I'm wracking my brain trying to think of a way to pull down a honking-big poplar that sits 15' behind my house. It sits atop a 6-foot bank and some of the limbs hang over the house. I'm not a climber so I can't top it. The insurance company offered nothing for a preemptive strike. They said to let it fall on the house, and they'll rebuild (guess they like to play the odds). I thought about advertising on CL to see if one of the local farmers wants to pull it down, but I'm worried that it might break where the cable goes around sending the top in the wrong direction. Any advice on pulling a tree down? Diameter is 4' at base. I'm outta my league on this one and I don't want to end up winning a Darwin Award.
Pulling vs. Cutting
- Thread starter pweber
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Not much lean, but it's twisted which is unusual for a tulip poplar. There's no telling which way it would fall. I'm not a skilled arborist - just a firewood junkie, so most likely I'll have to dig out the wallet.
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Sounds like a "hold my beer" job to me. Paying a professional to cut down a danger tree is cheap insurance.
Ferguson system
Iggesund Forest dealer
I'd use a rope and 2 heavy duty ratchet straps for tightening the rope, use another tree to secure the rope. Tighten one strap, tighten the next, slack the first and retighten, slack the second and tighten, and so on. Get a friend to help you tighten the rope and pull on it to controll the fall, while you cut down the tree.
I'd have to agree. A 4' tree is going to cause more than a "whoopsie" worth of damage if it doesn't take your intended path.
Sounds like you are equipped to deal with the tree once it's down? If so get several quotes and inform them you just need the tree dropped and you will take it from there. Many years back my parents needed some dicey trees knocked down. I was going to buck and haul brush once they were on the ground. Tree service quotes ranged from $350 to $2500 to lay down a couple of trees. We chose the $350 guy and the trees were safely on the ground 2 days later.
Gypo Logger
Timber Baron
It's very hard to give you any armchair advice until we see pics from at least 3 angles. My gut instinct would be to call an arborist. A 4' tree is a lot of wood, maybe 3 cords worth.
John
John
Fred Wright
Addicted to ArboristSite
Agreed with the guys here ~ a tree that large + limbs over the house = call a pro. The tree company will probably use a climber or bucket truck to remove limbs then drop it away from your home (I would).
Swamp Yankee
Addicted to ArboristSite
To the OP, couple thoughts
First, you've answered your question in the original post. You stated, "I'm outta my league on this one and I don't want to end up winning a Darwin Award". This leaves either a pro climber or arborist with a bucket truck as the best recourse. svk gave you some great advice in getting quotes from an insured company(s) to just put it on the ground and leave the clean-up. On a tree that large, there will be a lot of brush, chipping, raking and blowing, etc. If that clean up is not in the quote, I'm estimating the time of the job just went from 1 to 1-1/2 days to probably a 1/2 day or a little more depending on set up and access. I'm also assuming a crane is not required.
My other thought, from experience in dealing with trees this big over the years, both felling and helping my arborist buddy, is quite simply well over half of the trees, regardless of species, when they reach that diameter are no longer solid through and through. They resemble for lack of a better term jelly donuts. This means whatever you planned on for holding and hinging wood to direct the fall may be no more than a huge mass of core rot with the consistency and strength of oatmeal. Use of ropes, cables, and winches will add some amount of predictability as to fall direction, however once the stresses induced take over and the trunk cracks or indeed starts to roll, that tree is going where it nature and gravity take it regardless of what's in its path.
Wishing you a favorable outcome.
Take Care
First, you've answered your question in the original post. You stated, "I'm outta my league on this one and I don't want to end up winning a Darwin Award". This leaves either a pro climber or arborist with a bucket truck as the best recourse. svk gave you some great advice in getting quotes from an insured company(s) to just put it on the ground and leave the clean-up. On a tree that large, there will be a lot of brush, chipping, raking and blowing, etc. If that clean up is not in the quote, I'm estimating the time of the job just went from 1 to 1-1/2 days to probably a 1/2 day or a little more depending on set up and access. I'm also assuming a crane is not required.
My other thought, from experience in dealing with trees this big over the years, both felling and helping my arborist buddy, is quite simply well over half of the trees, regardless of species, when they reach that diameter are no longer solid through and through. They resemble for lack of a better term jelly donuts. This means whatever you planned on for holding and hinging wood to direct the fall may be no more than a huge mass of core rot with the consistency and strength of oatmeal. Use of ropes, cables, and winches will add some amount of predictability as to fall direction, however once the stresses induced take over and the trunk cracks or indeed starts to roll, that tree is going where it nature and gravity take it regardless of what's in its path.
Wishing you a favorable outcome.
Take Care
This tree sounds like the one I have in my yard except mine is siberian elm and is next to the gravel road not the house. If the tree falls directly to the east it could take out a power line with the top branches. The tree is dropping branches/bark already and it has only been dead for 6-7 month. I have dropped a silver maple and a hackberry that were close in size to this elm. My concerns with dropping the elm is getting hit by falling branches as I cut and the fall of the tree needs to be north but the weight of it is to the SW.
Because I have "doubt" the right decision is to hire a tree service who will come with a bucket and get the tree down for $600. If there is risk and a mistake is made, you will be out more then what a tree service will cost. Hire it out.
Because I have "doubt" the right decision is to hire a tree service who will come with a bucket and get the tree down for $600. If there is risk and a mistake is made, you will be out more then what a tree service will cost. Hire it out.
If it's a threat to the power lines normally the power company will take it down for free. Check with your provider.
Gypo Logger
Timber Baron
If it were my tree I leave it standing unless there are signs of rot or that it's dying. It's stood this long so stop worrying.
Sounds like a great shade tree, but you might want to at least prune it.
John
Sounds like a great shade tree, but you might want to at least prune it.
John
^^^
What Gypo said , get the overhang on the house side trimmed making the other side heavy , then , if you don't like it , drop it
What Gypo said , get the overhang on the house side trimmed making the other side heavy , then , if you don't like it , drop it
Oldman47
ArboristSite Guru
I had a tree like that between my house and my neighbor. Insurance told me to remove it or they would cancel. I looked at that tree and the 6 inch diameter branch over my roof and the 4 inch branch over my neighbor's roof and called in the experts. The guy took it apart branch by branch and never posed a real threat to either place. I thought it was money well spent and got about a half a cord of rounds out of it.
What part of MD are you in? I'm retired and no longer have Lic and Ins, but my cousin is still in the business. We are both 4th generation in residential removal. If you want to have some one look at it PM me and I'll give you my cousin's number, Joe.
