If you have stumps on your property that you need to have removed, you can hire someone to grind up the stumps, or you can rent a stump grinder and grind them up yourself. If you decide to grind the stumps up yourself, there are a few things that you need to do to grind up the stumps. 

1. Preparing to Use the Stump Grinder

You need to prepare to use the stump grind and make sure that you protect yourself first. When using a stump grinding, you need to make sure that you put on safety goggles to protect yourself from flying debris. Make sure that they are goggles and not glasses; goggles touch your face and ensure that no debris makes its way around your eyes at all. Stump grinders are also really loud, so you want to make sure that you put in ear plugs at least, or wear earmuffs if you have them.

2. Prepare the Area

Next, you need to prepare the area. You need to remove all the rocks around the area by your stump. You don't want to run into rock when you are grinding up a stump. The rock can fly into the air and hurt you or someone else. Additionally, rocks can damage and dull the mechanisms of the grinder.

3. Using the Grinder

When the tree stump area is ready, bring the grinder over to the stump. Put the leaver for the grinder a few inches above the stump and then move the machine so that it is right over the front of the stump. Lower the wheel down so that the lever is just a few inches above the stump.

Then, turn on the machine and start moving the lever via the wheel back and forth. As you move the lever back and forth, slowly move forward, grinding away at the entire stump. Take your time to grind down and remove the entire stump above ground first. Keep working until you are down into the ground at least a couple of inches. The stump grinding is capable of going down into the ground until the stump is gone.

After you grind the stump, you can also use the grinding to break up the roots that are above ground as well. As with the stump, position the lever above the roots, moving it back and forth, and working your way down. If you want to get rid of the tree stumps in your yard this summer, rent a stump grinder or find a professional who can come out and use one for you.