Stump removal - burning it out!!!

[bigi]

I have ~14" stump in my garden area that I want to remove.

I am going to drill several 3/4" holes and fill with KNO3 (+ sugar) and ignite

Anyone has tried this? What are your thoughts?

 

[gururu2]

interesting, but I think you are just going to end up with a black stump

 

[echo4747]

I have ~14" stump in my garden area that I want to remove.

I am going to drill several 3/4" holes and fill with KNO3 (+ sugar) and ignite

Anyone has tried this? What are your thoughts?

not sure the burning will last long enough to be successful.. If this is in a residential area it will probably create a lot of smoke/smoldering for a long time. Neighbors may complain. It would probably be better/faster just to rent a stump grinder ( you could grind 14 in stump rather quickly.

 

[tracerbullet]

I've tried products intended for it, to dry out the stump then soak in fuel and ignite. Didn't work. Next grabbed a big wood boring bit and a power drill and went to it. Worked awesome.

Igniting it sounds fun but I'll agree to just do it manually.

 

[NetWareHead]

I have ~14" stump in my garden area that I want to remove.

I am going to drill several 3/4" holes and fill with KNO3 (+ sugar) and ignite

Anyone has tried this? What are your thoughts?

If you want to do this properly, you need to wait a few weeks; this is NOT an overnight job. Typically you start by putting the potassium nitrate in the stump and waiting until it infuses the wood and makes it spongy. At this stage you can break the spongy rotten wood with an axe.

If you are allowed to burn in your yard and want a labor free method, soak the stump with diesel fuel. Dont use gasoline as will evaporate. Diesel is oil and will be absorbed by the wood. it may take a few days for the fuel to be completely absorbed by the wood. Light the stump and watch it burn. It helps when you were drilling to not only drill vertical passages in the stump but to crosslink them horizontally and 45 degrees. This will allow more oxygen in let the stump burn better

This will burn for days and will leave a cavern in the gound as the fire caves in the stump from underneath. You need to keep an eye on it and remove all flammable materials from nearby. This will kill any nearby vegetation and when done there will be a huge black scar. You will need some soil to fill the void left but once grass grows over the fresh soil, you will never know you had a tree here.

 

[bigi]

^Excellent!. Thanks

 

[paperfist]

Sawzall + demo blades!

 

[K7SN]

Saltpeter (What I call Potassium Nitrate) + holes as deep and many as you have saltpeter at most 3" apparent using a 3/8" or 1/2" augur bit NetWareHead said it best, the more holes the sooner it will decompose to that soaked up spongy condition; diesel works well, I used kerosene when I was a lad. Remember you want the saltpeter to soak after you stuff the saltpeter in the holes, add some boiling hot water to liquidly and hasten the process.

Beware that some municipalities may frown on burning. The other alternative; let it rot on it's own, You do as above but don't use Diesel and don't burn; IMHO saltpeter works best but all nitrogen-rich fertilizers work.

 

[mizzou]

Stump burning has the possibility of damaging nearby vegetation. Once you get a stump burning pretty good, it will also start smoldering into the roots. The whole thing can remain quite burning hot for a really long period of time.

It's a fairly economical way of ridding yourself of a stump, as long as you don't have neighbors close by and local fire codes allow it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqnvKRfc8bM

 

[Raizinman]

I have numerous rental houses and stumps are just part of owning property. I have a stump guy who comes over with a grinder type device and just grinds down the stump. He charges me about $50 to $75 (depending on the size of the stump), takes him about 30 minutes and I'm all done with it. Check your local free paper or Craigslist for your local stump grinder. After you have been burnt with chemicals or hurt your back playing stumps, you will find the $50 or $75 a good investment.

 

[bigi]

All have been good replies. Thanks.

This is a new garden, no vegetation yet so I can try many things now.

I already have auger bit and saltpeter. Will try drilling route first.

 

[calahan]

I know the best way how to remove any stump forever http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=8ec_1429565955

 

[Drako]

I know the best way how to remove any stump forever http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=8ec_1429565955

LOL, that was great.

 

[TheGardener]

Wow, pour diesel fuel into the stump. You do understand this is a garden. Would you buy fruits and vegetables at the market, where a sign offers a disclaimer, may have come in contact with petroleum based products? Yummy!

What about grinding out the stump?

 

[NetWareHead]

Wow, pour diesel fuel into the stump. You do understand this is a garden. Would you buy fruits and vegetables at the market, where a sign offers a disclaimer, may have come in contact with petroleum based products? Yummy!

What about grinding out the stump?

Stump grinders are expensive to rent (and you need a truck to tow it home) or hire and not everyone can use one. Plus it still leaves the roots and parts of the trunk too deep for the grinder to work on. Even if you grind as much as possible, you still have the undergroung remaining portion of the stump that will hinder a rototiller for instance. Burning it thoroughly destroys the stump underground too and the entire stump (even underground) turns to ash; when burned and prepared properly. You can immediately begin planting a week later and not worry about remaining roots.

Im sure the days long burning that follows will be enough to thermally decompose any applied diesel fuel. The applied potassium nitrate is an oxidizer and will ensure this thorough burning, even underground where no air can reach. Even if some diesel happens to remain in the ground, it will decompose; just like any other organic hydrocarbon by bacterial action.

 

[PricklyPete]

I have numerous rental houses and stumps are just part of owning property. I have a stump guy who comes over with a grinder type device and just grinds down the stump. He charges me about $50 to $75 (depending on the size of the stump), takes him about 30 minutes and I'm all done with it. Check your local free paper or Craigslist for your local stump grinder. After you have been burnt with chemicals or hurt your back playing stumps, you will find the $50 or $75 a good investment.

This.

 

[cbrunny]

14 inches? carve out the inside & have a sweet bonfire pit for a bonfire or two. or three.

 

[calahan]

14 inches? carve out the inside & have a sweet bonfire pit for a bonfire or two. or three.

I like your idea! Some amount of cooking oil is all what you need for start!

 

[skyking]

First thing I do when I don't have an excavator handy is to dig around it, wash it off with a hose and cut it flush to the ground with a chainsaw. Washing off the dirt will save the chain. Then I decide if I can live with it, plant around it etc and let nature take her course on the rot process.

 

[K7SN]

First thing I do when I don't have an excavator handy is to dig around it, wash it off with a hose and cut it flush to the ground with a chainsaw. Washing off the dirt will save the chain. Then I decide if I can live with it, plant around it etc and let nature take her course on the rot process.

Good advice if you can live with it but add a fertilizer Saltpeter (potassium nitrate) or ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) by drilling and softening with boiling water to make a solution after filling the bored holes with a nitrate significantly help nature complete the rotting process and nitrates unlike petrochemicals are good for gardens.