Residential Landscaping: Understanding Your Options for Tree Stump Removal
Tree stumps can compromise the aesthetics of your residential landscape. Also, the presence of these features can pose significant hazards. For instance, a person could sustain serious injury from collision or tripping. Therefore, if you have had a tree in your property cut recently, you should make plans for stump removal. Ideally, you should hire an experienced tree service for this task. However, if you are interested in DIY removal, consider using one of these outlined methods:
Mechanical Removal
You can remove a stump from your property by using a tree grinder. This equipment consists of a circular blade with strong teeth. With this machine, you can cut and grind away the unsightly feature from your landscape. When using a grinder, you should start by clearing rocks and general debris from the area. This process will prevent the damage of the blades on stones or accidents. If the stump is still tall, you should cut as much as possible with a chainsaw.
Once the remaining stump is close to the ground, use the grinder to chop away the material. Remove the cut pieces gradually until the stump is below the ground. You should note that mechanical removal can be dangerous because of flying pieces of debris. Therefore, you should wear protective clothing, steel toe boots and eye protection. Also, if you are not confident with heavy machinery, you should hire a professional tree removal service to avoid unnecessary issues.
Chemical Removal
Manual labour is not for every homeowner. If you are not interested in handling machines, you can use chemicals to eliminate the tree stump in your home. You will find that landscaping products suppliers and garden centres have rotting supplies. These commercial products often contain high nitrogen chemicals which can accelerate decomposition. To remove the stump, you will need to allow the tree rotting product and water to soak into the tree remains. You should consider drilling some holes into a short stump before pouring the chemical and water. Leave the stump as directed until the material becomes spongy and then remove with an axe.
Removal by Burning
If you are not willing to use manual labour or wait for the stump to rot, you should consider burning the tree remnant. For this method, you will require potassium nitrate which has explosive properties and the ability to accelerate combustion. You should drill holes into the stump, pour potassium nitrate in and dissolve with hot water. Place some scrap wood on top, light a fire and wait for ignition. Finally, remove the remains.
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