Giant Sequoia

[RAG66]

I made an estimate on this tree today and started thinking about the best way to get the last 15 - 20 ft. on the ground. The base is 5-6 ft DIA. I'm sure the lower rounds will be 300-500 lbs. between 2.5-5 ft. size. My thought was to tug them off with the dump truck and a rope. By the way there is no real room to set down a log more than 10 ft. While this would help I'm not sure what it will do to the under ground utilities. Any ideas?

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Your estimate is a tad light.

A 5' diameter round that's 2 feet high will weigh 1460 pounds.


At 2.5 feet by 2 feet high it's 365.


Species: Redwood, Second growth Small End Diameter: 60.00 Large End Diameter: 60.00 Length: 2.00' Quantity: 1.00 Estimated Weight: 1460

Species: Redwood, Second growth Small End Diameter: 30.00 Large End Diameter: 30.00 Length: 2.00' Quantity: 1.00 Estimated Weight: 365

http://www.woodweb.com/cgi-bin/calculators/calc.pl

 

[BuddhaKat]

Put a couple of 2×4 or 4×4 on the ground and drop them on that. It'll displace the weight so it won't hurt any underground stuff. You might also get one of those water spike things that the honey sucker trucks have to find the sewer line. Just probe the ground to see if you hit anything hard.

 

[beowulf343]

Throw a ripping chain on another saw. Cut the diameter into half or even quarters if that makes you more comfortable. Then chunk off each quarter.

 

[BC WetCoast]

Leave a 3-4' thick deep pile of branches to act as a 'bomb pad'. This will dissipate the force of the weight of the block.


If you cut at an angle in the direction you want the block to fall, you can use gravity to your advantage.

 

[mckeetree]

Leave a 3-4' thick deep pile of branches to act as a 'bomb pad'. This will dissipate the force of the weight of the block.

Ah, the old bomb pad trick. That's old school.

 

[RAG66]

I have used the bomb pad lots of times, it works great. There is underground power, water, ETC. The overall ground damage is not realy a big deal, I'm just thinking about how to get the bigger rounds off. I can just ues wedges to avoid pinching, then have the truck pull them off with a chunk of old rope.

 

[M.D. Vaden]

Throw a ripping chain on another saw. Cut the diameter into half or even quarters if that makes you more comfortable. Then chunk off each quarter.

Couldn't someone put several splitting wedges in a row and just split the wood rounds off into pieces?

Seems that redwood splits pretty easy just judging by the way the big ones shatter into kindling sometimes when they fall.

Could split apart as easy as redcedar does.

Or are the giant sequoia a bit more stubborn about splitting?

 

[RAG66]

Hey guys, Just an update. It doesn't look like I'll get the job after all and that's OK. And to answer the question about how it splits, In my limited knowledge, When wet it does not go easy. There is maybe some confusion on specie here. Costal red wood is totaly different, it does split good like red cedar. Giant sequoia holds lots of water and is like trying to split a truck tire!!! The maul bounces right off, wedges are hard to start, even with a kerf cut deeply.

 

[beastmaster]

For future reference on your next big tree job, what we use to do on big pines growing up through a deck, I would cut the round and tie it tightly(sometimes notching it on the sides so the rope would stay)and use wedges to slide it carefully off so the rope would catch on the trunk, front and back, in the middle and the guys would lower it down. Of course you have to be careful the round doesn't pop out when it goes over the edge. Sometimes that last 10ft can be the hardest.

 

[RAG66]

Sure I get it you would notch or V the front-N-back of the trunk, then choke up on the round, cut it using wedges in the kerf, then with a port-a-wrap installed, slide it off and lower it! I like the sound of it. opcorn:

 

[pdqdl]

Throw a ripping chain on another saw. Cut the diameter into half or even quarters if that makes you more comfortable. Then chunk off each quarter.

Yes! That works, but be sure to rip it before you cross cut.

Rip 'em 10' long, then take it down to the lumber mill!

 

[pdqdl]

I have used the bomb pad lots of times, it works great. There is underground power, water, ETC. The overall ground damage is not realy a big deal, I'm just thinking about how to get the bigger rounds off. I can just ues wedges to avoid pinching, then have the truck pull them off with a chunk of old rope.

In Beranek's Fundamental's of Tree Work, he recommends using round bars to roll the sections off. I would like to say that this is my idea, but I really learned it from the master's book.

I have done that a number of times with my tire spoons. Pry up with one spoon (a wedge will do nicely), then slide the 2nd bar in close to the balancing point of the log. Put a pair of vise grip or small pipe wrench on the bar and use it as a roller to easily pitch the log section off. When the log gets to the edge of the spar, the roller falls out and the log tips and falls.

Easy, no great strength required. Pitched cut described above works too, but it makes it a much longer crosscut before you can push it off. Fallen sections are harder to handle when they are salami-cut, too.

With a small amount of practice, you can put a slight pitch on your crosscut, slide a round bar under the log, then watch as it just rolls itself off with gravity assistance.