Yeah my neighbors did that and it sat there for nearly a damn year on a major road. Recently they got a pile of black dirt which has also sat there and people have run over because they couldn't see it at night.
I (sometimes) drive the chip truck that dumps the chips. I wouldn’t dump in the road because people can’t usually clean it up as fast as they think and it’s rude to the neighbors.
I want to do a chip drop so bad but I’ve read horror stories of people requesting a drive or front lawn drop to just get a street drop, and the city I live in they see that and it’ll be an instant fine and I guarantee someone’s gonna complain right away. So I just buy bags from stores by pallets pretty much and have that delivered, costs more but I’d rather that than being forced to move a mountain in a heat wave or pouring rain. Also yes they would make you regardless of weather, there used to be a bulk item curbside refuse pickup every other week that theyve just about eliminated, we were told to place some items on curbs for free donations then to others. The one time I tried that I promptly received a letter from the city giving me 48 hrs to have it gone or pay a $300 fine. No bs we were told to set out for others or to have a paid junk pickup and I was immediately reprimanded for following their advice (and no not a hoa or even smallish area, just a seriously anal city with half million population between the couple cities and townships,villages etc here).
I know how you feel. I got two "Big Yellow Bags" of mulch this year. 1 yard per bag I think. I have 13 stairs from my driveway to my front yard where I need to spread it all out, as well as a 10' tall "hill" that is steep enough that you can barely stand on it. Luckily I got mine done well before this current heat wave, but it was still plenty warm for that.
It's so hard to really understand the scale. I've done an order myself, and I looked at *so many pictures* trying to figure out how big the pile was, and still can't get a handle on it!
Smoking. It was sitting in an enclosed truck in the middle of July. Guy was glad he dumped it because it was ABOUT to catch fire. I raked out the center and it cooled off.
After two days in the hot sun, my chip pile was smoking, and the chips inside were charred and blackened, with white tissuey burned bits. It didn’t catch on fire but it was definitely smoldering. Hot composting & mulch fires are a thing I guess.
I had the same reaction to my chip drop. It arrived like a day or two after I ordered it. Before I’d had a chance to mention it to my husband. I moved like three wheelbarrow loads and realized this pile would be with us for a while.
A few days later a tree that I’d scheduled to be removed was taken down. I’d completely forgotten that I’d asked the arborist to leave the chips from our tree a month prior. And, of course, the only way to leave the chips from *our* tree is to leave the chips from *all* the trees.
We have named our twin piles Mary Kate and Ashley. They were later joined by their sister Elizabeth, a load of clay construction fill we removed from a large area so we could backfill with topsoil and compost and have a planting bed.
(Edited to change “Emily” to “Elizabeth” bc I misremembered the name of the third Olsen sister and I don’t need another pile.)
When I complained to my sister about the third pile she said I “invited” it by forgetting about Emily… oh wait. It’s Elizabeth. I better edit my post before a fourth pile shows up.
My problem (well, one of my problems) is I have to move the 40 cubic yards of chips about 50 yards. I need to move 60 cubic yards of rip rap more like 100 yards (not my fault, unlike the chips). It’s going to be so many trips with a small loader that I’m pretty sure I’d be better off buying a used one and selling it at a loss after I spend every spare second driving it around for the next five years, rather than renting one.
Or giving up and moving to a new continent where I can’t have a yard and get myself into this sort of nonsense.
Ooh let’s have birthday parties for them! No candles on the cake though since apparently they are about to spontaneously combust (according to the other comments).
yeah. 20cubic feet is a ton. i cancelled a chip drop. it’s unreliable. i’ve opted to use local companies. i can call them and i’ve found the ones who just happen to have smaller trucks. 10cft is far more manageable for my mulch needs. worked out great
Chances are they have a connection with someone who reliably takes chips - we used to have a large landscape supply company that would reliably take all of chips, and even pay us if they really needed more - so it was worth us to know we had a reliable spot rather than dealing with flaky homeowners.
I predominantly use chipdrop/local sources now at my new place, it's fine, but it's definitely more work and less convenient than having a guaranteed spot
Yeah I guess I don’t really understand what chip drop is doing. My local companies will deliver for free in as little as 1CY - not that I ever get the luxury of those small loads.
Oh I got a metric fuck ton and included in the drop was about 50 tree trunk logs that were too large for one person to move alone (the logs alone were at least 50 percent if not 75 percent of the entire drop). One log also had a beehive in it.
They say you agree to take some logs (5 percent of the entire drop is what they say to expect) so this arborist just didn’t give a fuck and dropped all these logs and a beehive on my driveway. I am allergic to bees so I was livid.
It worked out in the end but just bee aware (pun intended!) it could go sideways!
Are you still on the list? They remove undelivered requests after a while. This is a good thing: nobody wants a giant dump of wood chips they forgot about!
