Woodland mulch machine.

[Blue2Orange]

Yesterday around 1218 drove past the crew mulching down the trees under and trimming any branches hanging too close to the power line. They were about 1/4 mile up the road. Things you don't want to hit like the internet cable pedestals and boulders hiding in the brush and trees were all marked. Drove into town ~1030 and saw the machines being transported on the highway. 1248 heard the machines and took a walk down to the mailbox. Mailbox is one mile up from the highway. They were already 1/8 of mile further inland than my mailbox. Two mulch machines and one tracked boom machine with an oversized circular blade to trim high tree branches. ~25 foot wide clear path under the power line and all the too close branches removed.

Impressed with the speed and also the steep inclines and side pitches the machines can handle. Talking with the boom saw operator he noted the mulch "teeth" run ~$90 each. Drum were rotating fast enough that I could not even guess at how many teeth are on it.

Company is not local. Contracted by our electric co-op. Local tree and woodland lot management company has a woodland mulch machine very similar or maybe identical to the ones use by this company. I have a ~4 acre chunk of my SE 10 quarter that I've been clearing the small stuff out with manually for the past 3 decades. Just a few gigantic red oaks and the patches of conifers I've been trying to establish over that SE 10 acres. Now I understand what they mean by fast forest mulching. Getting too old. Thinking of checking about the costs for a day of mulching. Based on the speed of the line clearing guessing an eight hour day might be enough to clear the ~4 acres of anything under 4" and maybe even clear about 1 mile of my trails that need brush hogging.

Impressive machine. Tracked skid steer with a relatively large diameter rotary drum with "teeth" that eats up small trees and brush leaving a mat of large wood chips.

 

[hedgerow]

In my area there doesn't seem to be anyone doing mulching custom. Our county has at least a couple mulching machines that I have seen them clearing right of ways. The state seems to have some also I saw one running just down the road from my home place the other day when I was hauling gain to the city. Last summer there were contract crew's in the area doing work under power lines. They were from out of state. I talked to them at a truck stop one morning and none of the crew knew what there per hour rates were. I am sure the rate is going to be two to three hundred an hour with a fair good size min on the hours. High dollar equipment and steep up keep. I have ran a lot of hours on a skid steer with a hyd tree saw clearing my pastures and it takes a lot of fuel. I myself would never hire out.

 

[Blue2Orange]

Even if I knew how to operate a skid steer. No options for renting a unit with a mulching implement. Two companies in this area that do woodland mulching. The tree saw is way beyond the size and capacity of a skid steer mounted saw. The track length alone looks to be longer than 20 feet. This weekend they parked the two skid steer mulching units end to end adjacent to the tree saw unit along the township road on the utility right of way that they cleared. Tree saw was longer. Boom extends high enough to cut branches way above the 25ft height of the power line.

Guessing similar regarding run time cost. Assuming right now with diesel prices ~$300/hr. Did a bit chainsaw clearing a few days ago. Fine for knocking down the the 6" and less trees. It's the small stuff that is a pita. Then there is the manual stacking of the "brush". Hope is based on how nice a surface the mulching machines left I would be able in the future to use the BX and a brush hog to deal with the new growth that pops up between the conifer patches.

Part of living up here is the understanding of the "hidden" costs. Have a ~60 ft tall, mature red oak tree with a few dead large limbs way up the tree hanging over the driveway and my electrical pedestal. Close to two foot diameter at 5' above grade. Would require me to plunge cut to take the tree down. Only 16" and 18" bars on the chainsaws. Limited experience plunge cutting. Past has been successful in terms of dropping where I wanted to without any issues. But too close to the pedestal and if the worst happens. That is, the tree tops hitting the house as it drops the wrong direction. Would be more expensive than hiring the local arborist. Plus I want a professional assessment if the tree should come down or just be trimmed. Snow removal up here if you don't contract a season rate was hitting $100/hr around the Pandemic time. One reason to own your own utility tractor and snowblower. Lake Effect snow country.

 

[Astr]

Yesterday around 1218 drove past the crew mulching down the trees under and trimming any branches hanging too close to the power line. They were about 1/4 mile up the road. Things you don't want to hit like the internet cable pedestals and boulders hiding in the brush and trees were all marked. Drove into town ~1030 and saw the machines being transported on the highway. 1248 heard the machines and took a walk down to the mailbox. Mailbox is one mile up from the highway. They were already 1/8 of mile further inland than my mailbox. Two mulch machines and one tracked boom machine with an oversized circular blade to trim high tree branches. ~25 foot wide clear path under the power line and all the too close branches removed.

Impressed with the speed and also the steep inclines and side pitches the machines can handle. Talking with the boom saw operator he noted the mulch "teeth" run ~$90 each. Drum were rotating fast enough that I could not even guess at how many teeth are on it.

Company is not local. Contracted by our electric co-op. Local tree and woodland lot management company has a woodland mulch machine very similar or maybe identical to the ones use by this company. I have a ~4 acre chunk of my SE 10 quarter that I've been clearing the small stuff out with manually for the past 3 decades. Just a few gigantic red oaks and the patches of conifers I've been trying to establish over that SE 10 acres. Now I understand what they mean by fast forest mulching. Getting too old. Thinking of checking about the costs for a day of mulching. Based on the speed of the line clearing guessing an eight hour day might be enough to clear the ~4 acres of anything under 4" and maybe even clear about 1 mile of my trails that need brush hogging.

Impressive machine. Tracked skid steer with a relatively large diameter rotary drum with "teeth" that eats up small trees and brush leaving a mat of large wood chips.

A day rate can make sense, but I would not count on one day clearing all 4 acres. Density, slopes, and the trees you want left standing slow a mulcher way more than a straight line under powerlines. Mark the red oaks and conifer patches clearly before anyone shows up, and walk the ground with the operator. A local company is the right first call. Ask about the day rate, travel, what diameter they will take, and whether they will work around leave trees. Mulching and brush hogging are not the same job, so the trail mile may be cheaper with a smaller machine. The chip mat can be thick, which is fine on trails but can smother anything you want to keep if they push it into those patches. Get a walkthrough quote before you book the day.

 

[mikester]

Good advice. I’d recommend a fixed price contract instead of time based so you don’t pay for standing around time and distracted operators playing on their cell phones instead of focusing on the task at hand.

I found renting new/late model equipment to be more economical. Expect breakdowns. Have a large on-site diesel tank for refills.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

A day rate can make sense, but I would not count on one day clearing all 4 acres. Density, slopes, and the trees you want left standing slow a mulcher way more than a straight line under powerlines. Mark the red oaks and conifer patches clearly before anyone shows up, and walk the ground with the operator. A local company is the right first call. Ask about the day rate, travel, what diameter they will take, and whether they will work around leave trees. Mulching and brush hogging are not the same job, so the trail mile may be cheaper with a smaller machine. The chip mat can be thick, which is fine on trails but can smother anything you want to keep if they push it into those patches. Get a walkthrough quote before you book the day.

You're answers are looking pretty spammy.