STUMP & TRUNK REMOVAL · LAKE OCONEE & LAKE SINCLAIR
Get a free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620The short answer
Grind a stump when only lawn or planting goes over it. Pull it with an excavator, root ball and all, when a foundation, driveway, septic tank or utility line will go there, because buried wood rots and the ground settles. In Georgia, pulling a stump is mechanized digging, so call Georgia 811 at least 3 business days first.
Reviewed by A Class Septic Services · Last updated
Who does the work
One crew, raw ground to a working system
Key facts
Each row links to the agency, code or publisher it comes from. Tap a source to check it yourself.
| Topic | What it says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Typical stump removal cost | $195 to $609, average $369; full manual removal with roots $200 to $700 (typical market range, HomeAdvisor 2026). | HomeAdvisor: How Much Does Stump Removal Cost? (updated June 19, 2026), 2026 |
| Stump grinding | $150 to $500 per stump, or about $3 per inch of diameter (HomeAdvisor 2026). | Same source as above |
| By stump size | 12-inch stump $85 to $200; 24-inch $200 to $700; 48-inch $540 to $800 (Fixr 2025). | Fixr: Stump Removal Cost (updated January 31, 2025), 2025 |
| Before pulling a stump | Uprooting with a machine moves earth below grade, which is excavation under O.C.G.A. 25-9: submit a Georgia 811 ticket at least 3 business days ahead. | Georgia 811: The 811 Process, 2026 |
| Near marked lines | Within 18 inches of either side of a marked line, the digger must expose it by hand, pot holing or vacuum methods. | Georgia 811: Laws & Policies (Georgia Utility Facility Protection Act, O.C.G.A. 25-9), 2022 |
| Disposal | Stumps, limbs and leaves are acceptable in Georgia inert waste landfills. | Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 391-3-4-.06, Permit by Rule (inert waste landfills) (LII) |
| Burning stumps from machine clearing | A land type change under EPD land-clearing burn rules; no burning May 1 to September 30 in Putnam, Morgan, Jasper and Jones. | Georgia EPD: Summer Open Burning Ban (May 1 to September 30, 54 counties), 2026 |
| On Georgia Power land | No portion of a downed tree may be disposed of on Georgia Power property or in the lakes. | Georgia Power: Lake Oconee Shoreline Guidelines, 2026 |
Plain definitions
Your options
OPTION 01
When it fits: Under a future foundation, slab, driveway base, septic tank, drain line or utility trench, or where a big root ball has lifted the ground.
OPTION 02
When it fits: Lawns, beds and finished yards where nothing structural will be built and you want minimal disturbance.
OPTION 03
When it fits: Wooded areas you are not building on, the shoreline buffer, and Georgia Power land where removal needs approval.
On lake lots this is often the right answer near the water.
The whole story
Most lake houses around Oconee and Sinclair are built on wooded lots, so almost every new build starts with dozens of stumps. Their fate gets decided in a hurry, and it shows up years later. A stump that was ground instead of pulled under a gravel driveway turns into a soft spot. One buried under fill at the edge of a house pad becomes a sinkhole when it rots out. Roots left along a sewer or water trench find the joints.
The ground makes it trickier. Shallow-rock soils such as the Wilkes series reach weathered rock 10 to 20 inches down, on slopes up to 60 percent (NRCS). Roots on those soils spread wide and wrap around rock, so a stump can bring a slab of rotten rock and a lot of the hillside with it. On a steep lot facing the water we pull stumps only where something will be built, fill and compact each hole the same day, and leave the rest cut flush so their roots keep holding the slope.
Shoreline lots add Georgia Power. Trees on its project lands need a removal permit, and the guidelines say no part of a downed tree may be left on Georgia Power property or put in the lake (Georgia Power). That includes the stump, the trunk and the brush. Everything we take out near the water leaves by truck or is burned on the owner's side of the line where the rules allow.
Septic systems are the other reason to plan. EPA tells owners to keep trees an appropriate distance from a drainfield so roots stay out of the system (EPA). When a tree near an existing field has to go, we usually grind or cut the stump rather than rip a root ball through the drain lines, and we do not drive the machine across the field to get there.
How the job runs
Georgia 811 ticket for the public lines, plus a talk with the owner about private ones: septic lines, a pump-tank feed, irrigation, a dock circuit. Within 18 inches of a marked line we expose it by hand.
O.C.G.A. 25-9-8(b)Georgia 811: Laws & Policies (Georgia Utility Facility Protection Act, O.C.G.A. 25-9)
Stumps under anything that will be built get pulled. Stumps in lawn areas or near a drain field are usually ground or cut flush.