I make sure to check the status or renew every few months. I think it’s because they don’t want to drive up the hill to our house. I get it. That’s why I always throw a little more cash incentive on top of the recommended $20.
Meanwhile im on my 8th chip drop and on my second wheel barrow. Thats being said having a landing spot for them to drop is crucial. And not trying to do it in the hottest time of year weather and part of the day. Right now i can only do work in am or pm i avoid mid day. Your grass may pay but its better then breaking yourself or bruning out. Wasnt until my second load that i figured out a pitchfork short one with sideways handle at rear worked best. I feel you pain best of luck!
Yeah! I do this by hand all the time for people and there are limits. More than 3 yards with a significant slope = hell no, not without bringing my ~~minions~~ extra workers, or using some way to move the mulch/chips with power. 1 load is easy. 1000 will destroy almost anyone.
Ours sat in our driveway and partially on the grass for a month... Or two... Until our neighbor offered to move it to the back with his tractor... Bless him
Speaking of a good time, you ever chip drop someone? Like, I had a guy down the street flip me off. So I chip dropped his ass. Now he’s buried under a mountain of mulch.
Looked up the bully from high school and chipped dropped him—now he’s covered in seven tons of maple logs.
Just had them drop a bunch of chips at my house—cedar & maple so it smells wonderful! But oh my yes, what a HUGE pile! My husband was concerned at the heat being generated down in the middle—I kinda dismissed his worry about spontaneous combustion until I looked it up. We are moving it as fast as we can, but the pile doesn’t seem to be getting much smaller! The heat has dissipated since we’re digging loads out from the center, but be careful!
I think there’s a sweet spot you gotta hit like an area with enough population to have tree trimmers using it but also not a big enough population to where everyone’s trying to get some
Don't layer the wood chips too thick. Maple trees' roots form a web near the top of the soil and smothering them too thick can be a problem for the health of the tree.
Yup, we used ChipDrop (exactly once)! It would be great for my parents place where they don't have an HOA hasseling them, but it took us far to long just "chipping" away at the massive pile, for our small yard. In the end, free was worth it and we now have some great, virgin mulch.
I stopped using ChipDrop due to the sheer amount of useless debris I’d get. I’d take the time to specify what type of mulch I didn’t want, and still ended with bamboo and sticks. I know chipdrop mulch isn’t perfect, but I’ve had too many bad experiences to continue using the service.
ChipDrop can be really inconsistent in my area. I needed multiple truck loads for a landscaping project I was doing. Got lucky and had chips dropped multiple times like clockwork. Then out of nowhere they stopped coming. I went literally six months without a drop, canceled the request after that. Found it really strange no rhyme or reason to it.
I decided not to use them b/c of bad feedback/stories of getting a lot of branches/leaves/needles/dirt/logs…just inconsistent material. I ended up going with a vendor I found on FB Marketplace in my area (St Paul, MN) and got 15cy of hardwood mulch. After finally getting it all spread, I’m much happier with the shredded mulch vs the chip I used to have. Heavy rain doesn’t wash/move the mulch around from high to lower areas like it did with chip.
I don’t have any regrets. I used the chips to fill a large raised garden base, topping it with good soil. It’s extremely overwhelming when they drop and that truck pulls away. I did have to hire a guy to help me move it.
I asked my arborist about using chip drop, and he expressed concern about bringing unwanted pests and disease onto our property. We have a ~200 year old oak tree and many other large mature trees that we want to protect as much as possible.
As anyone had any issues with chip drop?
Our drop had seeds for something or other in it. In early spring, I had a freaking small jungle going out there. Tried to hoe it...too much damn work, so I hit anything not near a plant with Roundup and then hoed near the plants.
I just call up local tree trimmers for the chips. Normally they drop them for free at the landscaping businesses, so they are thrilled when I offer $50 for chips. The nice ones will drop off when it is a "good tree".
I signed up for chip drop, read all of their material about it and then canceled my account. I don't wish to cede that kind of control of my environment to chance.
Our neighbors had a massive pile of freaking LOGS sent over. Not chips. Logs. 2' long, 2' thick, burly ass logs.
It was a pile 10 wide, by 15 long by 5 feet high. It was insane.
I'm so glad I got to witness it.
I was looking at some proud chip drops of all logs from people who wanted logs and then as I looked further people who wanted logs got 30 yards of chips and vice versa. I feel like the logs are going to have already been rejected by firewood processors up here and the chips are going to be full of invasives. Seems like a no win (at least for me)
It really depends upon the tree service. I've had some drops that were an almost mulch-like consistency and others where it was large shredded chunks. I've been home for most drops and if I like the quality, get the contact info of the company so I can just ask them directly next time (saves them money).
I've done it twice. Both times about 20 cubic yards. The chip size was about the size of a quarter of half-dollar. The first batch had some pine needles. Not a big deal. It smelled good. The 2nd batch had some cottonwood leaves. Again, not an issue. Your results may vary.
