Land and brush clearing has long been a necessary stage of most construction jobs.
For many decades, contractors had few options when it came to site preparation. Contractors could send a crew with chainsaws, bucket trucks and chippers to manually cut down and process brush, or firms could buy or lease dedicated mulching units.
Today, contractors need a more efficient approach to land and brush clearing. The demand for site preparation work continues to increase as more land is being developed, while many contractors are finding themselves short labor.
"Labor is definitely harder to come by since the pandemic, which has led to an increased need in versatility of equipment," said Ryan Bricker, senior product manager at Fecon.
A high-performing attachment can be a valuable business asset for the contractor who isn't clearing brush every day.Fecon
That’s where land and brush clearing attachments can change the game for contractors. With an attachment like a drum mulcher, “you could put one operator inside the safety of a cab, whether that's an excavator or skid steer or purpose-built forestry machine,” Bricker said, “and they can cut, grind and leave the vegetation in place once they're done.”
The right attachment can reduce contractors’ need for hard-to-find laborers. They also replace the need for chainsaws, which pose safety risks, and additional purpose-built land clearing machines like chippers.
Attachment versatility can also make it easier for construction contractors to take on more site preparation work or pursue other business opportunities, such as right-of-way work or fuel reduction.
With numerous options on the market, contractors will want to do their homework when determining appropriate attachments to add to their arsenal.Werk-Brau
“A lot of guys want better utilization out of their equipment,” said Michael Noward, regional account manager at Werk-Brau. “They're going to use their equipment for another type of work, and they might get one of these attachments to make that possible. It's another way for them to generate more labor dollars on the power unit.”
To meet the growing demand for land and brush clearing attachments, manufacturers have been offering a wider variety of equipment and leveraging innovations in carrier technology to ensure attachments are strong enough to meet contractors’ needs.
“New technologies in the hydraulic motor space really help our attachments,” said Matt Nelson, director of development at Diamond Mowers. “We're also seeing the carriers—the skid steers and excavators—are able to deliver more power. Now we, the attachment manufacturers, can put that power to the ground and make good use from it.”
Choosing the Right Attachments for Your Business
A high-performing attachment can be a valuable business asset for the contractor who isn't clearing brush every day. With numerous options on the market, contractors will want to do their homework when determining appropriate attachments to add to their arsenal. There are several key considerations to help you make your purchase decision.
- Customer Expectations: What is your customer’s end goal for the project? How the land must look when the job is complete will determine if and how the brush needs to be processed. “If the land is going to be turned into parking lot, it doesn't really matter what the finish looks like,” said Diamond Mowers' Nelson. “We don't need super fine mulch. We don't care about skid steer tracks because it's going to get dozed anyhow.” However, real estate developers will need contractors to clear the land to match their vision for the property, will could mean preparing for a clean lawn or keeping certain trees.
- Jobsite Environment: What the operator will encounter at the jobsite will undoubtedly influence the attachment selection. For starters, the size of the brush or trees that need to be removed will inform whether a brush cutter or mulcher will be most effective. However, the type of trees matters less than you’d like. “Everybody thinks they have the biggest, hardest trees. Yes, it takes a little longer to grind a hickory than it does a pine tree. What matters far more is what the terrain under the trees looks like,” said Nelson. “How much ground engagement do you need to expect? By far, the amount of rocks you're going to contend with is a bigger contributor to the overall business proposition.”
- Carrier Compatibility: Once you have the type of attachment narrowed down, your next question is whether the attachment is compatible with the compact track loader (CTL), skid steer or excavator you already own. This includes confirming factors such as lift capacity, sizing and whether hydraulic flows will match.
- Cost and Efficiency: Contractors will need to justify the expense of the purchase, as well as the total cost of ownership. For example, when considering a mulcher, contractors will need to budget for teeth and consider the additional wear mulching can have on undercarriages. Contractors will also want to project the attachment’s impact on operational efficiency. Will it take a while to get replacement parts? How easy is it to switch out the attachment? How quickly will the productivity the attachment contributes pay off the investment?
Cut & Shredded: Rotary Cutters, Mulchers & Grinders
Clearing brush is often the first step in preparing a site for construction. Contractors that need to remove and process brush have several tried-and-true options.
Rotary Cutters
Rotary cutters, also called rotary mowers or brush cutters, will cut through grass, weeds and smaller brush material. While effective at tackling undergrowth and stockier, woody plants, these deck-style mowers don’t break down or process the material well.
A high-performing attachment can be a valuable business asset for the contractor who isn't clearing brush every day.Diamond Mowers
“They are going to be your lowest cost, both to buy and then to maintain and to operate, so pretty low barrier of entry,” said Nelson. “For contractors who don’t clear brush on a daily basis, they can be really interesting, and they'll very quickly cover a lot of ground.”
