A chipper is rented by the capacity of its throat, and that one number sets the price. A six-inch tow-behind, enough for hedge work and branch trimmings, is roughly $180 a day. A twelve-inch drum machine that takes whole limbs runs toward $600. Weekly rates land near three day rates at most counters, so a two-day job is worth pricing both ways.
Six inch, nine inch or twelve inch
The rated diameter is the largest branch the feed rollers will accept, not the largest they will chip comfortably. Sizing one step up from your thickest limb keeps the machine from stalling on forks and crotch wood, which is where most of the wasted hours go. For garden prunings a six-inch machine is enough; for felled trees it is not.
Drum, disc, or a chipper-shredder
A disc chipper throws a clean, consistent chip and suits mulch you intend to spread. A drum machine takes gnarly, forked material more patiently. The small chipper-shredder on the tool counter is a different animal again, built for leaves and finger-thick twigs, and feeding it real branches is the fastest way to a jam charge on your invoice.
Towing it, and the yard's hook-up check
Most rental chippers are trailer-mounted at one to two thousand pounds. You need a two-inch ball on a rated hitch, a working light plug and, on the heavier machines, a vehicle rated to tow them. The counter checks all of that before it lets the trailer off the lot, so bring the tow vehicle you actually intend to use.
Jams, and the line about clearing them
Feed rollers stall on wet forked wood, and the temptation is to reach in and pull. The control bar stops the rollers; only shutting the engine down and letting the disc or drum come to rest makes the throat safe. Rental agreements make you liable for damage caused by clearing a jam with the engine running, and it is the injury that matters more.
Questions people ask about wood chipper rental
What size chipper do I need for storm cleanup?
Measure the thickest limb on the pile and rent one size above it. Most residential storm debris chips in a six or nine-inch machine; only felled trunk wood needs twelve inches.
Is a day rate or a week rate better value?
A weekly rate is usually close to three day rates, so anything past three days is cheaper by the week. Ask whether the counter counts a weekend as one day, which many do.
Can I chip pine and green wood?
Yes, but green and resinous wood gums the knives and slows the feed. Alternate green material with drier branches, and expect a chip-quality difference in the pile rather than a machine problem.
Do rental chippers come with fuel?
They leave the yard full and come back full, or the yard refuels at its own posted rate. A day of steady chipping on a nine-inch machine burns a few gallons, so budget for the pump rather than for the surcharge.