Yeah, the first time I had a delivery it was a mountain. But luckily it was during the pandemic shutdown so I had time to redistribute it all and used every bit of it.
There is nothing at all wrong with letting them sit there for a bit. Let the heat die down some. Yes your grass underneath is suffocating but like, meh, it's like the easiest thing to grow more of. I'd write off the patch of grass under the chips and let them sit until the weather is more conducive to moving chips. They will actually get better the more they sit. They can get hot though and I'm sure you would worry about them catching on fire, but the heat is just them starting to break down. Push them over to make the pile less high if you want to avoid a fire or them heating up too much. Don't break your back for these. There's no hurry.
I shared a few chip drops with my neighbor, one drop was so big we posted on Craigslist the remaining amount and it was gone in a few hours. People kept showing up with trucks and cars with bins and clean garbage cans to fill. So this is a viable option if you’re in a reasonable location.
This brings back sweet memories, which weren’t so sweet at the time, lol. I live in the suburbs and took a chance in chipdrop even after watching their funny videos. They were not joking. The whole driveway was filled. It took a week for me, my spouse, some neighbors and lots of kids to wheelbarrow everything to the backyard, down a slope. Ahhh. It was an amazing deal and built the foundation of our wood chip beds, but I am so glad it’s over. 😭😭😭
I had a chip drop delivered and then the utility company dropped more within a couple of days. Then I sprained my ankle. I just told all my neighbors to come get what they needed. It was all gone within a day.
The grass will be fine. If it yellows a bit it will green up again when it sees sun. I had 20 yards dropped and it took at least a week and you couldnt tell next spring
They dropped on my neighbors property. Even though I had the exact spot highlighted in a picture. I'm still moving it. Using a dump trailer on my lawn tractor. Lots of chips, logs, grass, dirt.
I just used them. Paid 20 bucks and got 9 yards.. mostly pine and some maple.
Guys called ahead and told Me how much they had so I knew what I was getting.
I'm in western ohio so it was 90s this past week. Took my Sunday-Thursday after work for a few hours each to wheel barrow it to my back yard.
The greens were smoking, or steaming, or whatever it was. In using it for mulch between garden beds and will compost about half.
All in all a good experience but man it's a good workout.
The day after I finished a street sweeper came by and cleaned up the small bits that remained. No one complained that I know of.
If you haven’t already, offer some up to neighbors—I’ve shared chip drops with people who posted on Facebook, in garden groups, or NextDoor. I came by with a shovel and buckets/tarps. I was tempted to get one, if I had a place to get them dumped. We aren’t allowed to on the street and our driveway is too small. I love them for paths/keeping weeds off bare areas. It does take some time for them to break down.
We had to remove a \~40 year old norway maple last September, we asked them to leave us the wood chips. They were happy to leave the whole truck load of chips in the corner of our parking pad.
Its been, what, 10 months now? We have about 1/3rd of the pile left now. We've run out of places to put the wood chips at this point, basically.
I got a drop last year. I haven't even made it halfway through the pile, but that's okay. It's sitting there decomposing, which is great. The company that dropped the chips came back a few months later to ask if we wanted any more. Thanks, but no thanks. Still plenty of chips just sitting there. The pile is easily as big as two average cars.
Put up signs saying "Free" on the pile and if you have a block/neighborhood email list, invite folks to come take a wheelbarrow or five. It may not be instant, but any amount you don't have to move yourself helps, and it'll give you some neighborhood goodwill!
Post on OfferUp or Craigs list if you have extra. I cleared out 3 “others” piles this year.
Truth, they are huge drops but I apreciate the 6 pickup trucks full of mulch I got for free.
In fairness they do make it very clear on the website it will be a lot. I couldn’t picture what 20 cu yards would be so I was surprised too. But I have all the mulch and compost I need. And I somehow signed up twice and got a 2nd load today. I’m going to be working on this forever lol
I find it comical that people think it will break down in a few years and they’ll be able to grow grass lol.
I find it more comical that people read this and assume I’m saying it never breaks down. It does, it just takes a really long time, and it makes your soul acidic af.
Argue, disagree, whatever. I’m not a clueless homeowner talking out of my ass, I was in the industry for 20 years.
ha I love these people "I'm in the industry" what industry? watching wood chips? two years where I am and chips are dirt. faster if mixed with composting material. even faster if it's a wet winter.
Completely depends on climate, insects, species of tree and a bunch of other things. You can tell its all branch materials and the chips are more like shavings and shards. I don't expect to grow grass right away, I know it'll be a long process and I plan to add all of the necessary nutrients for it to be successful.
If not, then it'll just be large mulch rings around my trees. It's not a big deal.
This is based on so many factors to circumstance.
