TreeBossPro Blog — Running a Tree Business

Adding Stump Grinding as a Service Line in Your Tree Business

Almost every removal leaves a stump behind, and almost every customer asks what happens to it. If you do not grind stumps, you either send that work to someone else or leave the customer to figure it out. Adding stump grinding as a service line can turn every removal into a bigger ticket and give you work for slow days. But it is not free money. Here is how to decide if it fits your tree business.

Start With the Work You Already Leave BehindBuilding Crew Leaders So Your Tree Business Runs Without You on Every Job covers developing the people who could run new lines of work. Stump grinding is often the first new line a tree company adds, because the demand is already there.

Look at your last season. How many removals left a stump? How many customers asked about grinding? How many did you refer elsewhere? If the answer is a lot, you are handing away work your customers already want from you.

Decide on Equipment Honestly Stump grinders range from small walk-behind units to large tow-behind and tracked machines. The right one depends on the size of stumps you see, the access on typical properties, and how much grinding you expect to do. A machine that cannot fit through a backyard gate is useless on half your jobs.

Some owners rent at first to test demand before buying. Others buy used. Whatever you decide, factor in the truck or trailer to move it, maintenance, teeth, and the operator's time. Grinding near utilities has its own safety and locating requirements that vary by area, so check what applies before you start.

Price Grinding So It Pays Stump grinding pricing is often based on diameter, with adjustments for access, root flare, number of stumps, and cleanup. Some companies include grinding in the removal estimate. Others list it as a separate line so the customer can choose.

The property record helps. In TreeBossPro, trunk diameter (DBH) and number of trees are on the property, so the person writing the estimate knows roughly what the stump will be. Send the estimate for online approval, and let automatic follow-up chase customers who accepted the removal but have not answered on the stump.

Decide what happens to the grindings, too. Some customers want them hauled away and the hole filled. Others want them left as mulch. Spell it out in the estimate so nobody is surprised when the crew leaves.

Run It as Its Own Category If you lump grinding in with removals, you will never know whether it actually makes money. TreeBossPro has a Stump Grinding job category, so grinding jobs are tracked separately on the job board and in reports. You can see how many grinding jobs you did, what they brought in, and how they fit into each week.

That clarity helps you decide whether to buy a bigger machine, hire a dedicated operator, or keep grinding as a side line.

Schedule Grinding Separately From Removals Grinding often makes sense as a separate visit. The removal crew does not have to wait on the grinder, and the grinder can be routed efficiently across several properties in one area. Use the route map and auto-routing to group grinding jobs by neighborhood so the operator spends the day grinding, not driving.

Make sure crew notes include anything the operator needs: access width, gate codes, where the stump is, and what is nearby, like sprinkler lines, fences, or garden beds. Photos from the removal visit help the operator find the right stump.

Tell customers when to expect the grinder. A removal customer who thinks the stump is done the same day will call the office asking about it. A quick note in the confirmation saves that call.

Grow It Into a Separate Crew When It Is Ready At first, grinding might be something a removal crew does on light days. As volume grows, a dedicated grinding operator or crew can keep the machine busy while your removal crews stay on bigger work. Watch the numbers in the Stump Grinding category to know when that point arrives.

Adding a service line is one of the clearest ways to grow a tree business without adding new customers. To see how TreeBossPro organizes multiple lines of work, visit the tree service business software page. The stump is already there. The only question is who gets paid to grind it.