Stump grinding · Stump removalStump grinding in Millington, TN
Stumps ground 4 to 6 inches below grade for a lawn, up to 12 for a post or a slab, by a tracked Bandit that fits through a 32-inch gate. Family-owned, based in Millington, free estimates by text.
A photo, a number, a date
Text a picture of the stump to (901) 355-3112 with something in it for scale, and say what's around it: a fence, a foundation, sprinkler heads, a gas meter. You'll get a free estimate for the grinding. If you want the spot sodded or the chips hauled off afterward, ask, and that's priced on its own so you can take one without the other. On the day, the grinder comes through the gate on rubber tracks, the stump comes down in layers until it's below the depth you asked for, and the chips get raked level into the hole. A typical yard stump is done well under an hour on the machine. The setup and the walk-in are where the time goes.
Layer by layer, below grade
The machine is a Bandit SG-40: 29 inches wide, 1,500 pounds, a 40-horsepower engine spinning an 18-inch wheel of carbide teeth. It swings the wheel side to side across the stump and steps down an inch or two at a time, so a stump goes from a table to a pile of chips without anything being pulled, pried, or dug. Because it rides on rubber tracks instead of wheels, it spreads its weight and gets across a lawn without the ruts a tow-behind rig leaves.
Depth is a choice, not a default. Four to six inches below the surface is enough to seed or sod over. A fence post, a new tree in the same hole, or a slab poured over the spot needs more, and the SG-40 will go a foot down. Surface roots, the kind that run across a lawn from an old oak or a sweetgum, can be chased with the same wheel; they add time, so they're worth mentioning in the photo.
What's around the stump matters more than the stump. The wheel can work right up against a fence line or a foundation, but sprinkler heads, low-voltage lighting wire, dog-fence wire, and a downspout drain are all things a grinder will find the hard way. Tennessee 811 marks gas, electric, water, and fiber for free with three working days' notice; it does not mark anything on your side of the meter. Walk the yard with us before the machine starts, and point out what you know is there.
The stump is priced by what it takes, not by the hour
Every stump is quoted from a look at it, which is why a photo gets you a number fast. Five things move it, in rough order: the width of the stump at the ground, which is always wider than the cut; how deep you need it; surface roots you want gone; access, meaning whether the grinder can drive to it or has to be walked in around a pool or down a slope; and whether you want the chips raked in or hauled off. Extra stumps on the same trip run less than the first, because the setup is done. A hollow or rotten stump grinds faster than it looks. A stump with old bricks, concrete, or fence hardware grown into it is the one that surprises people, because steel and rock eat carbide teeth, and it's worth saying so up front if you know the history.
Under about 8 inches, rent one. Over that, call.
Rental grinders are real machines and they work on small stumps. A rental unit and a Saturday will take out an 8-inch crepe myrtle or a young maple. The math changes over that. Rental grinders run small wheels on small engines; on a big oak or pecan they bog down, the day disappears, and you still have a truck or trailer to return. They also throw chips with no one standing there who does it every week. Stumps with surface roots, stumps against a structure, and anything over about a foot across are the tracked grinder's job. If you text a photo and it's a rental-sized stump, we'll say so.
What the Mid-South does to a stump
The trees that come down around here come down for the same few reasons: spring storms, Bradford pears that split at the crotch, sweetgums nobody wanted in the first place, and old oaks and pecans that outlived the house. The stump is what's left after the tree company leaves, because grinding is a separate machine. A few of those species don't quit: Bradford pear, sweetgum, crepe myrtle, mimosa, hackberry, and elm will send up sprouts from roots left in the ground. Grinding takes out the crown of the stump, which is where most of that regrowth starts; sprouts that show up later can be mowed or cut and give up after a season or two. The ground itself is friendly to grinding, silt loam over clay with few rocks, which makes buried brick and old concrete footings the main thing to watch around older lots.
Before you text
Can you grind a stump right against a fence or the house?
Yes, with the guard down and the wheel working from the open side in. The cutter can get within a couple of inches of a fence post or a foundation. What we can't do is grind the roots that run under the slab or the fence line; those stay, and they rot out on their own over a few years without doing any harm.
Do you take the roots out?
The stump and the flare where the roots start, yes. The roots running out under the lawn stay in the ground. Grinding is not the same as pulling a stump with a backhoe; it's cleaner, cheaper, and leaves the yard intact, and the roots left behind aren't a problem for grass. If you're building over the spot, say so and the grinding goes deeper and wider.
Can I plant a new tree where the old one was?
Not in the same hole, or not right away. The chips need to come out, the hole needs topsoil, and even then the old root mass is competing with the new tree for water. Plant a few feet over, or let the spot sit a season with the chips out and topsoil in. Grass, on the other hand, can go in as soon as the chips are out and the spot's graded.
Will the grinder tear up my lawn?
Rubber tracks are the reason it usually doesn't. The machine spreads its weight and turns gently. On a wet week, though, any 1,500-pound machine leaves impressions in soft ground, so if a part of the yard is soaked, say so and we'll plan the path in.
How many stumps can you do in a visit?
As many as the day holds. The second stump on a trip is always cheaper than the first, because the trailer, the walk-in, and the cleanup are already paid for. If the neighbor has one too, that's the time to mention it.
Send a photo. We'll send a number.
The fastest way to a price is a picture of the stump with something in it for scale. Text it to (901) 355-3112, or use the form and we'll text you back. If the phone rings through, we're probably running the grinder.