Bonny Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 I need to remove a couple of old tree stumps from my yard. They're growing unsightly mushrooms like crazy... I'm not ready to spend a bunch of money getting it ground out and dread digging and cutting it out myself. KNO3 apparently works by speeding up the decay rate (burning it is not an option). I don't really want to waste my KNO3 though... Would NH4NO3 work the same way? I have some around and no use for it.
Mumbles Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 Well, theres an alternative method using NH4NO3, but being that it's not the HE section I won't go into it. KNO3 works by soaking the stump with oxidiser, and it is then burned out. It doesn't naturally rot it. One way I have heard is to cut the stump off close to the ground and bury it with soil. It takes a year or so to really get the job done, but it will just rot away in most cases.
Bonny Posted October 2, 2007 Author Posted October 2, 2007 I'd love to blow it out of the ground, but most likely end up in the clink for doing it...I might look into burning it, probably need a permit of some sort though and likely have to be present the whole time its burning.
FrankRizzo Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 The stump and feeder roots will burn for *days*, sometimes weeks, underground if you use potassium nitrate. If you don't care about destroying the feeder roots that extend through your yard, just build a little fire with BBQ charcoal on top of the stump and it'll burn away in a day or so.
hst45 Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 KNO3 works by soaking the stump with oxidiser, and it is then burned out. It doesn't naturally rot it.Mumbles, are you sure about this? I was under the impression that KNO3 breaks down wood fiber and feeds the micro organisms that rot the stump. Don't get me wrong, I'd rather blast a stump on general principles, but just in case the offending stump was in my mother-in-laws back yard and she didn't want me to launch the remnant of her elm tree into Earth orbit, I'd consider rotting the thing with potassium nitrate, although it seems a waste of an oxidizer.
frogy Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 I remember seeing images of people drilling holes vertically into the stumps about a foot deep and then something about it saying to drill in at a 45 degree angle from the sides and meet the first shaft... You fill the holes with KNO3 (I think it's about 1 lb. for a average sized stump, maybe less) and then pour in water so it dissolves into the wood... Then later you pour kerosene into the holes and light it on fire... Have you guys ever made touchpaper? It's the same concept... adding extra oxidizer to an organic compound so it burns more readily than the same organic compound without extra oxidizer... (aka it burns easier )
Bonny Posted October 4, 2007 Author Posted October 4, 2007 I've read about using the KNO3 after drilling holes in the wood to:1) burn it , and2) simply increase the rate of decay by adding extra nitrogen.Burning isn't an option though, banned within city limits here apparently due to too much smoke and long burning time. I've already started digging the stump in my backyard, the diameter is over 30".I've broken off some large pcs using wedges and a sledgehammer...already broke my axe, bent my pry bar and blistered my hands all up. Next week, I'm going to cut it with the chainsaw. Whatever I can't get at, I'll drive a wedge in and then break loose with a hydraulic "duckbill" spreader.As long as I get about 12" below ground level I can bury it. I have another massive stump in my front yard and with that one I'll try loading it with fertilizer... I'm probably going to use NH4NO3 though, as I have some and no use for it.
h0lx Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 you could always use either of these sophisticated tooling on it, either a chainsaw or a hatchet.
Bonny Posted October 4, 2007 Author Posted October 4, 2007 you could always use either of these sophisticated tooling on it, either a chainsaw or a hatchet. Yeah, that's the plan for next week, chainsaw, plus some other equipment.
jacob Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 If you know someone with a POWERFUL tractor that might help.
Bonny Posted October 4, 2007 Author Posted October 4, 2007 Thought of that,but hard to get a tractor into my fenced yard in the middle of a city though...Living in residential area really limited my options.
ST1DinOH Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 trench it out, chain it up, and jack it out of the ground with a hydrolic jack. it's a little more work but not nearly as expensive as renting a stump grinder. idealy you could bring a little fork lift or better yet, a bobcat in there...that'll pull a stump right up no problem. but a hydrolic jack will do the same thing if you can get a chain/strap around it. depending on the size of the stump and the equipment you have you may need to drive a few spikes in the side of the stump to prevent chain/strap slippage but this is how we pull stumps all the time. friend of mine has some nice riverside property hes been clearing out for the last 4 or 5 years and we've probably yanked 30 or so stumps like that so i can assure you it'll work. i'd advise against dumping any kind of chems on it when a little elbow grease can solve the problem. save thoes chems for sky lighting
Bonny Posted October 4, 2007 Author Posted October 4, 2007 I've dug out almost 24" down and still haven't got to the roots. This is one whore of an old oak stump with a diameter of over 30". I really have no use for the NH4NO3 which is why I would possibly try it on the other stump in the front yard.I think I'll be cutting out as much as I can and burying this one.
ST1DinOH Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 I've dug out almost 24" down and still haven't got to the roots. This is one whore of an old oak stump with a diameter of over 30". I really have no use for the NH4NO3 which is why I would possibly try it on the other stump in the front yard.I think I'll be cutting out as much as I can and burying this one. yeah thats a big stump... you might try to spike it, strap it/chain it, and jack it out, but a big old oak tree like that will probably want a bobcat or forklift to get it up. if you can find the root ball on that thing an adze and some carefully placed swings will help ya loosen it up to a "jackable" scenario but at that point you've already put in more work than you wanted to... find a woodworker hard up for a big turnable block of oak and tell him it's free for the taking if he can get it out of there
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