Removing pine tree

[roypat2126]

I want to remove a white pine that is approx. 6ft from end of house and I have delimbed up to about 8ft or so. Tree is nearly 24in dia. and 25 maybe 30 ft high.

Only thing in way is a couple maple trees and I don't want to knock off their limbs, but I think if dropped correctly the pine will fall way left of the maples but too far left gets into the other pines I want to leave alone.

Questions are :
1. How to cut tree and make sure it falls where expected?
2. Do I cut it flush with ground or leave stump?
3. This size tree worth milling for lumber?

(I prefer to dig up stump and back-fill for landscaping later on). I suppose I could delimb the thing alway to top.....but by the time I get all the limbs/branches cut off, I will have painted myself into a corner.....I'll be up a tree without a handle.......... [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Have a blessed day, [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
roy

[DMF]

Yikes! Well, I have done this many times before and it's never fun until it's safely on the ground but...
If you climb 2/3 to 3/4 of the total height and get a good rope on it you can "convince" it to fall right where you want. I take the rope and attach it to a good block and tackle which you anchor to another large tree in line where you want it to fall; the higher up the tree and the longer the rope the more leverage you will have. I take up as much slack/stretch as I can with the B&T and tie it off. I notch the base of the tree at the fall side. Then I tighten the B&T more; you should be able to move the tree quite a bit more now that it's notched, and tie it off again. Now have your helper (did I mention you need a helper?) pull on the rope which tightens the B&T at a 90 degree angle from the intended fall direction; you can tie another rope to this to get even further from the fall area, but if you started with long ropes this should not be needed. Your helper pulls as you cut the back side of the tree. Viola! The tree should fall right in line with your ropes. I always climbed trees with a safety belt and usually with climbers on my boots.

In my experience, most sawyers won't want to mess with milling a log that has come from someone's house; there's no way of being sure they aren't going to find an old eyebolt that someone stuck in there 50 years ago to hold their clothesline. But, you may find someone local who's willing to take a risk.

Stump: My suggestion would be to cut it flush and grind it up. Some guys will rent a grinder or hire someone; either way I think it's better than digging it out. You will get some settling when the roots finally rot out but I think it's still takes less fill to fix a ground out stump than one that was dug out. My $.02...

Good luck and be safe! [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[robertn]

A friend of ours is an arborist. For being close to the house, and other trees of interest, he probably would not fall the tree. He would most likely climb it, doing some selective limbing. Then he would cut it in sections, while in the tree, and work his way down. I have watched him do this. Sometimes he just drops the small sections(1-3'). Other times he rigs a rope and pulley, and then maually lowers the sections with the assistance of a helper.

So close to the house, it may be cheaper to pay an arborist than the deductions on insurance if it hits the house.

One thing of note; if you drop the whole tree by setting a rope and pulling it in the direction of fall, anchor on another tree or something. Some folks will anchor to thier tractor or pickup. Then they have a hard time with the insurance company explaining how the tree fell on the truck, or drug it in the opposite direction, banging in to stuff, when the tree still fell the wrong way..

[Pat]

I have successfully used the rope method and the dissassemble it in sectons method. Close to the house and with GOOD trees around I'd lean toward the take it apart in small pieces method.

If you can safely take off all the big limbs you have half the battle over. You can tie a rope above the point where you want to cut the trunk at the top and again below the cut with only enough slack to allow dodging the rope with the saw to make the cut. This will suspend the cut piece which you can lower to the ground under control. (I skipped a lot of minute detail about the kinds of knots that hold well and can still be untied easlly and other rigging considerations.)

I took the upper 40 feet off of a 90 ft tree using this method. You should use a safety harness and hold on when dropping a large section as it can jostle the tree pretty good. Drop smaller pieces.

Using the tension rope method can lead to some surprises when the falling tree seems to exhibit a mind of its own as to direction of fall. With experience I found that two ropes at least 30 degrees but preferably 45 degrees or more apart tend to constrain the falling tree's freedom of movement much much better. This is one of those things where a single rope will probably work fine 9 out of 10 times but what if with the luck of the draw you start out with scenario #10? Compare the cost/hassle of using a second rope to the cost of your home owner's deductable (and possible increased premiums) and make your own decision.

Good luck, be safe,

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[egon]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
I'll be up a tree without a handle..........


[/ QUOTE ]

Strange that you should mention this senario. Seems I can recall an overeager dummy using a ladder to access a trees lower branches, not tieing it off and then proceding to climb the tree cutting branches as he went up. Course he'd wisely deduced that cutting a branch below him should be safer. Worked well till a descent was required. No branches and a ladder on the ground!! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

He did manage to get back to good solid ground. Nothing like gravity and ever increasing tree diameter to aid a short armed tree hugger going into full fall mode! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

There may be times when it pays to hire competent experienced people. Just think of short term and long term costs.

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[GaryM]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
Short armed tree hugger

[/ QUOTE ]

I love it! Great phrase! [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img]

[Pat]

Lots of folks in the service were subjected to short arm inspections but I don't recall tree climbing being a requirement for that portion of the anatomy.

[img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Pat [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[egon]

I was doing fine till I got to about 15 feet above ground were the tree trunk got to big to reach around And I just had my knees to keep me sorta pasted to the tree! [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Egon

[lbrown59]

about a week ago a guy I know was cutting off a tree limb and the limb hit him in the chest and knocked him and the ladder to the ground.
He's walking with a limp and a cain but the first 3 days after the fall he couldn't walk at all.

[roypat2126]

Thanks all for the responses...the tree is still with us. It doesn't bother the house that much now that I trimmed brances way up on trunk. Looks a little silly but some of the other "pine tree species" don't put out brances till near the top anyway so I think I'll not get myself in harms way and just let it grow.
Have a blessed day
roy [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]