Stumpbusting options

[Tim Downie]

I'm currently battling with a tree stump that really calls for some chainsaw action.

don't have a chainsaw however so I've done a lot of digging and managed to saw all the roots bar two biggies that are side by side. Total thickness fo the two remaining roots is about 9".

Their position means that hand sawing is next to impossible and I'm wondering about burning though it. I've got a good cavity under the stump now and could easily toss in the odd bag of coal. Anyone tried this approach?

The wood is still very green & wet so it's not going to burn readily and I'm a little wary of turning soft green wood into fire-hardened dry wood and make it even harder to deal with!

Of course I could always get a man in but where's the fun in that? ;-)

Tim

[A.Lee]

Dig deeper, and get access to use a wood saw. I had a similar one a few years back. Be prepared for the weight of the stump once it is free, I think you will struggle to move that yourself, never mind picking it up.

Yep, and it was a complete waste of time.Making a fire in a pit is not a good idea, unless you have some way of getting air to the bottom of the pit. The tree will be very wet as well, making burning it pretty futile. Alan.

[Roger]

The message from "Tim Downie" contains these words:

In recent years I have found an axe useful when the roots are too big to cut though with a mattock. The axe end on a mattock being (usually at least) a good deal blunter than an axe takes forever on thick roots. OTOH I find that with a sharp long handled axe I can cut through bigger roots and trunks faster with an axe than with a bow saw.

With overlapping roots you may need to cut the root in 2 places to give access to the root below. In which case make the cut furthest away from the tree first to reduce bounce.

[dom]

Daft idea - but it might work - as you don't have a chainsaw, you could try drilling zillions of holes from every direction to weaken the root sufficiently for an axe or bow saw to have a significantly easier time cutting it.

[Yvonne]

A chainsaw would loose its cutting abilty immediately if the chain came in contact with any soil particles. Have tried it before and it's a no no. Using a hand saw is soul-destroying also as when the wood is green/wet thesaw tends to lock up and you can't get a decent length of cutting stroke.

Having removed about 25 horrid Leylandii over the last 3 years, the best way I found was to dig out as you have done and then use an old chisel ( about 1.5 inch) with a 2 pound hammer. Regularly sharpen the chisel with an angle grinder. I also use a 4" bolster where appropriate.

Good luck

[AJH]

I agree, if a chainsaw with an old ( sacrificial) chain is out of the question then a sharp axe, and the means to re sharpen it. The soil looks sandy with no big stones. Stihl used to sell an excellent mattock with two very broad but thin faces but I haven't seen it listed recently.

I wouldn't consider burning a fresh root like this.

The hole would be better if larger in order to get under things. When we regularly used to hand dig stumps out we nearly always were too optimistic and didn't start with a big enough hole.

AJH

[dennis]

Do you have a compressor? I always fancied building a thermic lance to do that but I lack the stump to try it on.

[Tim Downie]

Old fan heater? I could direct it down to the base.

How about an oxidant? Could I mix sodium chlorate with coal? How do you make thermite?

As you may deduce, I still fancy the idea of burning it out. Sawing will be

*very* tricky because of where the roots are.

Tim

[AJH]

I've done, 30 years ago, it with an old vacuum cleaner on blow. I encased the stump in a tractor wheel and supplied the air via an old exhaust pipe down a hole drilled through the centre of the stump, frighteningly successful on a large old dry pine stump once it got up to temperature (about 4 am the householder told me, sounded like a low flying jet and the bedroom lit up orange until the 9ft flames reached the vacuum cleaner hose ;-)).

You'd need to get the oxidant into the wood, otherwise you just have a flash fire over the outside. The problem is to do with getting heat into the wood when the only way in is through the outside surface. You need enough heat to vapourise all the water in the stump and raise it to pyrolysis temperature and during all this steam leaving the wood is carrying away a lot of the heat you want to get inside it.

When we burn large bits of tree trunk we pierce them with a boring cut from the saw to act like a chimney and let the log burn from inside out, the mutual radiation from the inner surfaces helps keep the temperature up.

Aluminium powder and rusty iron filings, it still won't work as wood (and char) are quite good insulators.

AJH

[John Rumm]

I know someone who tried to burn a fence post stump out that way one once. Used diesel and an air compressor to get air down into the hole. All in all it was fairly hopeless!

This is a situation where I would use a reciprocating saw with a long green wood blade in it. Unlike a chainsaw it will happily cut through wood that is covered in soil and won't mind if you end up burying the blade in the ground while you work. If you knacker the blade then they are only a few quid for a pack of three, so it won't break the bank. If you need a basic saw for a one off job, the Axminster "White" one is not bad for the money.

[Jon]

[e-mail] declared for all the world to hear...

1. Anglegrinder to cut through the roots?
2. Get a chain round it and pull it out with a vehicle?

[Tim Downie]

I was just coming round to this idea before you mentioned it but it's good to hear some support for these saws.

Time to flex the credit card. ;-)

Tim

[Mark S.]

I'd be digging the hold a lot larger so you had easier access. :-)

Then you can cut across the roots than try and downwards, it's very annoying trying to cut anything in a small space.

Mark S.

[The Medway Handyman]

Dead right - soil kills chainsaw blades in seconds.

Drill as many holes as possible in the roots to weaken them.

From the picture it seems there is a road adjacent - hook a chain/strong rope up to a vehicle after drilling & pull it out.

[The Natural Philosopher]

I managed to do this with an old Leylandii stump

Lit a fire on top of it. It smouldered for days..eventually I raked gravel over the pit. No idea what's left down there.

drilling holes and filling with an oxidant like chlorate or saltpeter is good, but post 911 these sorts of things are hard to come by.

[Newshound]

Or a 30 mm wood chisel in an SDS drill, if you have one.

[Cordless Crazy]

Go for the recip saw with the long green wood blades. Check ebay ou for both and you will be pleasently surprised at the prices!

I've been using a Dewalt 18v cordless recip with cheap green woo blades about 9" long for that precise job for years. Works a treat an get a real sense of satisfaction when the bugger comes out the ground Mind you, you've got a heavy on there mate!

Good luck... oh and by the way... nice stump

-- Cordless Crazy

[Andy Dingley]

Aren't you the guy who thinks that gas-fired pottery kilns are an explosion hazard?

Make sure you get a grown-up to help you!

[Matty F]

Use a 1" spade bit to drill holes in the remaining roots. Attach a rope to the top of the tree and pull with a vehicle. Chop what's left with an axe.

[dennis]

Only yours. Others are well designed and used.