The excavator digs around the stump, cuts or breaks the main lateral roots and lifts the root ball out. Big stumps may be split first.
Shaking the dirt off the root ball keeps topsoil on the lot and makes the stump lighter to haul.
The hole is filled with clean soil in lifts and compacted, so it won't settle under a driveway or slab. On slopes it gets stabilized right away.
O.C.G.A. § 12-7-6, Best management practices; minimum requirements (text via Onecle)
Haul to an inert landfill that takes stumps, burn under a Forestry Commission permit outside the ban months, or grind on site.
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 391-3-4-.06, Permit by Rule (inert waste landfills) (LII)
Warning signs
Stumps in the way? Call (678) 863-5620
What it costs
Stump removal, typical
$195–$609
per stump
Average $369.
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: How Much Does Stump Removal Cost? (updated June 19, 2026), 2026
Stump grinding
$150–$500
per stump
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: How Much Does Stump Removal Cost? (updated June 19, 2026), 2026
Removal with root system
$200–$700
per stump
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: How Much Does Stump Removal Cost? (updated June 19, 2026), 2026
Additional stumps, same visit
$40–$75
per stump
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: How Much Does Stump Removal Cost? (updated June 19, 2026), 2026
Root ball removal
$70–$500
per tree
Typical market range — Fixr: Stump Removal Cost (updated January 31, 2025), 2025
Tree plus stump removal together
$600–$1,800
per tree
Typical market range — Fixr: Stump Removal Cost (updated January 31, 2025), 2025
Stump removal during lot clearing
$100–$150
per stump
Typical market range — HomeAdvisor: How Much Does It Cost to Clear Land? (updated June 17, 2026), 2026
Ranges come from outside cost-guide publishers and carry the year they apply to; A Class Septic Services sets its own price per job after seeing the stumps. We give free estimates at (678) 863-5620.
Free estimate: (678) 863-5620Where we do this
FAQ
Straight answers, with the rule or record behind them. Still unsure? Call and ask the crew that digs.
(678) 863-5620Grinding is cheaper and disturbs less ground, so it suits lawns and beds. Removal takes the roots too, which matters anywhere a slab, driveway, septic tank or pipe will go, because rotting roots leave voids that settle. Fixr's 2025 figures put grinding at $150 to $300 and removal at $200 to $700.
Yes, if a machine is pulling it. Georgia's law defines excavation as any mechanized movement of earth below grade, and uprooting a stump does that. Submit a ticket at least 3 business days ahead and wait for every utility's response before digging.
Source: Georgia 811: Laws & Policies (Georgia Utility Facility Protection Act, O.C.G.A. 25-9)
HomeAdvisor's 2026 guide lists a typical range of $195 to $609 with a $369 average, and $200 to $700 to remove a stump with its root system. Extra stumps in the same visit can drop to $40 to $75 each. Those are national ranges, not a quote.
Source: HomeAdvisor: How Much Does Stump Removal Cost? (updated June 19, 2026)
We don't recommend it under or near anything you build, since buried wood rots and the ground sinks. Georgia's inert landfill rule accepts stumps, limbs and leaves for disposal, which is the clean way to get them off a building site. Ask your county about any on-site disposal rules.
Source: Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 391-3-4-.06, Permit by Rule (inert waste landfills) (LII)
Not between May 1 and September 30, when Putnam, Morgan, Jasper and Jones counties are under EPD's summer burn ban. The rest of the year, stumps from machine clearing count as land-clearing debris and need a Georgia Forestry Commission permit for that day.
Source: Georgia EPD: Summer Open Burning Ban (May 1 to September 30, 54 counties)
Carefully. Ripping a root ball out can break drain lines, and Georgia's rules say construction activity after final inspection that may harm the system voids its approval. Near a field we usually grind or cut flush and keep machines off the lines.
Source: Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 511-3-1-.03, Permits and Inspections (LII)
Only with Georgia Power's permission. Tree removal on its land needs a permit application with tree counts, sizes, species, reasons and photos, approved removals are replanted at least one for one, and no part of a downed tree may be left on its property or in the lake.
A Class Septic Services takes 10% off for military members and first responders. Just mention it when you call (678) 863-5620.
Keep going
Excavation & Site Work
Sources
Rules, costs and local facts on this page link to the agency, code or publisher that states them. Cost figures are third-party market ranges, not our prices — estimates are free.
Reviewed by A Class Septic Services · Last updated
Ready when you are
Grinding hides a stump; an excavator takes it out with the root ball so a slab, driveway or septic line can go where the tree stood. We fill and compact the hole and send the wood where Georgia's burn and landfill rules allow.
(678) 863-5620Free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620