Clearing and road work

[climb.on]

The other recent post about what equipment to buy for land clearing got me thinking....

How big of a diameter stump can an Mini Excavator take out, with relative ease?

I'll be doing 1/2 mile of driveway/trail clearing this summer with my skid steer (Case 1845c). This is for a remote hunting cabin situation. I have a brush hog attachment, a brush puller attachment, grapple bucket and steel tracks. The brush puller is awesome. I can pull full trees up to 4" or 5" in diameter. However there will be around 20 larger trees up to about 12" that I will cut down and will need to deal with stumps. I figured I would rent a machine for the ditches and pulling larger stumps. I've used mini ex's before, but only to dig trenches. Just curious how big of a stump it can handle. Maybe I'd be further ahead renting a small dozer. I've seen small dozers push large stumps out like popping a zit....where my skid wouldn't even wiggle them. I'll have dump trucks bringing in any fill/gravel that may be needed and I'll spread/grade with the skidder.

Here are some pics of the work I have done, with the equipment I have, when I started building my house & shop. Just not much large stump removal was required.

 

[Flail]

Depends on the soil type. My “soil” is gumbo and rocks. Mostly rocks. Therefore the rootball can weigh 2 tons and I can’t pick it up with my kuboto L48. I have to gnaw off the rocks and gumbo with the backhoe for a while before I can pick up the root ball. Sand would be a different issue.

 

[KEH]

I've never used a skid steer or a mini excavator, so I don't have any expert advice, but the usual way to remove a stump without the use of a large bulldozer is to dig all around the stump breaking some or all of the feeder roots, then push over the stump. The mini excavator should be able to dig around a stump, especially for a 12 inch diameter tree. A tracked skid steer should be able to handle the rest.

KEH

 

[cvairwerks]

You could probably get someone to come in with a D6 sized dozer and cut the road in two days or less. Just have them push the trees over and to the side and clean them up on your own schedule. Cutting that distance with a min-ex is going to be weeks of work. Depends how much you value your time, as to which way to go. I know what mine is worth, and I'd leave long runs like that to someone else, unless I already owned the equipment and didn't have anything else to do.

 

[climb.on]

Depends on the soil type. My “soil” is gumbo and rocks. Mostly rocks. Therefore the rootball can weigh 2 tons and I can’t pick it up with my kuboto L48. I have to gnaw off the rocks and gumbo with the backhoe for a while before I can pick up the root ball. Sand would be a different issue.

Ha. No and thank god this ain't gumbo. Worked in it once and you you don't understand how tough it can be, unless you done it. I would be if a D6 would be big enough? LOL This a more sandy with some rocks.

 

[VocaTexas]

You need a grubber. In most soil I can grub trees about as large as a D-4 can push with my LS 180. It's all about leverage.

 

[climb.on]

You need a grubber. In most soil I can grub trees about as large as a D-4 can push with my LS 180. It's all about leverage.

Dang! You got a picture of what yours looks like? I've seen some on attachment sites, but I thought they were kinda gimmicky. Never seen one in action. I know what you mean about leverage. I couldn't believe I could pop a full size 5" aspen or pine with my brush puller. Grab it high, rock it and lift, out she comes! Probably could do larger even, but the tree gets too heavy for the machine once it's out.

 

[climb.on]

Here's a good video (not mine) of how my brush puller works on a small tree. I have the next size up machine from the one in the video.

 

[Bretny]

There are many sizes of mini excavator. There are also many dif types of tree roots and soil. I own a small mini excavator 3.5klbs. If its not rotted a bit or in loose soil i wouldnt personaly bother removing them. It can become a very expensive hole in the ground with a stump sticking out of it.

Cut them low, slice verticaly in the stumps to gather water and do your road as if its not there. Yes you may get some ground lowering as the stump rots but this is for a camp correct?
Adding some more gravel or grading it every year or two is prety normal on a dravel driveway. So spending $400+ to remove some stumps may not pay in the end.

 

[climb.on]

There are many sizes of mini excavator. There are also many dif types of tree roots and soil. I own a small mini excavator 3.5klbs. If its not rotted a bit or in loose soil i wouldnt personaly bother removing them. It can become a very expensive hole in the ground with a stump sticking out of it.

