Best Wood Chipper for 2024

Wood Chipper Buying Guide

A wood chipper is a significant investment, so it is critical to research all of your options before deciding on the best machine for your needs. In this buying guide, we'll go over some of the most important factors to think about before deciding on a model.

Important Considerations when Buying a Wood Chipper:

• Wood Chipper Capacity
• Material You Need Chipped or Shredded
• Weight and Maneuverability
• Engine Brand
• Horsepower
• Electric vs Gas
• Reduction Ratio for Mulching
• Auto vs Self Feeding
• Construction
• Storage and Dimensions
• Electric Start
• Availability of Spare Parts
• Ease of Maintenance

Capacity

Capacity is the most important consideration when selecting a wood chipper. The capacity of a chipper determines how much material can be fed into the machine for chipping.

The question is, what is the average diameter of the material you need chipped? If you have a lot of 3-inch material, you should probably get the most powerful chipper you can afford. On the other hand, if the majority of the branches and brush you intend to grind up are 2-inches or smaller, a lower horsepower model may save you money while still meeting your needs. Be aware that most chippers are designed to process dry branches and that wet material necessitates more power. So size up for the wet stuff.

A little-known fact is that some manufacturers incorrectly measure the capacity of their products. They do not cut the branches at 90 degrees, which is how capacity is measured. Instead, they cut it at an angle, which ultimately results in a larger number. That 2-inch branch has suddenly grown to 3-inches!

How can you avoid purchasing a chipper that will not meet your requirements? Again, if you need a chipper with a 3" cutting capacity, our recommendation is to purchase a machine with a 3" true-feed capacity (which only YardBeast offers) or a machine with at least a 10-horsepower engine.

Material You Need Chipped or Shredded

The next important consideration when choosing a chipper is whether or not you need to shred leaves and twigs. This type of material is difficult to feed into a chipper because it can easily clog and jam the machine. A standalone shredder or a chipper with a shredding feature is required if you need a model that can handle leaves or twigs.

A chipper with a shredding feature usually has a separate chute for shredding material, and its capacity is usually limited to organic material with a diameter of less than half an inch. Leaves and twigs can be fed into the shredding chute, where they are ground up by multiple y-flails rotating at a high speed (different from the flywheel and blades used to chip material).

Weight and Maneuverability

The weight of the chipper and how you plan to maneuver it across your property are the next important factors to consider when buying one. Even though heavier chippers have larger wheels, hauling them across different terrain can be a workout.

• 100-pound wood chippers and shredders are very easy to hand pull across any type of ground.
• 200-pound wood chippers are very easy to hand pull across a paved surface and slightly more difficult to hand pull across the grass.
• 300-pound wood chippers require some strength to pull across a paved surface and a strong individual to pull across the grass.

As you can see, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. It simply depends on your ability, health, and intended use of the wood chipper. However, don't let chipper weight take precedence over your chipping capacity requirements. What's the point of buying a chipper if it can't handle the material you require?

If you decide to go with a larger chipper, some models come with tow-bar attachments, which can make pulling the chipper to its destination much easier.

Engine Brand

Reliability should be a major consideration when purchasing a wood chipper. Every chipper should work fine right out of the box. But what about in a year's time? What will it be like in five years? Nothing is guaranteed, but purchasing a chipper with a well-known engine brand increases your chances of increased reliability. Briggs and Stratton, Kohler, and Honda are some of the most dependable engine manufacturers.

What if you came across a chipper with a different company's engine? You'll have to make that decision for yourself. However, you should be aware that many people have 10-year-old chippers with engines from other manufacturers that are still running like new.

Horsepower

The horsepower or engine displacement in cubic centimeters (cc) of a wood chipper will give you a good idea of how well it can handle branches and plant matter. Any chipper should suffice if you only plan to process material with a diameter of less than 2".

However, as we progress to 3" diameter material, the issue of size and horsepower becomes more complicated. A 6.5 horsepower engine with a 3" capability may only be capable of handling that size on rare occasions. A wood chipper with a 10 horsepower engine or more, on the other hand, should be able to quickly chip away at 3" diameter branches.

Electric v. Gas

The engine's power source, and whether you want an electric chipper or a gas chipper, is a final consideration. A gas chipper will give you more power and will be able to handle material with larger diameters more easily. You can also choose from a larger selection of gas chippers.