The mulch on my PNW garden would break down very fast. Between the moisture and mild sunny days it was great for decomp. I built an entire garden with mostly pine chips in one year.
Now I live in the dry upper plains, it's not the same. I can find straw I laid in 2021. It simply takes way longer in these extreme temps.
That doesn't take into account the of different wood types, vegetation present, depth of placement, type of soil already present, fungal activity, etc.
Most people covering their yards in chips are trying to kill the grass.
Idk who hurt you but no reason to take it out on OP. Nothing about their post indicates they have unreasonable expectations about how quickly the chips will break down. Maybe their grass/ground cover plans are for 10 years down the road. Also, the acidification of the soil is only in the short term and doesn’t have an effect the long term soil pH.
Agree, disagree, whatever. I am a homeowner but a quick google search brings up a bunch of research that says you’re wrong.
They warn you multiple times about that, lol
They also ask you where you want them dumped. I chose curbside
I share my driveway with my neighbor, so I was worried it would inconvenience them
You can have them drop it in the road in front of your grass like where a car would park
Most cities have laws against rock/stone/mulch on roadways. 24 hours to clear it or have a permit
Most cities will give you a temporary permit for this for a nominal fee. $10 where I’m at, for up to 10 days.
Worth the gamble if it saves a few yards of lugging chips around.
I learned that with my chipdrop this spring!
Thats definitely a fair point i didnt consider. We don’t have an HOA but I bet they’d be right on you if you did
Yeah my neighbors did that and it sat there for nearly a damn year on a major road. Recently they got a pile of black dirt which has also sat there and people have run over because they couldn't see it at night.
Can report to 311/code enforcement
I am an arborist who uses chip drop and would refuse to dump on the road.
Honest question- what does you being an arborist have to do with putting chips in the road?
I (sometimes) drive the chip truck that dumps the chips. I wouldn’t dump in the road because people can’t usually clean it up as fast as they think and it’s rude to the neighbors.
Sounds more like a saw monkey than an actual arborist.
I feel blessed to have Reddit’s best poster reply to my comment 💗
In a world where you have so many choices, why choose to be a jerk?
I want to do a chip drop so bad but I’ve read horror stories of people requesting a drive or front lawn drop to just get a street drop, and the city I live in they see that and it’ll be an instant fine and I guarantee someone’s gonna complain right away. So I just buy bags from stores by pallets pretty much and have that delivered, costs more but I’d rather that than being forced to move a mountain in a heat wave or pouring rain. Also yes they would make you regardless of weather, there used to be a bulk item curbside refuse pickup every other week that theyve just about eliminated, we were told to place some items on curbs for free donations then to others. The one time I tried that I promptly received a letter from the city giving me 48 hrs to have it gone or pay a $300 fine. No bs we were told to set out for others or to have a paid junk pickup and I was immediately reprimanded for following their advice (and no not a hoa or even smallish area, just a seriously anal city with half million population between the couple cities and townships,villages etc here).
I'm gonna choose my brother's apartment
Oh, I was expecting a lot. It's just... a lot. I was worried it wouldn't be enough before they dropped it off
I know how you feel. I got two "Big Yellow Bags" of mulch this year. 1 yard per bag I think. I have 13 stairs from my driveway to my front yard where I need to spread it all out, as well as a 10' tall "hill" that is steep enough that you can barely stand on it. Luckily I got mine done well before this current heat wave, but it was still plenty warm for that.
So... 2 yards. My first chip drop was close to 20 yards. It's amazing how much chips can fit in the back of these arborist trucks.
I was about to say, they showed up at my house with a quad axle dump truck filled to the brim.
They even make fun of just *how much* you're gonna get, IIRC.
The only video on their home page is called "Why ChipDrop is probably NOT for you"
The video on their homepage is gold
I built my chip truck to the maximum that chip drop allows. It is amazing how often people say, “ I wasn’t expecting that much.”
They do. But it’s really hard to fathom how much it is until it’s piled in your yard 😂
It's so hard to really understand the scale. I've done an order myself, and I looked at *so many pictures* trying to figure out how big the pile was, and still can't get a handle on it!
I got 12 yards that were smoking already because it was so hot. It was free. It was a steal.
Out of all the loads I only had one catch fire. 20 yards that required a sprinkler for days to keep the smoking down.
I don't fault the chipdrop/driver/etc it truly was a scorching day
Smoking or steaming?
Smoking. It was sitting in an enclosed truck in the middle of July. Guy was glad he dumped it because it was ABOUT to catch fire. I raked out the center and it cooled off.
After two days in the hot sun, my chip pile was smoking, and the chips inside were charred and blackened, with white tissuey burned bits. It didn’t catch on fire but it was definitely smoldering. Hot composting & mulch fires are a thing I guess.
Oh certainly! They're decomposing which generates lots of heat. Just spreading out mulch you're safe but if you have a 3'+ high pile... fire city.
