Petrol garden chippers – worth it?
Discussion
We have a lot of trees and woody hedges in the garden and over the course of the year we build up a massive chunk of cuttings that just aren’t going to rot down. Not really got a space to easily burn them and its too much volume to easily stick in the car.
I keep looking at petrol powered wood chippers (I had an Bosch electric one years ago and it really wasn’t up to the task) and wondering whether they are worth the effort.
I’ve seen a few videos of 5hp on youtube and they look like they struggle with any kind of bulk or thick branches?
Should I just pay the local tree surgeons to come round and throw it all in their industrial chipper?
I keep looking at petrol powered wood chippers (I had an Bosch electric one years ago and it really wasn’t up to the task) and wondering whether they are worth the effort.
I’ve seen a few videos of 5hp on youtube and they look like they struggle with any kind of bulk or thick branches?
Should I just pay the local tree surgeons to come round and throw it all in their industrial chipper?
My solution to this was a trailer. It basically becomes a mobile skip.
If you have room for one then I regard them as a "no-brainer". Mine is a galvanised one, can take an 8x4 sheet on the bed, and cost £1,600 including supply and fit of a towbar to my RAV4. That price included a cover, which keeps everything looking tody at home, and secure on the way to the tip.
Not as cheap as a wood chipper, but this will last me 20 years and has far more uses than just getting rid of garden waste.
If you have room for one then I regard them as a "no-brainer". Mine is a galvanised one, can take an 8x4 sheet on the bed, and cost £1,600 including supply and fit of a towbar to my RAV4. That price included a cover, which keeps everything looking tody at home, and secure on the way to the tip.
Not as cheap as a wood chipper, but this will last me 20 years and has far more uses than just getting rid of garden waste.
I've recently purchased a Forest Master FM4DDE electric chipper as I didn't want the noise of a petrol one in my garden.
It's a great bit of kit, can take quite thick branches and is quiet enough for the neighbours to accept it as just me doing some gardening. I've use it to chop up this apple tree that I had cut down, though I kept the trunk wood..
It's a great bit of kit, can take quite thick branches and is quiet enough for the neighbours to accept it as just me doing some gardening. I've use it to chop up this apple tree that I had cut down, though I kept the trunk wood..
Edited by The Gauge on Saturday 1st March 18:42
I think you can get someone with a chipper round for probably £100 if you’re happy to do the feeding to whoever is operating the chipper ? Maybe only an hour’s work. My local agri machinery dealer will rent a full on commercial chipper for £150 for a day. Probably a £20k machine.
If you want to go DIY sounds like what you need is the low end of the commercial kit which is probably a 10 hp plus machine and north of £1500 maybe more for a decent brand ?
If you look after something like that though it will hold its money and will outlast you probably ! .
If you want to go DIY sounds like what you need is the low end of the commercial kit which is probably a 10 hp plus machine and north of £1500 maybe more for a decent brand ?
If you look after something like that though it will hold its money and will outlast you probably ! .
I have an electric 2kW chipper/shredder, the sort that's a spinning disc with a couple of blades on it.
That copes with branches up to about an inch.
Anything bigger than that, my friend takes for firewood.
Once the garden is under control, you don't produce very much that's bigger than an inch, because you're mostly getting rid of one or two year's growth.
I look at it that the object of a shredder is to reduce the disposal problem to sensible proportions.
A huge pile of stuff becomes a pile of chipped stuff that will compost, plus a small pile of firewood and a car load of stuff that's too awkward to shred.
A petrol shredder would just be another carb to clean every year and a big thing to store, for a couple of hours use a year.
So many people have woodburners now, it's easy to find someone who will take away branches.
That copes with branches up to about an inch.
Anything bigger than that, my friend takes for firewood.
Once the garden is under control, you don't produce very much that's bigger than an inch, because you're mostly getting rid of one or two year's growth.
I look at it that the object of a shredder is to reduce the disposal problem to sensible proportions.
A huge pile of stuff becomes a pile of chipped stuff that will compost, plus a small pile of firewood and a car load of stuff that's too awkward to shred.
A petrol shredder would just be another carb to clean every year and a big thing to store, for a couple of hours use a year.
So many people have woodburners now, it's easy to find someone who will take away branches.
I have tried several chippers both as a part of employment and as weekend garden tasks.
There is a bit of overlap for the big electric ones and the small petrol ones. Tractor power ones are a different story.
For electric I would just say that disk type will be faster (and louder) but only handle smaller stuff, drum type will handle larger stuff but be slower (they also tend to crush/split the wood making it compost far quicker), small petrol types will commonly be disk type, loud and not handle particularly large items however they are portable for a larger garden.
If you don't want electric because you have more and larger material you are looking at more medium sized petrol kit and that can v quickly get pricey, plus they get quite heavy.
For myself I went for the largest electric drum shredder (Bosch) I could get and you just have to be patient.
There is a bit of overlap for the big electric ones and the small petrol ones. Tractor power ones are a different story.
For electric I would just say that disk type will be faster (and louder) but only handle smaller stuff, drum type will handle larger stuff but be slower (they also tend to crush/split the wood making it compost far quicker), small petrol types will commonly be disk type, loud and not handle particularly large items however they are portable for a larger garden.