For intermittent users, Diamond Mowers offers the Brush Cutter Pro, which features two steel blades at a 72-in. cutting width and can handle trees up to five inches in diameter. The Brush Cutter Pro X, which comes in 60-, 72- and 84-in. cutting widths, offers the durability to match the demands of constant, daily use. It features Diamond Mowers’ proprietary Tri-Hex Disc, which can cut brush up to 10 in. in diameter. Both models are compatible with skid steers and CTLs and feature hydraulic motors properly sized for enhanced blade performance and safe handling at every flow level.
Disc Mulchers
Disc mulchers feature a flat, spinning disk and are ideal for large land clearing operations where thicker brush and vegetation need to be removed quickly, such as right-of-way clearing for roads or pipeline work.
“Disc mulchers are incredibly fast and efficient at cutting trees down and doing invasive species eradication,” said Bricker. Fecon recently expanded its lineup of disc mulchers with the release of Disc Hawk. The disc mulcher is built for 75- to 132-hp skid steers and compact track loaders that operate with 30 to 50 gallons per minute (gpm) of auxiliary hydraulic flow.
With a working width of 60 in., the machine can cut down trees up to 14 in. wide and process trees up to 6 in. wide. Disc Hawk offers four varied mulching methods, giving operators the flexibility to cut, fell or mulch as needed, including a back-dragging option to clean up already-processed materials on the ground.
Disc Hawk offers four varied mulching methods, giving operators the flexibility to cut, fell or mulch as needed, including a back-dragging option to clean up already-processed materials on the ground.Fecon
For contractors looking for a powerhouse disc mulcher, Diamond Mowers’ Disc Mulcher Belt Drive Pro X features a 60-in. cutting width, cuts through trees and brush up to 14 in. in diameter and shreds material up to 6 in. in diameter.
According to Nelson, the Disc Mulcher BD Pro X is “the biggest, baddest monster of a disc mulcher” and provides class-leading torque by using a variable displacement piston motor. The disc mulcher, which attaches to most skid steers and compact track loaders, maximizes productivity with a 13-sec. spool up time.
Drum Mulchers
Contractors looking to cut down and process large trees into a fine mulch will want to look at drum mulchers.
“These mulchers can work really close to the ground, or they can go up and attack tall trees at eight or nine feet in the air, push it, cut it and chase it down to the bottom and then clean up the brush,” said Ryan Ruhl, product consultant, compact construction equipment, John Deere Construction & Forestry.
Deere recently announced the addition of two new drum mulchers designed to work with Deere’s 334 and 335 P-Tier models. The MH72D features a 72-in. high-capacity smooth drum rotor with carbide teeth, which expands upon its MH60D mulching head.
The MH60D Mulching Head for skid steers and compact track loaders features a redesigned mulching chamber and efficiently shreds underbrush and woody materials into beneficial mulch in minutes.John Deere
Deere’s new MK76 offers a 76-in. wide cut and features an optimized knife style head ideal for fibrous vegetation. Featuring a drum narrower in diameter, the MK76 will allow more space to reduce impact of hard rocks on the ground that could chip knives or slow the head’s production, said Ruhl.
“A smaller diameter rotor will also allow the head to recover much faster,” Ruhl added. “If the operator leaned too hard on a log or stump, it's going to come back up to speed and be much more productive, much faster.”
These mulching head attachments produce the finest chip of all John Deere mulchers, broadcasting discharge to mitigate piles.
FAE now offers an option to maximize drum mulcher productivity, with its new bite limiter technology. The technology, which is available on several FAE mulchers, features special wear-resistant steel profiles that limit the teeth’s reach and delivers a consistent working speed.
"The bite limiter family allows the operator to operate the unit without as much skill," said Lee Smith, product manager, FAE. "Because of the limiters in front of the teeth, the operator can't take as big of a bite out of the material. It's an easier, more user-friendly option."
A high-performing attachment can be a valuable business asset for the contractor who isn't clearing brush every day.FAE
Stump Grinders
Stump removal can often be an expensive and time-consuming task, according to Bricker. This was a common complaint Fecon heard when talking to contractors. In response, the Ohio-based attachment manufacturer recently acquired Stumper Industries.
“We now offer and manufacturer Stumper, which is a stump grinding attachment that can go on everything from a mini skid steer to a UTV, up to a skid steer and excavator,” said Bricker.
The Stumper series attachments range from 22- to 36-in. cutting diameters with up to 12-in. cut depths per pass.Fecon
The Stumper series attachments range from 22- to 36-in. cutting diameters with up to 12-in. cut depths per pass, according to the company. This gives contractors the ability to tackle everything from small stumps to large stumps and roots. The grinder also offers the ability to maneuver the machine right next to objects, providing optimal visibility and overall safer cuts.
