A stump left in the ground is a trip hazard, a mower hazard, a termite invitation and, on most blocks, the one thing stopping you from finishing the yard.
We grind stumps out across the Gold Coast, both after our own removals and for people who had a tree taken out years ago by someone who left the stump behind.
You can dig a stump out with an excavator. On a bare block being prepared for construction, that is sometimes the right approach.
On a finished yard it usually is not. Digging leaves a crater the size of a small car, wrecks the surrounding lawn and garden, and needs a machine that has to get in there in the first place. You then have to buy soil to backfill it.
Grinding is different. A grinder chews the stump down below ground level and turns it into mulch, which drops straight into the hole. The surrounding lawn stays intact, and when we are done you have a level patch of ground you can turf, plant or pave over.
The standard is around 200 to 300 millimetres below the surface, which is deep enough for turf and most garden beds.
If you are going deeper, tell us before we start. Laying a slab, building a retaining wall or planting a replacement tree in the same spot all need more taken out, and we will price it accordingly. It is much cheaper to do it once than to come back.
Worth knowing: grinding removes the stump and the main root plate, not every lateral root running out under the lawn. Those roots decay in the ground over a few years and do not regrow, which for almost every residential job is exactly what you want. If you are excavating for a pool or footings and need the roots gone properly, say so and we will quote it as a different job.
Not every stump is a straightforward grind, and this is where having arborists rather than a bloke with a hire machine matters.
Tight access. If the only way in is a 900 millimetre side gate, the machine has to fit through it. We measure the narrowest point at the quote, because that single number decides what can be brought in and how long the job takes. Nobody should be turning up on the day and discovering they cannot reach the stump.
Stumps near services. Water, gas, irrigation, electrical and septic lines all sit at grinder depth. We check what is around before the wheel goes in.
Big old stumps. A hardwood stump a metre across, from a gum removed years ago, is a serious grind. They are slower than people expect, and worth pricing properly rather than guessing.
Stumps against structures. Up against a house slab, a retaining wall, a pool shell or a fence footing, the work has to be careful and there is a limit to how close a machine can safely get.
Palm stumps. Palms are fibrous rather than woody and grind differently. They tend to be wet, stringy and messy, but they do come out
We quote onsite, usually at the same visit as the tree work if you are having a tree removed
Before grinding starts we check for services, clear the area and set up boards or screens where flying chips could damage a fence, a car or a window.
The grind itself is fast on most residential stumps. Once it is done we rake the mulch back into the hole and level it off. If you would rather the mulch was taken away so you can bring in clean soil, tell us and we will remove it, though that is extra volume in the truck so it does affect the price slightly.
You are left with a level patch. Turf or plant it whenever you are ready.
Stump grinding is priced on diameter, timber hardness, access and how deep you need it.
A small stump on an open lawn is a quick job. A metre wide hardwood stump behind a narrow gate is a very different one. Our team rate is $660 per hour across an eight hour day, and most stump jobs are quoted as a fixed price after we have seen them.
If you are already having a tree removed, adding the grind to the same visit is the cheapest way to do it, because the crew and gear are already on site.
It depends on the diameter of the stump, the timber, the access and the depth you need. We quote a fixed price onsite. Adding it to a tree removal on the same visit is the cheapest option
No. Once the stump and root plate are ground out, the tree cannot reshoot. Some species send up suckers from remaining lateral roots for a season, and those die off on their own.
Yes, if we grind deeper than standard and you replace the mulch with clean soil. Fresh mulch ties up nitrogen while it breaks down, which will hold a new plant back. Tell us at the quote so we can do it properly first time.
Yes, and the width of the narrowest gap on the way in decides which machine we can use. We check this when we quote so there are no surprises on the day.
