Land clearing question.

[DowntoEarthLLC]

ok. So I've got a customer that wants 500x10/15 some feet of undergrowth/weeds/scrub trees/vines/POISON IVY/alot of BS removed from a long over grown strip boedering his country/river side property. My first idea was Bushhog. Go in an remove the bigger stuff with a chainsaw and then bushhog. But then I'm not even sure if a bushhog could handle this stuff. Maybe just rent a Bulldozer and plow through everything. Removing the debris after its torn out is going to take some major work too. I'm scared to do this with just plain old "Manuel Labor"

Anyone ever rent those tractor things they use one the side of interstates to bushwhack growth back? You know , those flail mowers on a arm? Whats the correct term for these machines?

Help a brother out.

Need some suggestions.
http://www.famnation.org/bushwhack.jpg

[Old Red]

I gotta think "Manuel" is unavoidable and you're looking at a chainsaw, pruners and trimmer job to be followed by some heavy equipment to remove the roots (depends on what kind of job the customer wants). Would you spray the poison ivy to kill it first? I never had to deal with it.

[odorisio]

the poison that causes the rash from poision ivy wont be killed by any spray, it can remain on the dead vines for 5 years. the best thing to do with poision ivy if you are allergic to it (like i am) is use ivy block, and wear full clothing.

DONT burn the ivy, it can become airborne.

im gonna have to go with chainsaws and hedge trimmers, no other way to tear this out. once you get down to the stumps bring in a backhoe and rip the ground up.

rough grade it and then final grade with blend soil, and plant a crop of seed.

[Strawbridge Lawn]

DTE: I recommend you use a RC-50 or 30 with a Grapple Bucker. Go in and rip out all the growth and pile it for removal or bury it.
A Grapple bucket will clamp on to the vines and you can yank them clear out of the trees as you dig out the root base.
Did a job (larger) Last December in Great neck

[Dwan]

Dump truck and excavator with a chain saw would clear that in less then a day and also level ground ready for raking. and planting.

[bnrhuffman]

Rent a nice size skid loader. They are easy to operate, easy to find and rent and wont do alot of colateral damage. Find a truck with a dump bed or hire one. Make sure the truck isnt too high for the skid loader to dump into. You will still have to get your hands in it but the skid loader will knock out all but the real small stuff.
Where are you in VA?

[DowntoEarthLLC]

Hampton Roads. Job is in Gloucester.

Yeah skid steer sounds like a good idea. probably more in the guys budget too.

Strawbridge. Wanna use that machine of yours? How much you charge for the use of that pretty thing?

[Strawbridge Lawn]

DTE: If the job were down here I would charge about 50-55 p/hr, but Gloucester is a haul so 65 p/HR is prob what I would charge.
Figure about 4-6 hours on the machine or max $375 for an 8 hr day. Only extra items would be hedge trimmers and achain saw.
I can either put the stuff in a pile or load it into a debris
container(s) and or a tow dump trailer. Lots of guys haul debris
in these, and would think you could contract (Rent?) one for a day to haul the stuff away.

I would bid $660 plus cost of removal and dump fees. Check out
these options and give me a call. A weeks notice ( A monday or Tuesday is preferred) good through Aug 12, vacation after that.

Let me know.. Will check back here if you are serious.

R
Gary
SL&L

[DowntoEarthLLC]

I've got access to a big truck and dump trailer, just got to see when I can "borrow" it again.

I worked out there this past weekend. 3 guys and 2 chainsaws. We did alot of damage. Only carved out a 10 foot strip down the entire 500 some feet of mess. Dump time is a killer. Gotta drive to Saluda to dump it. God Bless Really Big Dump Trailers

I got to talk to the homeowner about "Phase Two"

Your machine would be nice. If you want the work.

Will probably be a couple of weeks.

I'll let you know.

[Strawbridge Lawn]

Sounds good DTE. I am expecting a little mid-summer slowdown in a few weeks and should finish all existing work on the books.
Looks like fun..
Any additional pictures would be nice just to give a better perspective.
DTE How many dump runs can you do in one day?

What I have done in the past with these types of jobs is going in and cutting the big stuff over 3-4" and then letting the machine with the grapple push it (and the smaller stuff) all into small piles initially. Smaller roots 2-4" can be dug out also if needed. I prefer to set heavier stuff aside and use to compress the trailer loads to get more in.
The Vines I grab in the grapple and yank down. Typically 95% will come out and the rest die over a few weeks time.

Look forward to hearing from you DTE

R
SL&L

[odorisio]

DTE, have you considered using a chipper to make your dump runs more efficient?

i did that on a few jobs, its incredible how much compression you can get when you chip it all up.

[DowntoEarthLLC]

yes, i have thought of using a chipper, but again, its really all up to the homeowner...how much he wants to spend to clean up... He's taking his time, not in a big rush. So not a problem with me.

I made 8 dumps on Sat.

By the time the dumper got back to the property we had another load ready.

I don't know exactly how tall the dumper was... do you think your machine will be able to reach over the dumper to dump debri straight in?

[Strawbridge Lawn]

DTE: The machine will reach 6.5 Ft. You can stretch it to 6'9" pretty easy if need be.
If you have have been to Va Beach and seen the white city
debris containers than those are about the max height of
the machine. Also those containers builders use to put debris when building a house. They are all about the same.
R
SL&L

[Kelly's Landscaping]

What am I looking at in the picture is that the whole work area or just a fraction of it? The numbers you posted said 500 feet and thats no where near that in the pic. If its a true 500 feet then thats a big job but if that pic is the job I see a easy days work for my crew I love those type of jobs. Don't bid it by the hour bid on the job I typicaly bid at 35 an hour but I tend to beat my times by half so it works out to 70 an hour. Then the real sweet part is I have free dumping on a farm so that is profit as well.

[MiracleMan]

We did a similar job in density but half the dimension size in March. We charged $2,200. and did it in 2 1/2 days. Of course, we used 40 yard Roll Offs. I also used my 60HP New Hollanfd with loader and brushhog. Two laborers with chains saws, machetes and common sence. We left all trees with a 10" trunk/caliper or larger alone. Ripped out everything else. The land owner was happy to pay it and very pleased with the results.
Work smarter, not harder.
Good Luck

[DowntoEarthLLC]

yes, that picture is just a small fraction of the work to be done... plenty more...