Cost to clear land 

Your welcome. I try to make useful videos. I don’t always hit my mark but I try.

I did not sell the pine. The Oak I kept and I’m using for fire wood or making furniture out of. I asked around to local loggers and they said it wasn’t enough to cut for pulp and it wasn’t old enough for saw cut timber so it wasn’t cost affective to come cut and that was me giving the wood for free with no expectation of payment. It did make me sad.

Well I have to walk this back. I found some one who wants to take the pine I have down. The pulp prices have gotten better I guess so he’s willing to come get it if I stack it and make it accessible. Not sure what I will be getting but probably not much. But if he just takes it and all I have to do is burn the tops and root balls that’s saves me a lot of work and who knows, maybe I’ll make a few bucks too.

You are so welcome!

Thank you. I hope it helps you in your endeavors to develop your land.

This has to be the most interesting video on youtube. He has my attention the whole video. Very good at explaining things. In great detail. Yeah I subbed.

Thanks. It’s very important to be present when the works being done.

I’m glad I could help. You got to start somewhere. I would start by taking a good look at where you want your house and the drainage from there. Then work out how utilities would come under. Before I started clearing anything I made sure power and water could be done at that spot. Best of luck and best wishes. 🌹

There's a lot more info in there you missed. Make sure to explain about being there and avoiding the costs of repairs and delivery costs and such. many will miss out on that.

Thanks. Hope it helped with your future plans.

Yeah, around here most folks will bring out their own equipment as long as you pay for a whole day.

Sometimes people will charge for their shop to the pickup point & then on to your location. Time is money

Lorraine thanks. I’ll try to keep them coming.

Very glad I can help. I hope it helps you get a good start. Watch my video on discouragement. It can sneak up on you. Best wishes.

This was a few years ago. My dozer operator now charges $1000 a day and I charge $800 a day to run my excavator. So a little higher.

That would be a good deal for someone who knows how to run a dozer. I am no equipment operator and I have sole soupy places I know I would bury it with my novice skills. But that sounds good. I just found a new operator with no delivery fee at $720 a day. That’s how I’m going now.

Were are you located?

That is awesome!

Jesus, so cheap. Were are you getting that done. I am near Tallahassee FL and these people want 1.7k per acre mulching,no trees included.

Yes it is. I actually call them excavators but the guy who brought it out called it a trackhoe. But I think one and the same. 👍

Look for my other video on hiring a local operator. You can actually get it for $720 a day and no delivery charge here local for the dozer. I have recently got a smaller excavator of about 15K lbs for $800 a day and no delivery charge. Its not as fast as the bigger one so its hard to say if that would be better but I did save on the delivery for sure. Best wishes.

They can make their own road no problem. It’s good to go on google earth and really research your property and all the elevations and where everything will be located. You can even draw where you would like the buildings and roads to be and research drainage and runoff.

I’m still learning, and thank you for the critique. I’ve learned a lot from viewers. Thanks again and best wishes. 😊

@@PawPaws_Place I hope i didn't sound too critical because you've given some great information and i don't want to sound like i minimized that.

It depends on your preference and finances. I have paid for the equipment on a daily basis and that allowed me to fine tune it as I went. I also did my own cutting and burning and sold some to the sawmill. I also would like to pay cash for as much as I can as I go to keep the final mortgage if any as low as possible. Of course all of that is your decision based off your ultimate goals and finances and ability taking into account the time frame you have to work in.

Well I don’t clear land for a living. But look at my last video. I have a guy that actually does it a little cheaper if your close to Trinity, TX. But it’s cheaper and gives you a good starting point. Best wishes on your land development.

Twisted Pine My bad I didn’t see the video but I will .But thank you for the helpful information you put up .

Twisted Pine is in Trinity, TX. If you are close by and need the contact info let me know.

Glad I can help. Just plan also that after the initial clearing there will still be plenty to do. Good luck and best wishes. 👍

I would think if you look for some one in your area like a local guy who's doing the work on the side you might find it even cheaper or at least the same. I know inflation is hitting hard right now but usually the type of people doing this work aren't out to make a killing. They are just good ole boys trying to make some extra cash. Best wishes.

When the excavator is done it should leave everything in small piles to burn. If you have some down in the woods or on the side that it didn’t get piled up you would use the chainsaw to cut it into small enough sizes to move with the tractor or bu atv. In my other videos you can see me moving some with my grapple on my tractor.

Your welcome and I hope it helps you in improving your place or future place. 👍

Can I ask how it is going? My backyard is very steep and I can’t find anyone willing to clear it. What type of machine do you use?

Gregoryia Willocks, not sure if this comment was directed at me or not, but I’ll bite. Steep land will scare off many contractors, or result in very (!) large quotes. If you can’t get up there and do it yourself, you’re at their mercy. You may want to try creating smaller jobs that don’t look so onerous, such as asking someone to just take down three trees, for example. It’ll cost you more, but you can spread it out over time. Also, with this method, you can test 1 or 2 or 3 different contractors and find the right one. On my steep land, I used a chainsaw to fell the trees, then an excavator to help me pull and drag and move the logs around. The excavator is vital for getting to the stumps!