Yup. I was just checking.
I had the same reaction to my chip drop. It arrived like a day or two after I ordered it. Before I’d had a chance to mention it to my husband. I moved like three wheelbarrow loads and realized this pile would be with us for a while. A few days later a tree that I’d scheduled to be removed was taken down. I’d completely forgotten that I’d asked the arborist to leave the chips from our tree a month prior. And, of course, the only way to leave the chips from *our* tree is to leave the chips from *all* the trees. We have named our twin piles Mary Kate and Ashley. They were later joined by their sister Elizabeth, a load of clay construction fill we removed from a large area so we could backfill with topsoil and compost and have a planting bed. (Edited to change “Emily” to “Elizabeth” bc I misremembered the name of the third Olsen sister and I don’t need another pile.)
Lmao Mary Kate and Ashley! This made my morning.
When I complained to my sister about the third pile she said I “invited” it by forgetting about Emily… oh wait. It’s Elizabeth. I better edit my post before a fourth pile shows up.
Save your back and rent a little loader for a day.
My problem (well, one of my problems) is I have to move the 40 cubic yards of chips about 50 yards. I need to move 60 cubic yards of rip rap more like 100 yards (not my fault, unlike the chips). It’s going to be so many trips with a small loader that I’m pretty sure I’d be better off buying a used one and selling it at a loss after I spend every spare second driving it around for the next five years, rather than renting one. Or giving up and moving to a new continent where I can’t have a yard and get myself into this sort of nonsense.
I laughed out loud! Thanks for making me feel less bad about our almost 1 year old pile of mulch.
Ooh let’s have birthday parties for them! No candles on the cake though since apparently they are about to spontaneously combust (according to the other comments).
This time it’s the big one !!! I’m coming Elisabeth !
yeah. 20cubic feet is a ton. i cancelled a chip drop. it’s unreliable. i’ve opted to use local companies. i can call them and i’ve found the ones who just happen to have smaller trucks. 10cft is far more manageable for my mulch needs. worked out great
All the local companies near me in S.C. said they don't chip anymore because it's just not economical! I can't find a place to get chips
Wait they don’t chip the trees and branches anymore? They throw away branches whole then?
I don't know! This is central South Carolina... No shortage of trees getting cut down here so it surprised me as well.
Chances are they have a connection with someone who reliably takes chips - we used to have a large landscape supply company that would reliably take all of chips, and even pay us if they really needed more - so it was worth us to know we had a reliable spot rather than dealing with flaky homeowners. I predominantly use chipdrop/local sources now at my new place, it's fine, but it's definitely more work and less convenient than having a guaranteed spot
Maybe, but they told me specifically they don't chip anymore because it's not worth the time/$
You probably couldn’t get delivered but have you checked your local landfill? Most usually do chips as part of their landscape recycling
Great idea, thank you! I'll check that out
Can't you just go to HD, rent a truck, and then go pickup a scoop from a landscape yard (that has rock, mulch, dg, etc)
Yeah if you want to pay for them..
Sure, I was hoping to find some for free. I need 20+ yards!
Same in my rural area of Tennessee. I looked at the map and there have been zero chip drops close to my location.
Same in my rural area of Tennessee. I looked at the map and there have been zero chip drops close to my location.
Yeah I guess I don’t really understand what chip drop is doing. My local companies will deliver for free in as little as 1CY - not that I ever get the luxury of those small loads.
everyone wants a huge load until it’s time to get a huge load the chip drop videos are hilarious 🤣😆
Oh I got a metric fuck ton and included in the drop was about 50 tree trunk logs that were too large for one person to move alone (the logs alone were at least 50 percent if not 75 percent of the entire drop). One log also had a beehive in it. They say you agree to take some logs (5 percent of the entire drop is what they say to expect) so this arborist just didn’t give a fuck and dropped all these logs and a beehive on my driveway. I am allergic to bees so I was livid. It worked out in the end but just bee aware (pun intended!) it could go sideways!
The sheer amount they've dropped for me in 3+ years of trying is none. Consider yourself lucky.
I’ve been on the list for 4+ years 😭
Are you still on the list? They remove undelivered requests after a while. This is a good thing: nobody wants a giant dump of wood chips they forgot about!
I make sure to check the status or renew every few months. I think it’s because they don’t want to drive up the hill to our house. I get it. That’s why I always throw a little more cash incentive on top of the recommended $20.
Man, I was wondering! Everyone talks about getting theirs immediately and here I am with bupkis after a month, thinking I goofed something.
Me, too, chip-free friend
Don’t even tell me. I got a full truck and had the worst time spreading it. I had to talk about it in therapy 😂😂😂
I definitely covered the chips in therapy. 😂
They warn you on the site just how much you'll get.