If you don't want electric because you have more and larger material you are looking at more medium sized petrol kit and that can v quickly get pricey, plus they get quite heavy.
For myself I went for the largest electric drum shredder (Bosch) I could get and you just have to be patient.
In my experience even quite expensive domestic petrol chippers are frustratingly slow and pathetic.
Might be worth just hiring in something proper once every year or two? Think I paid £100 to hire a big trailer mounted diesel thing that ripped through heavy brush as quickly as 3 of us could feed it.
Might be worth just hiring in something proper once every year or two? Think I paid £100 to hire a big trailer mounted diesel thing that ripped through heavy brush as quickly as 3 of us could feed it.
Get the local tree surgeon to pop round when he's passing or got a free afternoon. Small domestic ones are okay if you're regularly chipping small branches but they're not great and for a one off job you may as well pay someone to do it all, likely before your cup of tea has even got cold.
The small electric ones are handy if you have small branches to deal with on a regular basis. I took a couple of branches off the lime tree and hacked back some of the yew yesterday, and as a result have saved about £20 on mulching the rose bed with bark chips. Also good for adding "brown" matter to the compost heap, though I mostly use cardboard that's been through an office shredder for that.
I have had two
An MTD petrol one, an older version of https://bertiegreen.co.uk/machinery/mtd-chipper-sh... that I sold after a year or so, as I spent more time unclogging it than actually chipping stuff. It was also the loudest. Machine. Ever.
I now have a Bosch drum chipper, an older version of https://www.bosch-diy.com/gb/en/p/axt-25-d-0600803... and it works better for the use I put it to, chopping down branches that are too small to bother with for firewood. It's quiet, and the output typically gets dumped onto the flowerbeds so the running cost is made up for by not doing many tip runs.
The drum type seem ideal for the sort of green woody stuff you tend to produce in a garden.
An MTD petrol one, an older version of https://bertiegreen.co.uk/machinery/mtd-chipper-sh... that I sold after a year or so, as I spent more time unclogging it than actually chipping stuff. It was also the loudest. Machine. Ever.
I now have a Bosch drum chipper, an older version of https://www.bosch-diy.com/gb/en/p/axt-25-d-0600803... and it works better for the use I put it to, chopping down branches that are too small to bother with for firewood. It's quiet, and the output typically gets dumped onto the flowerbeds so the running cost is made up for by not doing many tip runs.
The drum type seem ideal for the sort of green woody stuff you tend to produce in a garden.
I had a small electric garden shredder - total rubbish. Took ages to do anything.
Last year I got a cobra 650L (debated between that and the forest master 6HP) one. Used it a few times - works well, will indeed chip a 2-3 inch log without any bother. https://www.justlawnmowers.co.uk/cobra-chip650l-pe...
Only slight issue I had was that I didn't use it for a few months and then struggled to start it again. Though when I did get it going it was fine. I've treated it to posh petrol so we'll see how it does in the spring. One thing I liked was that I watched some you tube videos on it before and there were a few niggles that people had with them - when I got mine, there had been tweaks to the design and all the niggles were fixed (quite deliberately it seems).
Note it's a chipper so if you're going to stick hedge stuff through you need it to dry out first.
Last year I got a cobra 650L (debated between that and the forest master 6HP) one. Used it a few times - works well, will indeed chip a 2-3 inch log without any bother. https://www.justlawnmowers.co.uk/cobra-chip650l-pe...
Only slight issue I had was that I didn't use it for a few months and then struggled to start it again. Though when I did get it going it was fine. I've treated it to posh petrol so we'll see how it does in the spring. One thing I liked was that I watched some you tube videos on it before and there were a few niggles that people had with them - when I got mine, there had been tweaks to the design and all the niggles were fixed (quite deliberately it seems).
Note it's a chipper so if you're going to stick hedge stuff through you need it to dry out first.
ewanjp said:
Only slight issue I had was that I didn't use it for a few months and then struggled to start it again. Though when I did get it going it was fine. I've treated it to posh petrol so we'll see how it does in the spring.
You are probably already using it, but Aspen fuel is good for engines that might be stored without use for a while. I'd regard that as just being over winter though, as I use it in my chainsaw but after 4yrs of being stored without use, it wouldn't start and I had to get it serviced to rectify that.I have the Bosch Turbine Shredder.
https://www.bosch-diy.com/nz/en/p/axt-23-tc-060080...
I bought it last year but actually used it for the first time yesterday. It is very quiet and chomps through stuff steadily, and I was really impressed with it. Not once in a reasonably full day did it get clogged or overheated.
Chopped up some big stuff for firewood, chucked some gnarly bits in the trailer for the next tip run but chipped the vast majority of it very successfully.
If you have some high branches, too, I can highly recommend the Silky range of pole saws. Trouble is, by the time you've kitted yourself out, you may be better off calling in a professional and putting your feet up....
Enjoyable days work though and the view is much improved.
https://www.bosch-diy.com/nz/en/p/axt-23-tc-060080...