Cut them low, slice verticaly in the stumps to gather water and do your road as if its not there. Yes you may get some ground lowering as the stump rots but this is for a camp correct?
Adding some more gravel or grading it every year or two is prety normal on a dravel driveway. So spending $400+ to remove some stumps may not pay in the end.

Yep, for a camp. I may just flush cut them. But I thought I would flip them upside down and put them right back in the hole. I'll likely need to rent a mini-ex for a couple days either way, but I'm not sure.

 

[pogrelis97]

Any 8-10k excavator should be able to handle that job just fine, they are also small enough to haul on a standard 14k trailer which I'm going to assume you have if your hauling your skid loader around.

 

[Bretny]

Why would you bother digging them out just to burry them back in the same hole? The dirt around the stumps is alreaty compacted and settled so digging it up may hurt more than it helps.

I would just use the equipment you currently have and spread gravel on the driveway area. In this case $400 in gravel may work better than a $400 machine rental to have a chance at rwmoving the stumps.

 

[cj7jeep81]

I cleared most of the small stumps for my shop build with my dad's 25hp Kubota backhoe (B-series). Had a few bigger ones (wanting to say 10-15") that it couldn't do. Rented I think a 7.5k pound mini ex to clear the bigger ones, and no trouble really. Had one bigger stump (20" or so), that was more than it wanted to do, and since it was a few feet beyond my build, I left it. But for 12" stumps, should work just fine. Just take your time and dig around them well.

 

[racerex]

I cleared most of the small stumps for my shop build with my dad's 25hp Kubota backhoe (B-series). Had a few bigger ones (wanting to say 10-15") that it couldn't do. Rented I think a 7.5k pound mini ex to clear the bigger ones, and no trouble really. Had one bigger stump (20" or so), that was more than it wanted to do, and since it was a few feet beyond my build, I left it. But for 12" stumps, should work just fine. Just take your time and dig around them well.

Similar for me. I cleared smaller stumps with a CAT 303 with no problem. For the big stuff, jumped up to a Cat 315. It helps to have a buddy in the commercial demo business that can just drop off equipment at your house to "play" with.

 

[OneOfEm]

When I was doing site prep for my workshop build, I discovered three large Live Oak stumps that the previous owner of the property had cut off at what was then ground level. One was from a tree that had been about 16", another about 24", and the last monster was from a big multi-trunk tree over 36" in diameter, total.

I'd rented a mini excavator to clear some small brush over the site and do some trenching, but didn't realize the rootballs were there. Thankfully we're mostly sand with a bit of clay.

I was able to use the bucket to clear the roots, and was able to free everything but one tap root from the big stump with the excavator. we had to use a chain/truck to twist the big stump to break off the tap root. I was able to pull the smaller two stumps from their holes with the excavator, but had to dig a ramp then pull the big one out with the truck.

Know the machine's limits, and you can handle it.




P.S. I have pictures on my home PC...

 

[xkvator]

it depends on the tree(roots), and the soil...
here in S.W. Pa., we have heavy clay soil...

I have a Bobcat 331 and a Case 580K...I wont punish the Bobcat on stumps, unless theyre small...
the Case will pop 12" stumps out fairly quick and easy...
I just did some 24" - 36" Oak stumps, and dug all around to break the roots, then got the bucket under different places, and levered up to break it free...
ended up with some 8 to 10 foot diameter holes...
and had to repack the boom cylinder...just the packing kit was $140 at case...

 

[Evilunclegrimace]

I would cut the stumps/tree high 6 feet or so and use the height for extra leverage so the mini could pull on them after you dig a few roots loose.

 

[Beegs]

10k pound and up. Frost tooth or trenching bucket work well for breaking roots and popping the stump.

 

[Red 17]

I used the dig and pull over method to remove two trees. I had wires and an uncooperative neighbor to deal with. I used a backhoe to dig out around the base of the trees. After limbing the trees, I did a little more shovel work and a 2 ton come along. Very therapeutic. The skid steer will pull those over after the root job. The higher you hitch, the easier the pull. YMMV

 

[Joe69]

I burn my stumps out. I have a fire ring that I put around the stumps, start a good, hot fire, then let it smolder for 2 or 3 days. It'll literally leave tunnels where the roots used to be. Don't stir it up once you have a good bed of coals, unless you plan on putting more firewood on it. That will only put the fire out prematurely.

