process was for getting those gigs though.
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Realistically $1K isn't worth the time and effort. $3K a year would be an ok side gig though. Would be awesome to drop $30K on a tracked grinder and make that back year after year. I guess the biggest obstacle would be getting established, while having that kind of money tied up.
 
Buddy of mine used to live in a tree service's yard so I'd hang out there. They had a monster 3-wheeled stump grinder on like 60" equipment tires. Without the grinding head on, it looked like a huge backwards ATC.

EDIT: fuck me if I can find a picture of one Googling it :homer: I'll try to describe this unicorn.

3-wheel hydrostatic drive, 3 identical chevron tires (2 front, 1 rear) in the 60-72" range, and a burly arm up front that went up-down, side-side holding a ~6 foot wheel w/ carbide teeth. May have been a one-off or low-production rig, maybe someone built it off an old feller-buncher chassis?

Thing was (faded) dark red, and with the spinny destructo business removed (for repair / rebuild / get that mofo back running hackfuckery), it looked like a ginormous cartoon ATC 185 :laughing:
 
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I have a handful I need removed. I have no idea what it costs, I was just going to rent one, or go at it with the loader till I pulled it out
 
I rented one for $200/half a day. Money well spent, I thought. Took out 12 stumps including this big one in the front yard that was cut way too high. People are lazy though, I bet you could make some bank
99113A8D-7FD3-4D9C-8060-2E542EF83E52.jpeg
 
Ive went on a a few dozen stump grinding jobs and bid several back in the day for my roomate while i was on disability. Just to show up is $200 and $600-1000 / day is doable if your familiar with your aquiptment and work hard. There is a steep learning curve when it comes to stump grinding and a fine line between being efficiant and over working your machine.
 
We had a trailer version as a kid. But sold it to just do tree service stuff. That style is pretty much gone these days.

Where I grew up, most stump grinding guys were just that. One guy is still rocking his 80s K30 that was cut down to a ~4' flat bed to maneuver the tow behinds into tight spots :smokin:

Now a days little ones like the Dead Pool posted, or skid steer attachment versions are all too common and probably make it harder to do a stand alone business.

My buddy has owned a bunch of different equipment and does pretty well. I talked about buying something a few years ago to start something up. He said something that made a lot of sense and I think most people don't think this way. He said that he usually gets work first, then either rents or buys what he needs for that job. So if I were op, I'd try and get some grinding jobs, and rent some machines first. You might hate it and be glad you didn't spend a bunch on something :laughing: or at the least, it might help you decide what type of machine you want.
 
2big bronco said:
Ive went on a a few dozen stump grinding jobs and bid several back in the day for my roomate while i was on disability. Just to show up is $200 and $600-1000 / day is doable if your familiar with your aquiptment and work hard. There is a steep learning curve when it comes to stump grinding and a fine line between being efficiant and over working your machine.
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You know you're area pricing is different from basically the rest of the country right? :flipoff2:

I also remember someone saying that the teath are really expensive and don't like rocks, so that's another factor. Wipe out all your teeth and your profit for the day is shot :laughing:
 
I’m a well known skeptic, but $1k….
Yeah that’s doable.

Around here it’s relatively cheap.
I could envision once you get the hang of it, it being relatively easy, straight forward, and a job that has an end. (All my shit seems to drag on for fuckin ever)
 
Dead Pool said:
I rented one for $200/half a day. Money well spent, I thought. Took out 12 stumps including this big one in the front yard that was cut way too high. People are lazy though, I bet you could make some bank
99113A8D-7FD3-4D9C-8060-2E542EF83E52.jpeg
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I rented that exact same machine from Home Depot 2 months ago. I rented it for the day, but it quit running at lunch time, so I had to take it back. The teeth were dull, so it wasn't working as well as it should anyway. The next day I rented a similar unit from Sunbelt. It was a pile of shit. As soon as the cutting wheel met any resistance, the motor cut off. I spent an hour trying to get it to grind up one old 12" diameter pine stump, and had to give up and take the machine back . I doubt I will ever try renting one again.
 
Dead Pool said:
I rented one for $200/half a day. Money well spent, I thought. Took out 12 stumps including this big one in the front yard that was cut way too high. People are lazy though, I bet you could make some bank
99113A8D-7FD3-4D9C-8060-2E542EF83E52.jpeg
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WTF? Why would you not cut that flush then grind- waste of time.
Around these parts $1,000 a week is more like it if you have the weekend time to invest in doing it.
 
DannyK said:
I rented that exact same machine from Home Depot 2 months ago. I rented it for the day, but it quit running at lunch time, so I had to take it back. The teeth were dull, so it wasn't working as well as it should anyway. The next day I rented a similar unit from Sunbelt. It was a pile of shit. As soon as the cutting wheel met any resistance, the motor cut off. I spent an hour trying to get it to grind up one old 12" diameter pine stump, and had to give up and take the machine back . I doubt I will ever try renting one again.
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That was my experience as well.
 
DozerDan82 said:
WTF? Why would you not cut that flush then grind- waste of time.
Around these parts $1,000 a week is more like it if you have the weekend time to invest in doing it.
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Most guys who run a lot of saws don't like cutting close to the ground as there is a much higher chance of hitting rocks that the tree pulled up as it grew.
 
Each stump is 100 dollars or 500 minimum to get a guy out here. I've rented the burrito sg30 a few times works well for what it is.

I have a hard time buying a 30k machine for a side gig unless you have an in with a arborist or someone that will keep you busy.
 
YotaAtieToo said:
Ya, idk, I heard someone say that. Sounded like bs to me too. :laughing: but kinda makes sense as I've hit rocks cutting roots before..
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Roots yes, but I have 'flush' cut many a stump and never hit anything that would warrant not doing the cut. 12" + of grinding seems silly to me.
 
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