How I Got Into Stump Grinding

I was the owner/operator of my own landscape installation and maintenance business from 2001-2009 (Brett's Total Lawn Care Corp). It's a strange story how I got introduced to stump grinding in the first place.

One of my customers asked me to loam and seed an area of their property where some stumps were. The stumps were approximately 2 to 3 feet wide each. I had shopped around for prices; hired the cheapest stump grinding professional I could find, and honestly felt the price was quite exorbitant.
The company I hired made multiple appointments with me to do the work. I got one excuse after another why he could not come. When he finally did come to do the work, it looked like he had done a good job, so I paid him. After we cleaned up the debris, I noticed that he missed about five 2-6 inch pieces of stump, and they were sticking out of the ground about 3 inches. I knew if I covered this area with loam, these chunks will render the area un-mowable.
As soon as I noticed the job was incomplete, I called him to come back to hit those pieces. He told the job was complete, and that's just the way the job is done. (I’m sorry... what?) If I wanted him to return, he was going to require additional money. Now I realize at this point since he had been paid. I was at his mercy. I had few options.
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So I bought a stump grinder. My first grinder, which you can see on https://www.brettstotalstumpgrinding.com/gallery.html the page, was a good beginners' grinder. It was a slow 25 horsepowered gas powered machine, which was a great stepping stone to get into the business. I recently took a big leap and bought a much more powerful 100 horsepower diesel machine. It has about a lot more power and productivity of the 25 hp unit and has the capacity to do a much better job and allows for ease with bigger jobs.

I am telling you this story to educate you on stump grinding so you hire a reputable stump grinding professoinal. Missing small pieces happens. It's inevitable. Be sure you hire someone that guarentees the quality of their work. A lot of people that grind stumps feel that if the stump is 90% ground, the job is done. I take a landscapers' perspective on stump grinding (maybe I'm more detailed oriented?). Since I am the owner and operator of my own machines, I take a lot of pride and satisfaction in my work and want to be sure one more customer is happy.


I look forward to working with you,

Brett

Tel: 603-991-9624
Email: [email protected]