Had a client fight me on stump grinding depth for 20 minutes - I was actually wrong

Last month I was grinding a maple stump in Portland for a homeowner who wanted it 18 inches deep. I pushed back saying 6 inches was standard for grass. Turns out they were planting a privacy hedge there that needed deep root space. I spent 20 minutes arguing for nothing. Ended up dropping the grinder down to 14 inches and it took an extra hour but they were right. Anyone else ever had a customer teach you something you thought you knew better?

2 comments

2 Comments

seanperry19h ago

Buddy of mine runs a tree service in Seattle and had a lady insist he grind a stump 20 inches deep for a rhododendron bed. He argued with her for a solid 15 minutes, quoted extra labor, the whole thing. She just pointed at the hole she dug last week that was full of roots from the stump site. He dropped it down to 18 inches and sure enough there were roots growing back under that depth. He said it took him two more hours but he never pushes back on planting plans anymore.

keithyoung19h ago

Yeah, how often does that actually happen though @seanperry?