I have a John Deere 210 skid steer with a backhoe attachment, and I still prefer this method. It leaves almost no cleanup work, just a hole to fill with dirt.

Disclaimer: I live in an area that isn't prone to wild fires, and I don't do this when it's been extremely dry.

Joe

 

[machsnell]

You said you have ditches to cut also? I assume that is swales on the sides of the road for water?

Get a mid size excavator (midi) or a backhoe with a swivel bucket wain roy style attachment. Rent it for a day with a one foot tooth bucket and a 3 foot smooth grading bucket and cut your ditches perfectly and rip the stumps out quickly.

Hard to find lager machines with a swivel bucket but even if you had a small 10k lb machine it would be plenty for a dozen 12" and lower stumps and you could cut perfect v ditches.

Dealing with rotting stumps down the road *****. I inherited 3 in my last house and eventually every year it needed to be filled and new seed.



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[NUTTSGT]

Yep, for a camp. I may just flush cut them. But I thought I would flip them upside down and put them right back in the hole. I'll likely need to rent a mini-ex for a couple days either way, but I'm not sure.

Like Joe mentions, I was going to suggest cutting them flush and burning them. If this is basic trail road to a camp, you'll use it how much ?

Get some 55 barrels, top/bottoms cut out and set over the stumps(on a few bricks). Toss everything you cut down feed into those barrels and build a big pile of nice coals.


If not, and you have a 1/2 mile to clear, I think the small dozer might be nice to get the majority of the path cleared. Once you have the basic trail done, you can go back over and do some finish work with your skid steer. Any used back hoe attachments available in your area ?

 

[Kev442]

You could probably get someone to come in with a D6 sized dozer and cut the road in two days or less. Just have them push the trees over and to the side and clean them up on your own schedule. Cutting that distance with a min-ex is going to be weeks of work. Depends how much you value your time, as to which way to go. I know what mine is worth, and I'd leave long runs like that to someone else, unless I already owned the equipment and didn't have anything else to do.

Yup. $2500 and I had 1/4 mile of road through heavy forest and a scraped area for future building. The huge piles he pushed around gave me years of work in my spare time piling stumps to burn, cutting firewood and putting soil back where I wanted it. This is the type of one of his two units. He was a one man operation, him, his dog, two chainsaws and a couple Pettibones.

 

[VocaTexas]

This would probably be the 'Cadillac' for tree and brush grubbing:

A friend of mine designed and patented the Grub 'n Rake. I believe he sold a manufacturing license to New Holland for the attachment. He builds and sells them from his shop.

My grubber is a bit less eloquent. I built an attachment frame from 2x4x1/4 rectangle tubing, then used grader blade cutting edges for the grubber. I spaced two uprights a bit over a foot apart, then welded a piece between the two so that when the boom is completely lowered the foot is about ten inches into the soil. I roll the foot so that it has about twenty degrees positive incidence to the soil and drop it into the ground about two feet from the tree. As I'm moving forward I roll it completely back. When the backplate hits the trunk I raise the boom. Unless they are fairly sizable trees this will usually rip the roots out of the ground. Sometimes you have to circle the tree and loosen the soil around the roots. Most of my grubbing is mesquite which has a very extensive root system.

 

[climb.on]

Thanks for all the responses guys. So many options - will look at all of them. I love hearing how people approach the same problems so differently and they works out just fine. Lots of variables with this that I won't bore you with, but man it's exciting planning the next project!

 

[Bretny]

Yup. $2500 and I had 1/4 mile of road through heavy forest and a scraped area for future building. The huge piles he pushed around gave me years of work in my spare time piling stumps to burn, cutting firewood and putting soil back where I wanted it. This is the type of one of his two units. He was a one man operation, him, his dog, two chainsaws and a couple Pettibones.

That sounds like a royal pain in the ****. Lol

Separate burn able wood at the time you cut the tree. Less mess later and alot less chaisaw chains.