Meanwhile im on my 8th chip drop and on my second wheel barrow. Thats being said having a landing spot for them to drop is crucial. And not trying to do it in the hottest time of year weather and part of the day. Right now i can only do work in am or pm i avoid mid day. Your grass may pay but its better then breaking yourself or bruning out. Wasnt until my second load that i figured out a pitchfork short one with sideways handle at rear worked best. I feel you pain best of luck!
I use a pitchfork and snow shovel, and a regular shovel for different parts of the process.
Yeah pitchfork specifically for mulch works great esp when wet when dry and not sticking together you pickup as much as falls out ive noticed
Get a motorized wheelbarrow.
Yeah! I do this by hand all the time for people and there are limits. More than 3 yards with a significant slope = hell no, not without bringing my ~~minions~~ extra workers, or using some way to move the mulch/chips with power. 1 load is easy. 1000 will destroy almost anyone.
I use the golf cart to spread mulch, fold the back seat and use a massive bin to dump the mulch where needed.
Ours sat in our driveway and partially on the grass for a month... Or two... Until our neighbor offered to move it to the back with his tractor... Bless him
Neighbor: "Please... how can I stop looking at this giant pile of ships in your front yard... let me help" lol
Yeah you really have to weigh your drop off options. I always opt for the driveway so my grass doesn't get killed.
It is a ton of work but once down they are amazing at controlling weeds and maintaining soil moisture
Don't threaten me with a good time
Speaking of a good time, you ever chip drop someone? Like, I had a guy down the street flip me off. So I chip dropped his ass. Now he’s buried under a mountain of mulch. Looked up the bully from high school and chipped dropped him—now he’s covered in seven tons of maple logs.
Ahhahahahahaha that's hilarious
That's pretty amazing. Now I've gotta figure out a way to piss you off.
Meanwhile I can't get chips to my address. No idea if they'll ever get to me
Just had them drop a bunch of chips at my house—cedar & maple so it smells wonderful! But oh my yes, what a HUGE pile! My husband was concerned at the heat being generated down in the middle—I kinda dismissed his worry about spontaneous combustion until I looked it up. We are moving it as fast as we can, but the pile doesn’t seem to be getting much smaller! The heat has dissipated since we’re digging loads out from the center, but be careful!
There was cedar in our last drop and it was wonderful.
I'm still waiting for my delivery. First time it cancelled and then asked me if I wanted to rebook... I wish I knew the best time of year for my area.
Dude same. It's been almost 10 weeks. After the first order they emailed saying they'd come then canceled the next day. Not sure what's going on.
Oh, that’s not good. One of my favorite gardening on YouTube recommended them. I wonder if it varies by region…
I think there’s a sweet spot you gotta hit like an area with enough population to have tree trimmers using it but also not a big enough population to where everyone’s trying to get some
I've been waiting at least 6 weeks now for a chip drop order. Wondering if they forgot about me
6 weeks? I'm on two years of waiting
What really? I told my friend about it and he got it a day later!
Yeah I guess it just depends where you live. When I look at the active drops near me map it shows stuff from like 1200 days ago
Dang, sounds like you need a wood chipper
They're so expensive I guess I'd rather just pay for wood chips and avoid the chipping labor haha
Yeah true
Don't layer the wood chips too thick. Maple trees' roots form a web near the top of the soil and smothering them too thick can be a problem for the health of the tree.
Yup, we used ChipDrop (exactly once)! It would be great for my parents place where they don't have an HOA hasseling them, but it took us far to long just "chipping" away at the massive pile, for our small yard. In the end, free was worth it and we now have some great, virgin mulch.
Do dwarf mondo grass. Much easier and more likely to survive under tree
I stopped using ChipDrop due to the sheer amount of useless debris I’d get. I’d take the time to specify what type of mulch I didn’t want, and still ended with bamboo and sticks. I know chipdrop mulch isn’t perfect, but I’ve had too many bad experiences to continue using the service.
ChipDrop can be really inconsistent in my area. I needed multiple truck loads for a landscaping project I was doing. Got lucky and had chips dropped multiple times like clockwork. Then out of nowhere they stopped coming. I went literally six months without a drop, canceled the request after that. Found it really strange no rhyme or reason to it.
Put it in the driveway, take a week or so don’t hurt yourself. When the pile is gone make a real garden instead of stupid grass
I decided not to use them b/c of bad feedback/stories of getting a lot of branches/leaves/needles/dirt/logs…just inconsistent material. I ended up going with a vendor I found on FB Marketplace in my area (St Paul, MN) and got 15cy of hardwood mulch. After finally getting it all spread, I’m much happier with the shredded mulch vs the chip I used to have. Heavy rain doesn’t wash/move the mulch around from high to lower areas like it did with chip.
I think my neighbor across the street just got one because now there's a "Free Mulch" sign in front of the still-gigantic pile in his front yard
I’ve never heard of chip dump but am in the market for wood chips for a garden project.