Thanks! This is good info and I second the excavator. Its an amazing piece of equipment.

Thanks. Take your time and do it just as you dreamed. Plan, prep, then do. Best wishes.

Glad it was helpful!

I'll check it out! I love his videos, but I don't think he will come to TX to do any work for me. Its a bit of a drive for him I think. 🤣 But I'm soon to retire and I would love to make it by his place and see the castle in person one day. I think he is hard working studious young man who has pulled himself up from the start to where he is at and I love that about him.

Thanks. I’m always happy to help and hope any info I share can help some one in some way. 😊

James I really wish I had enough faith in my ability to operate one to have done this myself as well. Sounds like it was fun too. Good job. 👍

Seems high to me as well, but its FL so....🤔

You're welcome!

I have to study up on a hectare and its size. 😊

Thank you and I hope you find it useful information. God bless.

You are welcome! Don't forget to like and subscribe if you haven't already.

Its a starting point. And lately inflation may have changed things in your area but around here this type of work has gone up marginally.

No Sir. The next person to get the equipment pays for his delivery charge which is from your property to his. Unless you can’t wait for it to be moved to the next job you only pay for your delivery. 👍

@@PawPaws_Place I have keys for case, cat, deere and a couple of other things. So, sure, it could "sit" at my place until the next job, I won't mind at all. Lol

I might have found some one to buy it up. So may not be a total loss. Lets hope.

Correct. This is just the initial clearing of the driveway, the homesite, right of way for power line, and road to shop from house. I will do a video for the grading and gravel for the driveway when I have that done. For the time being we have been using the road as a simple dirt road. We have a top layer of sandy loam soil on the property so the dirt road has held up pretty good.

Good question. It is not illegal to cut down Oak trees in FL but could be in your city. You should check with your local municipality. Some have rules on the tree size and if they meet a certain size limit may need a permit to cut down. If they are small enough you may not need anything. If they are a certain age and size they may be protected. But they will be able to tell you the rules and probably have it online for you to read through.

That’s just under 3 acres. The answer is hard to give not knowing the make up of the land. It’s really dependent on the type of trees you have and the terrain involved. If it’s just a lot of trash trees with some pine or oak splattered here and there I would say a couple days. But if its tight three stands (acres) of really big pine and oak then many more days. Look at my last dozer video. It shows how I got the dozer cheaper by hiring local. I only paid him $720 a day with no delivery fee. Your best bet would be to look locally and have a operator come and tell you how many days he estimates it would take. I hope that helps and isn’t clear as mud. Best wishes. 😊

Thank you. Hope it helps in your planning.

I have burned a lot. Some was mulched. I have recently found some one to take some of it if I cut the root ball off and the tops out. That will save me a lot of time.

Hope it helps decision making.

I guess so. I would hope the truck driver knew what he was doing but I’m no truck driver so I wouldn’t know. How would it normally be done?

Glad it was helpful!

It’s actually is. I found a local dozer operator that did a great job and didn’t charge me a penny to bring his dozer. I mentioned this in another video with that operator out there. So look around and try to hire local and you will probably find somebody to do the same.

NoSunBeach it isn’t public. It’s all my own land. The easement is over a 1/4 mile. The power company won’t come in and put the power lines in until they have 30’ wide cleared easement for their trucks and the line. I have a half mile of road frontage that my driveway comes off of. The drive way is a little over a 1/4 mile and I had to clear all of that. But as to the road you could get better access to on your land, is it county land and road or a private road?

@@PawPaws_Place Do you pay the power company to put in the pole and run the electric to your home site?

I would think that there would be some difference depending on what part of the country you live in. But that said I would think it wouldn’t be too drastic of a difference. But I can’t say for certain.

I cleared a little with a chainsaw in the beginning. That was going to be entirely too hard on my body and take too long. Also I needed all the stumps and root balls up where I am clearing. Cutting down and then having a mulcher come through works if you don’t plan to build or grow anything. That wouldn’t work in this area for me. But in other parts of the property I have had a mulcher out a few days.

Oh and I have decided I would do just the dozer if I had it all to do again. I believe I could have gotten it done that way and saved a couple grand.

Some but not a lot. It wasn’t much because I only cleared a few acres. But I did find a local saw mill and have recently started cutting some of the oak into mantle pieces and will take the next load of pine to see if it will warrant the effort.

@@PawPaws_Place Thank you. This is very helpful!

Thank you too

Glad you enjoyed it! Don't forget to like and subscribe if you haven't already.

Sorry, this company is out of Texas. But I’m sure there are plenty of local people that you can hire. Check the boards at your local tractor supply or ask around at the feed store. Best wishes.

@@PawPaws_Place thank you! I will do some research....thanks for the inspiration!!