Out By Force: Grapples
When it comes to land clearing, sometimes the best approach is the most straight forward. Grapples offer contractors the ability to grab and rip out trees, as well as remove stumps and rocks. This versatile tool is extremely handy, especially if the contractor does not need to process brush or wishes to sell the timber they remove.
Steelwrist provides contractors with three types of grapples: a multi grapple, sorting grapple and finger grapple. Each grapple is optimized for use with a tiltrotator, which allows the operator to tilt and rotate the tools for maximum precision.
“For wood and land clearing applications, many people are going to use the multi grapple, which is a bypass grapple that goes through each other to grab,” said Peter Gaj, vice president sales at Steelwrist.
When considering a mulcher, contractors will need to budget for teeth and consider the additional wear mulching can have on undercarriages.Steelwrist
However, Gaj said the most versatile tool for land or brush clearing is the finger grapple.
“If somebody is going to buy one grapple to do every job, it's going to be the finger grapple. As those fingers interlock, you can grab trees and tear them down, you can move and carry brush piles,” he said. “You can grab and rip stumps out and move rocks easily. It's a grapple that's used for everything.”
Size of tree or stump is not an issue for Steelwrist’s finger grapples, which open to up to six feet, depending on the size of the attachment and machine. The tool is available in five- and seven-finger versions and is made of Hardox 500 steel with hard facing 600 HB jaws built for longevity.
For Maximum Efficiency: Tiltrotators & Rotor Couplers
How do you become more efficient with less labor? Gaj of Steelwrist suggests tools like tiltrotators and rotor couples that offer greater maneuverability and productivity.
Tiltrotators
The tiltrotator, which connects to the end of an excavator and can be used with a variety of attachments, provides the ability to rotate and tilt for added flexibility. Steelwrist tiltrotators offer 360-degree rotation and 45-degree tilt in both directions.
"The benefit of that is it makes your excavator three-dimensional," said Gaj. "You will have to move the excavator a lot less because of the angles and the twists that you can do. It makes your excavator 20% to 30% more efficient."
Steelwrist, which started in Sweden in 2005 and came to the United States in 2017, recently announced the first model of the third generation of Steelwrist tiltrotators, the XTR20. The tiltrotator, which is targeted towards 16- to 20-ton excavators, features patented LockSense technology, a state-of-the-art sensor system for secure work tool locking. The model will be available to North America as early as December 2024.
Steelwrist currently offers tiltrotators designed for 2- to 33-ton excavators in the United States. All Steelwrist tiltrotators feature steel-cast housing, which is lighter than typical steel iron tiltrotators.
“Not only is that lighter weight on the end of the stick,” said Gaj, “but it gives you more breakout force, more ripping force if you're de-stumping with a ripper or you're digging.”
With numerous options on the market, contractors will want to do their homework when determining appropriate attachments to add to their arsenal.Steelwrist
The ability to more precisely maneuver your brush clearing attachments offers an important asset to contractors.
“It can be a huge advantage to be able to tilt and rotate to put your mulcher into that perfect position when you're working on a slope, uphill or downhill,” said Noward of Werk-Brau, adding that operators will need to be cautious to avoid turning shredded debris towards your windshield.
The tiltrotator’s ability to turn and rotate into tight spaces also allows you to move a shredder around a tree to cut off low branches, without moving the machine. This can be an asset for fuel reduction work, which requires that branches be removed up to a certain height on trees.
Werk-Brau, which offers Nox tiltrotators, announced an additional line of tiltrotators through a partnership with Steelwrist. Available for 2- to 33-ton excavators, Werk-Brau Powered by Steelwrist Tiltrotators are ideal for use with general purpose and specialty buckets and attachments like rippers, grapples, pallet forks and more.
Rotor Couplers
As tiltrotators will require a significant upfront investment, contractors can find a more affordable alternative with rotor couplers. While rotor couplers do not tilt, they allow operators to rotate their attachments 360 degrees.
Steelwrist is entering the rotor coupler market with the XR7 and XR20 rotor couplers, which will be available to North America in fall 2024. The XR7 is designed for 4- to 7-ton excavators and the XR20 for 14- to 20-ton excavators. The rotor couplers will be available in the standard S-type coupler as well as the Steelwrist SQ wet coupler, which utilizes automatic oil connection technology to easily change and connect hydraulic attachments.
“If you're changing attachments a lot, the SQ coupler is the way to go,” said Gaj. “Within 30 seconds, you could change an attachment and hook into another hydraulic one without leaving the cab, and off you go.”