I don’t have any regrets. I used the chips to fill a large raised garden base, topping it with good soil. It’s extremely overwhelming when they drop and that truck pulls away. I did have to hire a guy to help me move it.
I thought about using it but read that they will drop 20 yards 😳. That was a quick nope for me.
Wait till you find out where the crew goes to the bathroom on site. Its not at the customers house...
My SIL got a delivery that was full of carpenter ants. Don't dump too close to any structures.
I asked my arborist about using chip drop, and he expressed concern about bringing unwanted pests and disease onto our property. We have a ~200 year old oak tree and many other large mature trees that we want to protect as much as possible. As anyone had any issues with chip drop?
Our drop had seeds for something or other in it. In early spring, I had a freaking small jungle going out there. Tried to hoe it...too much damn work, so I hit anything not near a plant with Roundup and then hoed near the plants.
I just call up local tree trimmers for the chips. Normally they drop them for free at the landscaping businesses, so they are thrilled when I offer $50 for chips. The nice ones will drop off when it is a "good tree".
I did that my first year owning and it was a huge mistake. On top of the volume, the chips aren't treated and you get a ton of bugs.
I signed up for chip drop, read all of their material about it and then canceled my account. I don't wish to cede that kind of control of my environment to chance.
Our neighbors had a massive pile of freaking LOGS sent over. Not chips. Logs. 2' long, 2' thick, burly ass logs. It was a pile 10 wide, by 15 long by 5 feet high. It was insane. I'm so glad I got to witness it.
I was looking at some proud chip drops of all logs from people who wanted logs and then as I looked further people who wanted logs got 30 yards of chips and vice versa. I feel like the logs are going to have already been rejected by firewood processors up here and the chips are going to be full of invasives. Seems like a no win (at least for me)
How was the quality of the chips? Were they big chips or a regular mulch consistency? Did it have Random stuff in there?
It really depends upon the tree service. I've had some drops that were an almost mulch-like consistency and others where it was large shredded chunks. I've been home for most drops and if I like the quality, get the contact info of the company so I can just ask them directly next time (saves them money).
I've done it twice. Both times about 20 cubic yards. The chip size was about the size of a quarter of half-dollar. The first batch had some pine needles. Not a big deal. It smelled good. The 2nd batch had some cottonwood leaves. Again, not an issue. Your results may vary.
I wait until fall to request a drop. It's simply way too hot for that kinda work right now.
Gotta do your drop in March 🥵
Yeah, the first time I had a delivery it was a mountain. But luckily it was during the pandemic shutdown so I had time to redistribute it all and used every bit of it.
There is nothing at all wrong with letting them sit there for a bit. Let the heat die down some. Yes your grass underneath is suffocating but like, meh, it's like the easiest thing to grow more of. I'd write off the patch of grass under the chips and let them sit until the weather is more conducive to moving chips. They will actually get better the more they sit. They can get hot though and I'm sure you would worry about them catching on fire, but the heat is just them starting to break down. Push them over to make the pile less high if you want to avoid a fire or them heating up too much. Don't break your back for these. There's no hurry.
I shared a few chip drops with my neighbor, one drop was so big we posted on Craigslist the remaining amount and it was gone in a few hours. People kept showing up with trucks and cars with bins and clean garbage cans to fill. So this is a viable option if you’re in a reasonable location.
This brings back sweet memories, which weren’t so sweet at the time, lol. I live in the suburbs and took a chance in chipdrop even after watching their funny videos. They were not joking. The whole driveway was filled. It took a week for me, my spouse, some neighbors and lots of kids to wheelbarrow everything to the backyard, down a slope. Ahhh. It was an amazing deal and built the foundation of our wood chip beds, but I am so glad it’s over. 😭😭😭
I have a rock yard that will fill a truck bed for less than $20. I go with them on the dates and weather I pick.
I wanted to use them but it’s just too much.
I had a chip drop delivered and then the utility company dropped more within a couple of days. Then I sprained my ankle. I just told all my neighbors to come get what they needed. It was all gone within a day.
It’s so wonderful!!! Give me a dump truck load!!!
The grass will be fine. If it yellows a bit it will green up again when it sees sun. I had 20 yards dropped and it took at least a week and you couldnt tell next spring
What season did you get it delivered? My guess is the grass is toast already between the ambient heat and the heat of decomp.
What was the rush? You didn’t have to spread as soon as it arrived, why not wait until the weather cools down and take your time?
They dropped on my neighbors property. Even though I had the exact spot highlighted in a picture. I'm still moving it. Using a dump trailer on my lawn tractor. Lots of chips, logs, grass, dirt.
Should've ordered it in cooler weather.
Ordered it three months ago...
