Big 34" DBH red oak died this past summer, was felled last week. Trying to burn the stump. I cut six or so cuts deep into the stump with my chainsaw's 20 inch bar and poured in a mix of used motor oil and diesel. Let that soak several hours or maybe it was overnight. Then I built a large fire of uglies and knots this morning and it's been going about ten hours now. I keep feeding it wood. Anyone ever done this and had any luck with any particular method? I did this on a smaller oak one time and it worked very well. I guess I kept a fire going 2-3 days and it burned deep into the roots, so, was a big success. This one, I was shocked I hit water in one of those deep cuts. We certainly have not been having much rain! The very center of this tree at the bottom of the trunk and into the stump is rotten. BTW, before I ever did anything, I cut the stump off pretty darn close to the ground. Big stump!
I did that with quite a few smaller 10-12” stumps over the years. I would excavate underneath them, get a roaring fire going and keep it fed all day. Didn’t want to use diesel or any other fuel because I was planting a garden in the area afterwards. Sounds like you’re doing what you’ve got to do to get rid of the large ones.
I burned out the huge ash stump from my property. What worked best for me was a leaf blower. Just building fires on it only went so far but that forced air really did the trick.
I did it for fun once. I drilled a large hole in the top and drilled into the base at a 45. I used my stihl bt 2 stroke drill to do it. I used diesel fuel. Lots O' fun. It acted like what I know now as a rocket stove. It took a long time, but probably not near as long as a oak stump would. I had one of my shop vacs hooked up ready to push air, but it burn just fine and smoldered for a couple weeks.
I always build my slash piles on a big stump. When I torch it off, I also burn up the stump. We don't have a water table in the ground anywhere near here - So moisture is never an issue. The stumps will often burn 3+ feet into the ground. The roots will then become a tunnel burn. It's pretty cool. I then have to backfill the holes with chips of wood, bark, dirt and gravel.
No, I just rent a stump grinder. Wonderful invention. It was money well spent. 5 minutes later….no stump anymore.
I burned several stumps out on our current house lot when I built it. Tee peed the smaller limbs and brush on the stumps a la Cash Larue and added construction wood scrap. Added a little petrol and off they went. Had at least one stump going, at any given time, for about 2 months! Worked fine.
Over the years I've burnt many ash stumps. I cut them as close to the ground as I can. Then cut up to 6 groves in it. Then I dump a 20 lb. bag of charcoal on it and light it off. When the coals look perfect for cooking, I cover the stump and burning coals with a metal garbage can lid or roofing tin, trying to make it as airtight as possible. If they have been dead for a long time I've had them burn like this for over a week. And when they burn real well they will follow the roots almost all the way to their end. Sometimes it takes a second and third bag but it's still way less money than renting a stump chipper or paying someone to chip them.
I got several large poplar stumps that are left from some trees I cut a year ago. Though about trying to burn them. Some are over 60 years old. How long should they season before I can try burning them like you all do. They were trying to sprout last summer but I kept chopping off the sprouts as they grew. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
University of youtube is your next best friend for topic searches like this. Type "stump burning" in it's word search. Proceed with caution.
I drive down the road to my buddy's seed farm and borrow his Kobleco excavator and dig them out. Big turbo diesel steel tracked machine, climate controlled cab too. I've pulled some medium sized ones out with one of the tractors as well. I cut the trunks about 10 feet up, put on a heavy logging chain at the top, hook up one of the tractor in low range, FWA and drive away with the chain on the drawbar and they usually pop right out. Problem is, they always leave a big hole I have to backfill.
You Tube university has some really dumb stump burning-removal vids too. People amaze me with their stupidity and then they make a video of it as well.
Burned a few out in my yard. Just build my campfires on top. Have one in the pile now. It’s gonna take awhile. The best thing is keep the fire going,,,for days,,,,,,,,, Only problem is this fire pit isn’t close to my house. Not fond of leaving big fires alone so it’s gonna be there for awhile.
I been saying thats whats wrong with the country lately people giving compliments to idiots doing stupid things on YouTube some of the chainsaw videos are disturbing
I burned 26 large oak stumps . I started by digging down a foot and removing all the dirt from around all the roots ,At first it was not going so well then I put a 55 gal drum with both ends removed over or on top of the stump and filled with trash wood . They burned out over night and the next day I remove the barrel and back fill. I turned thick under growth and stumps into a veggie garden in a couple of months .
I wish I had taken progress pics when I burned a 4ft maple stump. Every October I take 2-3 weeks off. For 2 years, I was burning that stump on my October vacations when I wasn't hunting. With the size and vegetation behind it, I couldn't try to burn it all at one time. I also wanted to keep the old fir stump it was sort of connected to. What worked for me was to start my fire in one of the big crotch areas where the roots flaired out and made a pocket. Then I took a sheet of steel and leaned it onto the burning area to direct the flames and heat toward the stump. The steel was a huge help. That and just feeding the fire for days. I even got a pickup load of pallets to feed the fire. Part of the stump is still there, and there's a cavern where the fire followed one of the roots. I still dump weeds and grass clippings in it. The best I have on my phone is a before pic. Ignore the pyrotechnics in the foreground.