I bought it last year but actually used it for the first time yesterday. It is very quiet and chomps through stuff steadily, and I was really impressed with it. Not once in a reasonably full day did it get clogged or overheated.
Chopped up some big stuff for firewood, chucked some gnarly bits in the trailer for the next tip run but chipped the vast majority of it very successfully.
If you have some high branches, too, I can highly recommend the Silky range of pole saws. Trouble is, by the time you've kitted yourself out, you may be better off calling in a professional and putting your feet up....
Enjoyable days work though and the view is much improved.
For stuff that isn't particularly thick I would go for the Bosch one above ^, they get great reviews and Youtube videos will show what size stuff it can munch through.
I lower my large laurel hedge every few years and it normally costs me £120 for the local gardening guy to come and shred the branches with his professional grade chipper, the type that gets towed behind those flat back vans that tree surgeons use. However I have to carry/drag a massive amount of branches from the bottom of my back garden to my drive, for him to then shred, Having also got a tree to cut down this year I decided to buy the electric Forest Master which was about £400, I can now wheel the chipper to the branches to save me carrying them. As for break even point £ - I don't really care as the chipper is a satisfying (if rather scary) thing to use
I lower my large laurel hedge every few years and it normally costs me £120 for the local gardening guy to come and shred the branches with his professional grade chipper, the type that gets towed behind those flat back vans that tree surgeons use. However I have to carry/drag a massive amount of branches from the bottom of my back garden to my drive, for him to then shred, Having also got a tree to cut down this year I decided to buy the electric Forest Master which was about £400, I can now wheel the chipper to the branches to save me carrying them. As for break even point £ - I don't really care as the chipper is a satisfying (if rather scary) thing to use
Last year I cut back a huge holly hedge, reducing the height by at least 12ft along the whole 100m+ length - took me 3 months !! Treated myself to this beast and it handled everything I put through it with ease - albeit anything thick enough to burn was logged up. Having a decent size feed shoot makes life so much easier and it worked great for both woody and green material.
Think I paid £1300 so a bit of an investment but it's something I'm going to use every year to keep the hedge tidy and if I'd paid someone to come in to do it, it would have been at least double that!
https://thepowersite.co.uk/hyundai-420cc-petrol-4-...
Think I paid £1300 so a bit of an investment but it's something I'm going to use every year to keep the hedge tidy and if I'd paid someone to come in to do it, it would have been at least double that!
https://thepowersite.co.uk/hyundai-420cc-petrol-4-...
Having worked with tree surgeons on my places, I've been spoiled with a big Timber wolf
To hire one locally is £250 a day and I can get a guy with one for the same price
Anyone who owns their own machine won't put timber that's been stored on the floor through it because the bits of dirt dull the teeth quickly
There are some great comparison reviews on youtube and it seems to me that unless you pay £1500+ for a used machine they're far too slow
To hire one locally is £250 a day and I can get a guy with one for the same price
Anyone who owns their own machine won't put timber that's been stored on the floor through it because the bits of dirt dull the teeth quickly
There are some great comparison reviews on youtube and it seems to me that unless you pay £1500+ for a used machine they're far too slow
I bought one of these last year after a very large part of a willow came down in the storms and I wanted an excuse to buy one.
https://www.titan-pro.co.uk/p/372/15hp-chipper-shr...
It wont take branches bigger than the opening on the side but those become firewood instead.
It also mulches which is useful as we also have a fair bit of land and trees, so mulching the leaves is an option if I need it.
The only drawback is it doesnt 'shoot' the chipping out in a fountain style, it just generates and deposits them at the bottom chute of the machine so you have to clear them away every 10 minutes to stop the machine getting backed up with material, but hardly a big deal.
I had it running for several hours a day and it didnt miss a beat.
It was delivered on a pallet and took 20 minutes to assemble which was very simple to do.
https://www.titan-pro.co.uk/p/372/15hp-chipper-shr...
It wont take branches bigger than the opening on the side but those become firewood instead.
It also mulches which is useful as we also have a fair bit of land and trees, so mulching the leaves is an option if I need it.
The only drawback is it doesnt 'shoot' the chipping out in a fountain style, it just generates and deposits them at the bottom chute of the machine so you have to clear them away every 10 minutes to stop the machine getting backed up with material, but hardly a big deal.
I had it running for several hours a day and it didnt miss a beat.
It was delivered on a pallet and took 20 minutes to assemble which was very simple to do.
The Gauge said:
You are probably already using it, but Aspen fuel is good for engines that might be stored without use for a while. I'd regard that as just being over winter though, as I use it in my chainsaw but after 4yrs of being stored without use, it wouldn't start and I had to get it serviced to rectify that.
I've had no luck with this or the Stihl equivalent. I dearly wanted it to work as I like the idea of not worrying about fuel going off. Nothing I own seems to run well on it despite plenty of attempts at tuning.I told myself I was only going to have a couple of petrol powered tools so I didn't have to deal with a range of small petrol engines that were bound to frustrate me. I failed to keep that promise to myself of course and now have mower, 3 x chainsaws, strimmer, hedge cutter, leaf blower etc. The reality is though that using super unleaded means that I don't seem to have any significant problems with them.
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