O.T. Stump Burning

JerryS · May 2, 2012

Just curious if anyone here has ever tried using some form of homemade thermite to burn stumps in the ground? I'm wondering if it would work.

Jim in Ma. · May 2, 2012

I have burned several stumps here. They must be dry, I soak them with some fuel oil and set an old tractor rim over it and let it burn. On larger ones they will smolder for a week or so.

old · May 2, 2012

Done a few over the years. Big thing is they have to be old enough to be good and dry. I took and drilled a few holes as big and as deep as I could then poured diesel fuel in the holes and did that every day for a bout a week. I then on the last day mixed a little gas with the diesel and fill the holes one last time and lit it up. I bet it burned a good week and even the roots burned and left soft spots all over the yard

Anonymous-0 · May 2, 2012

Depends on your climate I suspect. I've tried it here in NY without much success. They seem to wick too much moisture out of the ground. Trying to burn them seems to make them more resistant to rotting away too.

Goose · May 2, 2012

I recall seeing some commercial stuff at TSC for burning stumps, but I can't remember what they called it.

JerryS · May 2, 2012

Yes, I've gone the diesel route too, but I'm talking about thermite---iron oxide and aluminum powder with a magnesium fuse. Gets very, very hot. I just don't how effective it would be on a stump.

JerryS · May 2, 2012

Yes, I've gone the diesel route too, but I'm talking about thermite---iron oxide and aluminum powder with a magnesium fuse. Gets very, very hot. I just don't how effective it would be on a stump.

Mike (WA) · May 2, 2012

Lots of old stuff on charpitting stumps- if you google charpitting stumps you get lots of hits. Basically, you get a good fire going in the stump (Old's suggestions of diesel and gas would probably work fine), but once you get it going, you cover the whole thing with dirt, to minimize the oxygen. The fire will turn the whole stump to charcoal, clear out to the ends of the roots.

Works best on big stumps- all of them around here are fir, hemlock or cedar, don't know how it would work on hardwood. My dad did a bunch back in the 40's- old growth fir, 4 or 5 feet through, and they had no equipment big enough to remove them. Charpitting worked fine for them.

in-too-deep · May 2, 2012

Dont know if it'd work but it'd be alot of fun to try!!!!

Steve in VA · May 2, 2012

Best be careful with home-brewed thermite. No matter how hot you believe it's going to get; you've under estimated it.

John T · May 2, 2012

Around here we got rid of 2 lately. We drilled holes and filled them with diesel,,,,,,,dug a trench around the perimeter and also filled it with diesel,,,,,,,,,stacked up firewood around the permiter and kept it burning a good while THEYRE GONE END OF STORY

John T

dr sportster · May 2, 2012

I tried the product where you drill for the powder and cross drill for the airflow and supposed to use diesel .I even used gas . I would say the the product did not work and the stumps were removed by chopping out every night after work for a few weeks . Homemade ? I don't know but store bought did not work for me.

keh · May 2, 2012

Commercial stump killer is mainly potassium nitrate. Directions say drill holes in stump and let it sit there for a month or so, then burn stump. Potassium nitrate is an ingredient in black powder, so fire should be hot. Never tried it. Also haven't tried piling charcoal on the stump, which is supposed to burn down through the stump. Haven't tried piling coal on the stump to burn it either, which would be a lot cheaper than charcoal.

KEH

Anonymous-0 · May 2, 2012

KEH, you have it mostly right. Drill some 3/4 or 1" holes, in the stump, on about 4" centers, fill with KNO3, AKA saltpeter, AKA potassium Nitrate, stopper with a cork, and wait a year. Then take a barrel, pipe, tractor rim or other metal chimney looking structure, and place it around the stump. Just make sure it has good air flow, and soak the stump, in whatever flammable liquid is handy. Add some trash or sticks, to get it started, and it will burn itself out, well below ground level.

blunosr · May 2, 2012

Hi Jerry, I've done the thermite reaction lots of times and I can tell you it is screaming hot! It'll melt through glass, steel, boil staight down through three feet of water... Dangerous hot! But it won't be any good on a stump. It burns way too fast, and then the resulting lump of red hot steel cools off and it's done. You want something of a slow burning fuel, The diesel idea is best. I make big piles of stumps, and I really don't have much success burning them...

I find they come out of the ground ok if you use pallet forks to back drag, exposing main roots, then get the forks under the ball and pry up. I've taken out some huge stumps that way. From trees 30" or so at the butt.

So now I have several piles of huge old stumps that just won't burn... I think I'll try that diesel trick...

Bye for now,

Troy

Old Roy · May 2, 2012

just get one of
These

JerryS · May 2, 2012

Holy krap! Old Roy, that looks like something out of an Iron Man movie. Blunosr, I think you've satisfied my curiosity about thermite. Thanks everybody for all the good replies.

MarkWV · May 2, 2012

Wow, if that worked on oak stumps would love to use it for 1 day

2x4 · May 3, 2012

Holy Moly! stump to firewood in 10 sec. Never dreamed of that machine.

Anonymous-0 · May 3, 2012

Wonder how the pioneers did it when they first cleared the land of old growth timber? Plant subsistence crops around them till they rotted away?

Tim Barnes · May 3, 2012

OldRoy, thanks for posting that, that's a cool tool er implement. Now, if I can just get my mother in law to set on a stump. They sure harvest their poplar small over there. I wonder if they are farming the poplar like we do pine down South?

O.T. Stump Burning

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