After the big tree is down · Toledo, OH and Monroe County, MI
Stump removal in Toledo, Ohio
Stump removal in Toledo almost always means grinding: a machine chews the stump into chips several inches below grade so the area can be seeded or planted. The stump a crane removal leaves behind — 30 or 40 inches across, often with a flared base twice that — needs a larger grinder and more time than a landscape stump, and it needs an OHIO811 or MISS DIG 811 locate first. Stump work on this site is performed by the same partner crew that does the removal, on both sides of the state line.
What does stump grinding actually do?
It turns the stump and the top of the root flare into wood chips, in place, to a set depth below grade. The grinder’s cutting wheel sweeps across the stump in passes, each one a few inches lower, until the stump is gone to the agreed depth — enough to seed grass over it or, if you plan to plant or pave, deeper. The main roots are ground where they meet the stump; roots running out under the lawn are left, and they rot. What is left in the hole is a mix of chips and soil, mounded, that settles over a year. Full stump removal — digging the stump and root ball out with an excavator — is a different, larger job that is rarely worth it on a residential lot unless the site is being regraded; ask if that is what you need, and see brush and land clearing for site work.
Why is a big stump a different job?
Because the stump a crane removal leaves is the widest, hardest part of the tree, and its flare can be five or six feet across. A 36-inch oak or silver maple — the size the size guide puts in the crane column — leaves a stump that takes a larger, self-propelled grinder and hours, not the half-hour a landscape stump takes. A dead ash stump is often the easier one: the wood has already started to soften. A stump cut high, or left tall by a crew that did not plan to grind it, costs more to bring down than one cut flush. If the removal was a crane job, say so when you request the grinding; the crew that did the pick knows the diameter, what is next to it and where the machine can set. That is the practical reason to have the same crew do both, and why this site lists stump work with the removal rather than as an afterthought.
Do you need a utility locate to grind a stump?
Yes — grinding is excavation, and both states require a locate before you dig. On the Ohio side, OHIO811 directs the person performing the excavation to notify the service, wait, confirm the responses and follow safe-digging requirements; in Michigan the equivalent is MISS DIG 811. The crew requests the locate. Gas services, the electric service where it enters underground, irrigation lines and a buried cable or dog fence are the things a grinder finds the hard way; tell the crew about the private lines the utilities will not mark. In Toledo there is one more rule: Municipal Code 917.05 bars excavation within five feet of a public tree without a permit, which matters when the stump you want ground sits near the tree lawn and a city tree stands beside it. A stump in the tree lawn itself is the city’s; report it through Engage Toledo at 419-936-2020.
What happens to the grindings, and what can you do with the spot?
The grindings stay unless hauling is on the estimate; they make mulch for beds, not fill for a lawn. A large stump produces several yards of chips mixed with soil. Left in the hole they settle and sink for a year or more as they rot, and grass seeded straight into them struggles because the decomposing wood ties up nitrogen. The usual sequence for a lawn: rake out most of the chips, backfill with topsoil, seed, and expect to top it up once. For a planting bed, leave them. Planting a new tree in the same spot is possible after grinding but easier a few feet away from the old root mass. If the stump is going under a driveway, patio or addition, say so — the grind goes deeper and the roots under the slab footprint are taken further out.
Is stump grinding different in Michigan?
The machine and the method are the same; the locate service and the road-right-of-way rule are different. MISS DIG 811 handles the Michigan locate. A stump in the road right-of-way along a Monroe County road is the Road Commission’s concern, and grinding there needs an MCRC permit (734-240-5132); on a state trunkline it is MDOT’s. The partner crew is licensed in both Ohio and Michigan and grinds stumps in Bedford Township, Temperance, Lambertville and Monroe with the same equipment it brings to Toledo. The Ohio vs Michigan guide covers the permit and utility differences in one place.
What to send for a stump estimate
The stump’s diameter across the top, its height, what is within five feet of it, and the narrowest gate the grinder must pass. Measure the width at the widest point of the cut, not the trunk above the flare. Say whether the tree was removed recently or years ago (rotting stumps grind faster), what species if you know it, whether any private lines run nearby, and what you want the spot to be — lawn, bed, or something built on it. If the tree is still standing, request the removal and the stump together on the tree removal page; the estimate covers both. Request a stump estimate.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How deep does the grinder go?
Deep enough to seed over — several inches below grade — as the default; deeper if you are planting or building on the spot. Agree on the depth in the estimate, because it drives the time on a large stump.
Can the roots be removed too?
The main roots are ground where they meet the stump. Roots running out under the lawn are normally left to rot; chasing them further is extra work and is priced as such. Roots under a planned slab are taken further out.
Do I have to call 811 myself?
The crew requests the OHIO811 or MISS DIG 811 locate. You are responsible for telling the crew about private lines the utilities do not mark: irrigation, a buried dog fence, a line to a detached garage.
Can you grind a stump in the tree lawn?
Not without the city. A stump between the sidewalk and the curb in Toledo is a public tree under Municipal Code Chapter 917, and 917.05 bars excavation within five feet of a public tree without a permit. Report it through Engage Toledo at 419-936-2020.
Do you grind stumps in Michigan?
Yes — Bedford Township, Temperance, Lambertville, Erie and Monroe, with a MISS DIG 811 locate and, on a county road shoulder, a Monroe County Road Commission permit.
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Planning guides for stump removal
The guide behind this page: The complete Toledo tree-removal planning guide.
Related services
- Tree removal — Planned removal of big trunks, dead ash and trees over structures — climbed, bucketed or lifted out by crane, on either side of the state line.
- Crane tree removal — Sections lifted straight up and out for dead ash, trees over a roof, and trunks too big or too boxed-in to rig — by a crew that owns its cranes.
- Brush and land clearing — Lot and acreage clearing that includes the big trees, not just the brush — one crew, its own crane and loaders, on both sides of the state line.
Where this work is done
Toledo · Maumee · Oregon · Bedford Township, MI · all Ohio and Michigan municipalities
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Roque Tree Service · BBB A+ · In business since 2010 · 33 Facebook reviews, 100% recommend
Partner crew licensed in both Ohio and Michigan. Owns the cranes it uses.