Changed my mind about stump grinding after a chat at the supply yard

Honestly, I used to think grinding a stump was just a quick cleanup job. I'd quote maybe $150 and get it done in an hour with the little rental machine. Then last week at the Greenleaf Supply in Springfield, I overheard a guy talking about a job where he found a full brick walkway buried under a stump from a 100 year old oak. He said it took his crew two extra days to deal with the bricks and backfill properly. Tbh, that made me realize I've been undercharging and under-planning for years. I never even thought to ask a client about what might be under their old trees. Now I'm adding a line to my estimate form asking about possible underground features. Has anyone else had a nasty surprise like that after the tree was down?

3 comments

3 Comments

jordan_young1mo ago

That brick walkway story is wild, but what really gets me is old irrigation lines. Hit one of those with a grinder and you're not just fixing the pipe, you're dealing with a mini flood in the client's yard. Makes you wonder what else people buried and forgot about over the years, right?

thomas2751mo ago

Used to think that was rare until it happened to my crew.

terry_thomas1mo ago

@thomas275 is right, it's not as rare as you'd hope... my cousin hit an old concrete footing last fall that wasn't on any survey. The grinder just bounced right off and we had to bring in a mini excavator. Makes you wonder what else is down there besides bricks and pipes, like old property lines or even forgotten septic tanks. Really changes how you look at a simple stump job.