An electric chipper is more environmentally friendly and quieter than a gas chipper, but it is not as powerful. Furthermore, portability may be an issue if there isn't a nearby outlet or generator. The compact design and small size of an electric chipper, on the other hand, work in its favor. Finally, while there are many small capacity electric chippers on the market, your options are limited if you need to chip beyond 1.5".

Reduction Mulch Ratio

A reduction ratio describes how small the organic material is after shredding. A machine with a 15:1 reduction ratio, for example, can take 15 bags of leaves and reduce them to 1 bag. If you're worried about what to do with leftover brush and leaves, this is a very useful feature. A reduction ratio, in general, only applies to shredders (or chippers with shredding features), because standalone chippers lack shredding hammers and/or knives.

Auto/Self Feeding

An auto or self-feeding option on a chipper is a useful feature to have. When you feed material into a chipper with this feature, the machine will continue to chew it up while gravity feeds the limbs or branches through the machine. This works best on limbs and larger branches that are fairly straight and lack small branches or leaves.

Construction

It is important to purchase a chipper that is built tough and has solid construction so that it will last long enough to pay for itself. The material used to construct the chipper is the next most important factor influencing durability after the motor. You want something well-made that can withstand years of constant abuse. Steel should always be preferred over plastic, and the lower the gauge of steel, the better.

Storage and Dimensions

Before purchasing a wood chipper, ensure that you have a place to store it when not in use. Because of their compact design, lower-powered chippers should have no trouble with storage. They are smaller in size and more portable. However, as horsepower increases, the size of the machine grows and storage becomes more of an issue, so plan ahead.

Electric Start

A chipper with an electric start is not common, but it is a very useful feature. You can start your chipper with a simple switch flip and avoid straining your arm by pulling the cord multiple times.

Availability of Spare Blades, Hammers, and Belts

The blades, hammers, and belts are the main wear and tear items on a chipper (depending on the model). You should make sure that replacement parts are readily available, or else your investment may be worthless. One of the most frequently overlooked aspects when selecting a chipper is the availability of replacement parts. So, check with the manufacturer or their website to see if spare parts are available.

Ease of Maintenance

One of the most common maintenance issues with a wood chipper is jamming. It's not a question of if, but rather when.  A jam can occur as a result of wet material, vines, or simply bad luck chipping material. The difficulty of unjamming the machine is entirely determined by the type of chipper and its design. Some chippers have an easy-open latched lid that allows for quick access to the flywheel and blades to clean the clogged mess. Other wood chippers require a complete disassembly that includes numerous screws, bolts, nuts, and hours of your time.

Another aspect of maintenance is keeping your blades sharp. If you don't keep your chipping blades sharp, they won't work properly and may even break the machine. How simple is it to access and remove the blades for sharpening? Is it an hour-long or longer process? Maybe that's fine, maybe it isn't. You'll have to decide for yourself.

Other types of maintenance may include oil changes, greasing fittings, and spark plug replacement. Your mileage may vary, as with anything, depending on how the chipper is designed.

FAQs on Wood Chippers

In addition to our guide to buying a wood chipper, we'd like to address some of the most frequently asked questions about these machines. If you have a question that we haven't addressed, please contact us so that we can address it and add it to this article.

What is a Wood Chipper?

A wood chipper is a machine that takes organic material like small branches, tree limbs, garden debris, and leaves and turns it into smaller pieces. It's one of the more powerful tools in a homeowner's arsenal.

To grind up the material, all chippers use internal blades or hammers. In a chipper, this is usually a flywheel or drum with one or more attached blades that can handle larger limbs and branches. A series of y-hammers is used to process smaller material, such as leaves and twigs.

Wood chippers come in a variety of configurations, ranging from stand-alone gas and electric models to PTO models that are powered and pulled by a tractor. Depending on your needs, most homeowners will have to choose between a gas or an electric model.

Who Needs a Wood Chipper?

Here are some of the reasons why you might need a wood chipper:

• Cleaning up leaves on your lawn.
• Storm cleanup of branches and twigs.
• Disposing of clippings and pruning from your bushes.
• Cleaning up overgrowth.
• Shredding up garden plants/vines after the season is over to prepare for the next year's planting season.
• Creating free mulch.
• Creating free fertilizer and compost for your landscape, garden, and flower beds.

Safety Tips

Aside from a chainsaw, a chipper is one of the most dangerous machines for the average homeowner. It is often designed for commercial purposes and has great power and potential for harm. The first thing you should do when the chipper arrives is to read the manual and follow all of the safety tips. Seriously. Do it.