So loose they come off. 😂

@@PawPaws_Place yes sir 👍 , I saw that later on in the video . Was bound to happen . Thanks for sharing

I have not heard of this but it might be worth looking into. Would also probably depend on what type of wood you have and it’s value. But if it’s just an acre you may find it cheap to get a hydro axe out to clear it. Or a dozer for one day. Just make sure they leave it in a pile allowing you to burn it safely.

Thanks. I hope to help anybody I can.

I would spray with a herbicide to kill it all before starting clearing.

Don’t take the first estimate. Get at least three estimates and get references. Then go with the one you feel most comfortable with. Listen to your gut. Money is important but if it’s not a huge difference then gut feelings are not to be ignored.

Twisted Pine thank you so much will do!!!... they will be here at 10:30 this morning...will come back to let you know what there estimates are😅

Your greatly welcome. Hope I helped to get you started in some way.

Glad you enjoyed it! Don't forget to like and subscribe if you haven't already.

Well thank you. 😊

You can rent them both. I looked into that. But I think for what I would have paid to be able to do the work myself and with the learning curve to operate the equipment I came out better paying for the equipment with an operator. Also when you rent the equipment you are paying for delivery fees both ways. When you hire it out you are only paying one way.

Wontshutup thanks. I’m trying to improve my videos and editing. Hopefully getting better as I go along.

Glad it was helpful!

brent butler thanks. I hope it helps unlock some of the mystery’s of land development for some one.

Glad to help.

I did some mulching. I first had a dozer and excavator come out to clear where the road and rite of ways would be. I did that because I did not want any roots or stumps in those areas. Then I had a mulched come clean everything else up.

That makes sense. Thanks!

Thank you. I hope it helps you very much.

Hope it helps you along.

You're welcome!

Always want to help.

I’m glad anytime I can help another out. Best of luck on your endeavor. 👍

Thanks Reno. Look for my latest video about the dozer coming out again. I posted you can get it cheaper. Glad I can help in any way.

@@PawPaws_Place My wife and I are in Maryland and we want to clear 4 acres of land for the house and the farm, however, it doesn't seem to be going so well. Any tips???

@@renostubbs8504 I would look locally for a guy who runs a dozer on the side. Will be cheaper and good for rough in clearing.

@@PawPaws_Place I appreciate your advice my friend. GOD BLESS

Wow! That is a little pricey but I guess I don't really know for your area. I hope he got it at a fair price for where he is.

Glad it helps. Don’t use my pricing as a hard price. It can fluctuate some especially from state to state. But I would look for peg boards at local tractor supply’s and feed stores. Also on Craig’s list in services. FB marketplace too. Get a couple prices per day from a few people and then ask for pics of work done. And remember it’s not a race. It’s a journey and you should take time to enjoy it and make memories. Best wishes.

I paid him at the end. I didn’t ask if he was insured and I didn’t sign any contract. I told him what day to show up and I was there every day they worked.

Thank you. I try to be helpful as I can. Best wishes.

I hope it helps making some decisions in your endeavors. Best wishes.

I think looking for local guys doing it on the side is where you save money. Also building those relationships help later down the road when you decide to do something more.

The equipment leaves the wood in separate piles that I later burned individually weather permitting. I moved the ones I wanted to burn in another location with my tractor and the grapple.

chris C Hi. 😊

Your welcome. I hope it’s helps. Best wishes and keep us posted on your place. 👍

Did you make the purchase

@@thewarrior8380 Yes sir, I actually purchased a larger tract next door, 26 acres.

@@davidvelen9835 wow! That's a lot of land. God bless you

@@davidvelen9835 How did it go. I just bought a 27 acres "forest" full of trees here in Upstate NY. What did you do to clear yours up?

As in how? With chainsaws and such?

Stfu. 😂

Well I am told I do live life large. But as for clearing the land, I am actually only clearing a very small % of it. I am managing the timber to provide old growth timber over many years replanting as we harvest. This creates a sustainable resource to build houses and structures with wood. My belief is wood is the greatest renewable resource we have and the best building material there is for a family home. Much better than plastics and metal and things that would not be very renewable and or eco friendly. I have designed the clearing plan to be minimal for my family home and use the drive way as a fire break along with the right of way for power. Doing some planning while clearing can give you many benefits that go along with the clearing if you do it the right way and plan it out to do so. This all incorporated with the forest management plan prevents fires, establishes habitat for wildlife and creates a cleaner more natural forest that can be managed for many years to come and provide many renewable resources. As for the cost, I'm trying to show how little it can be done for. So the average guy can afford to do the same with his land. Lack of proper forest management creates the backdrop for fires and poor irrigation control. That is what has happened in California. Lack of forestry management and control of the forest left too much understory and dropped growth that became a tinder for the fires there that destroyed many homes and not just of the people but also the wild life. That compounded the issue of low water availability. With good management and clearing practices that could all have been avoided and we would never have had to see pictures of all the poor creatures there burning in those fires.

You're welcome