With all the collective knowledge here at the campfire I wanted to get some input on the removal of a palm tree stump. Growing up in rural MN removing a tree stump was pretty straight forward get a big enough piece of equipment and rip it out.

Here in FL I need to get rid of a palm tree stump that is interfering with the main plumbing line running to the city main. A multitude of potential problems await it seems as in accordance with famous Murphy of law fame.

1. Location: Not to belittle our fine surveyors and public works employees of the 1950's but for some reason the lot layout and the city sewer main do not connect. Thus we have a 20 foot easement into the neighbors lot. The offending tree is of course on the other side of the fence.

2. Obstacles: A large oak tree to one side and a powerline pole to the other. Lots of wires and junk to work around.

3. Utilities: Buried gas line, the aforementioned sewer pipe and other stuff like that.

4. Size of the stump this was a clump of about 4 or 5 palms that had not been maintained in many years so the stump is a bunch of little stumps fused together I think. But it is about 4 feet across.

So I need to figure out the best way to remove this thing so I can bring in the plumber to make the final conversion from Orangeburg pipe to pvc. Main thing is to not damage the sewer pipe in taking out the stump if at all possible.

I have looked online and found people that will grind stumps out. I am not sure if a small bob cat type excavator would be able to get it out. Large equipment will probably not be able to get at it.

So any suggestions would be appreciated.

Mack

Dynamite...

i had one of those tall ones planted right next to my house by the prior owner. Came time to get it out. Dug on it for probably a month. Axe, shovel, pick etc
finally tied chains around it and hooked it up to my dodge 3/4diesel 4x4, wouldn't really move it but started chopping on it and increased the tension. Chopped some more.
Liked to kilt me. Read my thread on my bad back, comes from doing stuff like this.

Anhydrous ammonia pellets & Diesel slurry & electric blasting cap!

Bobcat has a stump grinder attachment.

UH O better get Macco!!!

Sounds like a tree removal service would be your best choice. They would be expensive but would be worth it just from the stand point that if something goes wrong their insurance should cover it. Make very sure on that point. Your plumber should be able to recommend a good one

If you don't like that idea, there should be a free service to mark the utilities. After that a lot of digging, a lot of root cutting and a lot of sweating should get it out.

BTW, although the city (around here) gets a lot of blame for things like lot layout and street layout in any given developement, that is actually done by the developer or someone he hires and in a few cases they wern't very good at what they were doing. In the case of one road the story is that they were drunk when they laid it out.

Call this guy,

Thank me later

Well I got the palm trees down so no worries about flattening my truck anyway. I know there are stump grinders but was not sure of operation in a restricted confine like this. Also as the ones I have saw are big saw type blades I worry about the utilities and my fragile sewer line.

The man that invented orangeburg pipe should be slapped silly.

Well I am not sure who or how the lot was laid out in the 1950's but whoever did the job got an F- minus in math. The main city line is about 50 feet short of where it should end. If they had ran it correctly the plumber said we could have the city abandon our current tap and put another one in that is not in the middle of a palm patch.

The plumber said in 25 years of work he as never saw anything like this. We just have no other options but to remove the stump.

With the purchase of the house and the economy the way it is I can't afford to just carte blanche say to someone to just take care of it.


Mack

Burning not an option?

Not in Clearwater city limits I am sure.

Had a bunch of palm trees in my yard, cut them down and then spent the next year trying to get the stumps out. Cut, dig, cut, dig, you get the picture. I found this on the web, don't know if it is accurate but it might help. I solved the problem by moving. Stumps are still there as far as I know.


