The Stump Is The Part People Live With
Ground out below grade and cleared away, so you can plant, pave, mow or just have your lawn back.
Get A Free Grinding QuoteGrinding, Not Digging
A grinder takes the stump down with a cutting wheel instead of excavating it, so the hole is the size of the stump rather than the size of the root ball.
Below Grade, Not Level With It
We grind 6 to 12 inches below the surrounding ground as standard. Deeper if you are planting a replacement tree or laying anything solid over the top — tell us and we will.
Surface Roots Too
The runners that lift the lawn and catch the mower can be ground out with the stump. They are easy to forget at quote time and very obvious afterward.
Grindings Hauled Or Left
A stump produces a surprising volume of chip. We haul it away, or backfill the hole and leave the rest as mulch if you want it. Your call, priced either way.
The Company Is Named For It
Stumps By Dan started with one stump grinder. It is the job we have done longest, and we still take stump-only work as readily as full removals.
Reasons People Finally Deal With It
Mowing Around It
The most common reason by far. A stump and its surface roots turn a straight run into a weekly obstacle, and they are hard on blades and on decks.
Replanting The Same Spot
You cannot plant into a stump. Grinding deep and clearing the grindings gives a new tree actual soil to get started in.
Paving, Patios And Drives
Anything solid going over the top needs the stump out and the void filled properly, or the surface settles as the wood breaks down underneath.
Pests And Fungus
A rotting stump is a food source. Carpenter ants, termites and fungal fruiting bodies all show up in old stumps, sometimes uncomfortably close to the house.
Trip Hazards
Low-cut stumps disappear into the grass. On a rental, an HOA common area or anywhere the public walks, that is a liability worth removing.
Somebody Else's Leftovers
Plenty of our grinding work is cleaning up after a removal done by someone who did not offer it. You do not need to have bought the removal from us.
How Grinding Runs
1. Access And Utilities
We check the machine can reach it and that nothing is buried where we are cutting. Utility locates matter here — grinders cut straight through a gas or irrigation line.
2. A Written Price
Priced on diameter, depth, root spread and access. Written before we start, including whether grindings are hauled or left.
3. Grinding
Guarded and screened where anything is close by. It throws chip and grit, so we set up to keep it off siding, cars and windows.
4. Backfill And Clean
Hole filled, area raked, hard surfaces blown off. If you want topsoil and seed instead of grindings in the hole, ask when we quote.
Why Not Just Rent A Grinder
Rental machines exist, and for a small softwood stump in open ground they are fine. The trouble starts with everything else.
Rental Machines Are Undersized
A big hardwood stump will take a whole weekend on a walk-behind, if it finishes at all. Ours are sized for the stumps people actually want gone.
It Throws Things
Grinders fire grit, chip and anything buried in the stump at speed. Nails and old wire in a yard tree are common, and they come out fast.
Buried Services
Gas, water, irrigation and low-voltage lines all run shallower than people assume. Hitting one costs more than the grinding did.
Insured Either Way
We are fully insured. If something under the lawn does get caught, that is our problem to put right rather than yours.
Stump Grinding Questions We Get
Do you provide stump grinding as a standalone job?
Yes. You do not need to have had the tree removed by us. Stump-only work is welcome and quoted the same way.
How deep do you grind?
6 to 12 inches below grade as standard, and deeper on request for replanting or paving. Tell us what is going in the spot and we will grind to suit.
Do you take the grindings away?
Either way. We can haul them off, or backfill the hole and leave the rest as mulch. It is priced as part of the quote, not added afterward.
Will it damage my lawn?
The machine needs a path in, so there will be tire tracks. We use the least invasive route that works and we tell you in advance what it will cross.
Can I plant a new tree in the same spot?
Yes, if we grind deep and clear the grindings, then backfill with soil. Wood chip left in the hole robs nitrogen from anything you plant into it.
Do you give free estimates?
Yes, free and no obligation. For a straightforward stump, photos and rough measurements are often enough for a price without a visit.
Often Booked Together
Tree Removal
Removal leaves a stump unless you ask otherwise. Booking both together means one visit and one setup rather than two.
Forestry Mulching & Clearing
For a lot full of stems and stumps rather than one stump, mulching is usually the cheaper way to get the ground back.
Commercial & HOA Work
Multiple stumps across a property or several sites, handled on one contract with one point of contact.
Emergency Tree Service
Storm work first, grinding after. Our 24/7 line is always open.
Ready To Have The Stump Gone?
Free quote, no obligation. Send a photo and a rough width and we can often price it without coming out.
Reach Us
Over 200 years of combined crew experience protecting properties across western North Carolina. ISA Certified Arborist on staff. Fully insured.
“I don't just do stumps, you know!”
Contact
- 8935 NC-127
Hickory, NC 28601 - Calls answered 24/7
Crews on site Mon–Fri - (828) 312-3797
- [email protected]