DIY stump removal is tougher and riskier than it looks, with injury, fire, and underground hazards. Professionals use proper equipment, training, and insurance to remove stumps safely and efficiently.
So you’ve cut down a problematic tree, reducing it to nothing but a small stump in the ground. The next step is just to deal with the stump and finish the job, right? From above ground, it might look like a simple process, but tree stump removal is harder than it looks.
Improper tree stump removal could lead to problems like pest infestations or unwanted new growth. Plus, DIY attempts can be quite dangerous. Only yard landscaping companies have the necessary equipment and expertise to do the job safely.
Safety First
Without professional tree services, tree stump removal is likely to go wrong. According to OSHA, such processes can require intense physical effort and pose serious physical risks. For example, the roots can sometimes go deep, and the effort of uprooting the stump could cause back strain or other injuries.
Sometimes, people decide they’re going to try to save on stump removal costs by using fire as a shortcut. Fire will certainly make uprooting the tree easier and will make regrowth less likely. The trouble is, the fire can quickly get out of control.
If the fire gets out of control, you could end up calling the fire department and your home insurance company. It’s better to call a professional tree stump removal.
Chainsaws are less risky, but saw blades can also be hard to control in the hands of someone without experience. The wood in tree stumps can be unexpectedly hard, which can cause the saw blades to bind to the wood or kick back.
Underground Infrastructure
The risks run deeper than just the tree itself. There’s a whole world of municipal infrastructure under your feet, and sometimes, the tree roots can intersect with it. DIY stump removal has been known to cause damage to:
- Gas lines
- Water pipes
- Power lines
- Phone and internet cables
- Sewage lines
Professionals have the necessary equipment and expertise to locate any of these potential hazards, and they’ll take care to avoid damaging anything but the tree stump and its roots. In the unlikely event that they do cause damage to municipal infrastructure, these companies are fully insured, so they’re taking all the risk.
Training and Gear
Tree stump removal experts are still taking risks, but they mitigate them through a mix of:
- Training and experience
- Specialist removal equipment
- Protective safety gear
- Insurance policies
The fastest and most effective way to remove a tree is to use a stump grinding machine. While they’re effective, stump grinders are expensive, and it takes a skilled operator to use them safely and effectively.
According to David Z. Hambrick et al., it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert in something. With this kind of experience, what you see when looking at a stump is fundamentally different than what an expert sees. The average homeowner just sees a stump sticking out of the ground, but thanks to their experience working with hundreds of trees, an expert can look at the stump and see the roots and the decay pattern.
Professional Tree Stump Removal Means Efficiency
For a single stump removal, you’re obviously not going to buy your own stump grinder. Renting one might look cheaper than hiring professionals, but that’s not considering how fast a pro can get the job done.
Tree stump grinding is much faster when done by a trained and experienced professional. And you’ll find the costs of a professional job are lower than the rental fees that build up during a slower DIY attempt.
Plus, you need to get rid of the waste. Tree stumps don’t look like much, but the roots can run deep, meaning that your yard will be full of tree waste. It might require the use of a trailer to haul it away, which for DIYers could be an unexpected expense.
As you can see, doing your own tree stump removal isn’t as affordable as it might seem. When you factor in all the ways expenses can pile up, it’s usually not worth going through the tiring process yourself. Hire the pros, and you can sit back and relax, safe in the knowledge that the job will be done right.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do Tree Removal Professionals Prevent Regrowth?
While tree stumps look quite dead, some types of trees are surprisingly resilient. If you don’t finish the job correctly, new shoots can easily sprout up from the remains. This is even possible when there’s nothing left visible above ground.
This means a poorly done DIY removal can leave you playing whack-a-mole with the shoots returning year after year. Tree removal pros can guarantee the shoots won’t return. They have the experience to make it much less likely, but in the unlikely event you do see any regrowth, they’ll come back and finish the job.
Is There a Risk of Pests?
According to Washington State University, one of the biggest inconveniences that can arise from improper removal is that, as the wood rots, it provides an ideal home for all kinds of problematic pests. To eliminate the risk of these pests taking up residence in your yard (and possibly spreading to other parts of your property), remove the stump promptly.
If you’re a plant lover, fungi and other pathogens could also spread from the decaying stump to your beloved plants, decimating your garden with disease. Tree removal experts can finish the job, leaving nothing that could harbor pests.
Root Out Inconveniences with Professional Tree Stump Removal
DIY tree stump removal might seem like you’ll save money, but it takes a lot of time and energy. Pros are faster and more effective. Plus, they know how to prevent regrowth, pest infestations, and other inconveniences.
Here at Arbor Tech Tree Service, we offer high-quality yard landscaping services. Like the trees we handle, our roots in the Dallas area run deep; we’ve been operating here since 2009.
We’re fully bonded and insured, and we specialize in dangerous tree removal services. Don’t risk your safety or your property’s integrity with hazardous tree stump removal. Give us a call, and we’ll get the job done safely and effectively.