To hurry nature along, you�ll be supplying 2 ingredients in unnatural quantities to speed up the rotting process: nitrogen and water. Tree stump removal will still be slow this way, but it's an improvement over nature.
But first, using a chain saw, cut the stump down as close to the ground as you can, without allowing the chain saw's teeth to strike the ground (this would dull your chain).
Drill holes a few inches deep into the stump in numerous places, using your widest drill bit. The wider and deeper the holes, the better.Fill these holes first with water, then with a fertilizer high in nitrogen. For instance, you could use cow manure. If you're using a commercial fertilizer instead, make sure the first of the 3 numbers of the fertilizer's NPK is the highest (for instance, a straight nitrogen fertilizer such as 45-0-0).
Soak the ground all around the stump. Cover the stump with a plastic tarp. The tarp will act as a barrier to help retain moisture in and around the stump. Moisture is a powerful ally to have on your side for tree stump removal.
Apply an organic mulch over the plastic tarp, and water it thoroughly. An organic mulch, such as tree bark or hay, will hold additional moisture, keeping the area even wetter. Wet mulch is also heavy, which will help weigh the tarp down, so that it doesn't blow away. For additional weight, roll some heavy stones onto the tarp.
The final thing you need to do for this tree stump removal project is -- to be patient! You're speeding up the natural process of rotting by employing the steps above, but this tree stump removal technique is still not for those who need the stump to disappear N-O-W.
You'll reduce the wait for completion of your tree stump removal project, however, by periodically removing the mulch and tarp for a moment and once again thoroughly soaking the stump and the ground around it. If you still have that nitrogen source at your disposal, add more of it. Then reapply the plastic tarp and mulch. Soak the mulch again, too, to keep the tarp wet and weighed down.

A palm trunk stops a little below ground level, then it has hundreds of finger-sized roots in every direction. You can dig a trench around it, then work toward the center with an ax and clippers.

Yup, just look under "Deranged Azzwhole Services",....they have an "unusual" approach to most any problem.

GTC

Hey they got it down!
just need a new truck to remove it!

Interesting !
not too many in Ohio

TNT

TNT

That palm on the beach is what I am afraid of!!! I would rather stick needles in my eyes than have to cut that many small roots. I will end up calling a stump grinding company I am sure. I would think a back hoe would work to loosen the thing up but I don't think it could get at the stump.

Mack

Looks like they did it right.... landed right in the truck!

Hemi

man, those guys was just ate up with the dumbass, weren't they?


we usually just let hurricanes handle palm tree removal

If you have access to a high lift jack, or a hand winch, you can try using this as an aid to digging the stumps out. Has worked for me well in the past.
Only really a consideration if the stump is tall enough to gain any appreciable leverage to make the job easier (why I leave about 5-6 foot of stump when I've cut down trees), and there is a solid anchor point near-by that you can run your line to.

Did this twice in Scottsdale a few years back.

#1. Used some large (more than 1") and long (18" +) old style auger bits to drill deep holes in a circle pattern (and within the circle) about the overall diameter of a big power auger like they use on Bobcats or the trucks that plant telephone poles. Did that to open/weaken the circular area as deep as possible. May need to do two or three circles, depending on diameter of stump. Brought in the power auger and drilled out a big hole(s) in the stump. Used chain saw to cut sideways from the holes - to get at little feeders and shred as many as possible. Pulled the remainder out with a cable/chain and the Bobcat.

#2. Dug deep and wide around the outside of stump with a rented medium sized backhoe - went as deep as feasible, cutting some roots in process. Used the chain saw to cut down and across the many feeders. Dug some more with backhoe. Cut some more - until through most all of the underside. Yanked out the remainder with cable/chain and backhoe.

A lot of work either way, but let your brain and the machines do the heavy stuff. It was in summer - good to have the pool nearby.

Since they finally got it loaded just simply drive off and dump it somewhere.

I've rented stump grinders from Home Depot and they work just great.

You could litterly bury the grinder up to the handles in the stump hole if you wanted to.........and they are FAST!

Here's a video:

http://bcove.me/o1c98bwa

In that loose Florida sand, has any thought of just attaching a chain to it and a 4 X 4 and yanking it out?

I just had four large Monterey pines removed from my back yard. The tree company charged about $200 per stump to grind them. The small grinders they use are about the size of a large rototiller, or walk behind ditch digger. I'd at least get a professional estimate before going DIY.

Palms are really a pain. I much rather take down 200+ foot tall redwoods and Doug firs, if it don't take a D-7 at a minimum to move the butt, it ain't a tree.

You mean like the guy in the video above did??

the theory is sound......you just need a longer chain

Oh.....5# C4 at 0600 hrs. should do it! Then...your neighbors wouldn't be late for work!!

that brought back some memories.
I have one just like that in the front yard now.
It has become a home for generations of the same pigeon family.
The pigeons are so tame they don't bother to fly around us.
Tuff decisions.

Now that is some real planning.