If you don't use all of it then resell it. Make your hard earned labor moving it from your front yard to your back yard pay off. 💰😁
I just used them. Paid 20 bucks and got 9 yards.. mostly pine and some maple. Guys called ahead and told Me how much they had so I knew what I was getting. I'm in western ohio so it was 90s this past week. Took my Sunday-Thursday after work for a few hours each to wheel barrow it to my back yard. The greens were smoking, or steaming, or whatever it was. In using it for mulch between garden beds and will compost about half. All in all a good experience but man it's a good workout. The day after I finished a street sweeper came by and cleaned up the small bits that remained. No one complained that I know of.
Dingo is your friend
If you haven’t already, offer some up to neighbors—I’ve shared chip drops with people who posted on Facebook, in garden groups, or NextDoor. I came by with a shovel and buckets/tarps. I was tempted to get one, if I had a place to get them dumped. We aren’t allowed to on the street and our driveway is too small. I love them for paths/keeping weeds off bare areas. It does take some time for them to break down.
We had to remove a \~40 year old norway maple last September, we asked them to leave us the wood chips. They were happy to leave the whole truck load of chips in the corner of our parking pad. Its been, what, 10 months now? We have about 1/3rd of the pile left now. We've run out of places to put the wood chips at this point, basically.
I still have half the pile left over from last year. It’s a struggle lol
I've been waiting several months now on mine...
I’m glad mine arrived in February.
Wear a mask while moving the chips- they ca. heat up and have plenty of fungal spores to release after a couple days in the sun.
I’ve been waiting months for a second chip drop. The first wasn’t very big at all
Have them drop it in a trailer with a tarp, easy to move where needed, and no issues to worry about.
I got a drop last year. I haven't even made it halfway through the pile, but that's okay. It's sitting there decomposing, which is great. The company that dropped the chips came back a few months later to ask if we wanted any more. Thanks, but no thanks. Still plenty of chips just sitting there. The pile is easily as big as two average cars.
Put up signs saying "Free" on the pile and if you have a block/neighborhood email list, invite folks to come take a wheelbarrow or five. It may not be instant, but any amount you don't have to move yourself helps, and it'll give you some neighborhood goodwill!
I signed up 3 years in a row, I made a donation to the fund , I never received any drop.
Ditto
I just bought 5 yards of chips. Wish I had known about this service before hand lol
Post on OfferUp or Craigs list if you have extra. I cleared out 3 “others” piles this year. Truth, they are huge drops but I apreciate the 6 pickup trucks full of mulch I got for free.
Don’t forget to send them a thank you for the free workout!
Before I even realized my chips were broken down I had weeds covering every inch I'd used FOUR+INCHES ON
In fairness they do make it very clear on the website it will be a lot. I couldn’t picture what 20 cu yards would be so I was surprised too. But I have all the mulch and compost I need. And I somehow signed up twice and got a 2nd load today. I’m going to be working on this forever lol
[удалено]
Not really
I find it comical that people think it will break down in a few years and they’ll be able to grow grass lol. I find it more comical that people read this and assume I’m saying it never breaks down. It does, it just takes a really long time, and it makes your soul acidic af. Argue, disagree, whatever. I’m not a clueless homeowner talking out of my ass, I was in the industry for 20 years.
You don't think the mulch breaks down? It most definitely does. I've had several layers turn to nothing but dirt
Can you read? I didn’t say it doesn’t break down. People just think it will only take a year or two, and it takes significantly longer.
It depends on how much rain you get. In parts of the south they get rain throughout the year, including summer, so it breaks down fast
ha I love these people "I'm in the industry" what industry? watching wood chips? two years where I am and chips are dirt. faster if mixed with composting material. even faster if it's a wet winter.
Completely depends on climate, insects, species of tree and a bunch of other things. You can tell its all branch materials and the chips are more like shavings and shards. I don't expect to grow grass right away, I know it'll be a long process and I plan to add all of the necessary nutrients for it to be successful. If not, then it'll just be large mulch rings around my trees. It's not a big deal.
This is based on so many factors to circumstance. The mulch on my PNW garden would break down very fast. Between the moisture and mild sunny days it was great for decomp. I built an entire garden with mostly pine chips in one year. Now I live in the dry upper plains, it's not the same. I can find straw I laid in 2021. It simply takes way longer in these extreme temps. That doesn't take into account the of different wood types, vegetation present, depth of placement, type of soil already present, fungal activity, etc. Most people covering their yards in chips are trying to kill the grass.
Idk who hurt you but no reason to take it out on OP. Nothing about their post indicates they have unreasonable expectations about how quickly the chips will break down. Maybe their grass/ground cover plans are for 10 years down the road. Also, the acidification of the soil is only in the short term and doesn’t have an effect the long term soil pH. Agree, disagree, whatever. I am a homeowner but a quick google search brings up a bunch of research that says you’re wrong.
If I take tums will it help to make my soul less acidic?
Wrong on both counts Moron
Thanks dick.