Solo Tree care

[jason j ladue]

that sounds like the guy who was my mentor. i do stuff like that-the-tie-off-the-top to-the-neighboring-tree-spearcut-thing, and the handsaw finishicut while running the rigging line /w the other hand sounds right up my alley. i do about 3/4 of my work solo. 90% time there is somebody else (more often than not it is the person who hired me) there on the ground in case "i need anything", but generally speaking, i take care of everything myself...if i forsee the need to switch or re-fuel saws at any point during the climb, i make sure ahead of time that i have those things and or my pole pruner/saw or my lunch tied onto an accessory line ahead of hand. i dont want to climb that tree more times than i have to, and i dont want to spend a bunch of time waiting for somebody else to me get what i need. i have some video i am dying to post, but i still have somebody else working on the edit...soon, soon. this solo cat sounds like a cool guy

 

[basnighttrees]

So, why did you delete your initial post? Can't pat you on the back w/o an opening post, eh? :alien:

I was encaraged not to open this thread due to wide disaproval that would come with it. I would like to come out and watch this guy work. What part of the country is he in? Maybe I could take a weekend off and get some more education. I am planing to go to another ArborMaster traning in July in NC

 

[Tree Machine]

You could come work with him for the Summer if you really wanted to dig in. I checked with him and he's booked severel weeks deep, praying no big storms hit. Solo cat doesn't generally do employees, but has been known to take on apprentices and pays em $15 an hour to start.

Solo Cat thinks Blaster's "What it takes to be an Excellent Ground Man" IS A GENIUS WORK OF ART, and wishes to use it as a prerequisite to any committed working arrangement.

Solo Cat lives in Indianapolis. There's a slew of places for rent around here, within a minute or two of his general work zone.

I don't think the Arbormaster training is going to pay you a hundred fifty a day. It's good, quality training and you'll get a lot of benefit from it and meet cool fellow arborists.

 

[basnighttrees]

Will keep that in mind. Does Solo Cat work during the winter? Say Dec. and Jan.

 

[Tree Machine]

He LOVES working in the Winter. Winter in Indianapolis is pretty mild, compared to, say Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Maine. Starts booking his Winter work in July. Says he hasn't had slow business in the Winter in nine years. For him, Summer officially begins in February.

I do know he's planning on 3 or 4 months travel this Winter and is looking for the right person to manage his business and do the tree work while he's gone. Details are sketchy at the moment, nothing carved in concrete as yet.

 

[Tree Machine]

Solo tree work is not so difficult. The cleanup is the part that'll get you.

I would have to ask ALL the climbers out there, how many times have you performed your aerial work and never actually needed the help of your groundguy for the actual work you are doing? For the times you utilize the help, could you have done it yourself by having been better prepared, or by modifying your technique?

Aerially speaking, other than lowering big limbs, what do you need ground help for?

 

[Tree Machine]

Before you answer something like "To pick up the Silky saw I dropped", the answer to that would be to not drop your silky saw, or as some do, carry a scabbarded one on the left, a folding one on the right (having an extra).

"To send up my water jug" would be answered "I need to buy a camelback"

"To refill my saw" could be answered bring a small fuel bottle up, have a second readied saw tethered to a rope, come down for an occasional break, etc.

"To answer my cell phone" would be answered, Voice mail, carry the phone up with you.

"To send up something I've forgotten" would be answered, Think, plan, be prepared.

"To talk to clients" You can talk to them from up in the tree, have business cards where they can get em.



I'm honestly asking for NEED. What do you NEED him (or her) for. Not reasons why it's convenient to have a guy on the ground, there's a million reasons it's nice to have somebody there, but for what reasons are a ground person absolutely essential?

 

[Stumper]

Need? NEED a ground worker? On less than 5% of the jobs.

 

[Tree Machine]

That's about right. 19 out of 20 jobs COULD BE DONE without the aid of a ground worker. One in 20 jobs is big, or technical, enough to require assistance from the ground to do your aerial work.

I've just thought of a type of job where a groundguy is essential - where there's TRAFFIC, pruning over a busy street. For the sake of public safety, I think a ground man is essential. Still, this doesn't mean you need him for what you're doing in the tree, but I still consider it a legitimate groundguy need.

The approach here is not to get arborists to get rid of their ground guys. We're just illuminating to all, that which we already know.

When else is a ground guy absolutely necessary for you to do your tree work?

 

[MasterBlaster]

My main complaints trimming by myself is my rope getting tangled, and sending a polesaw up. You really have to be carefull with your rope, and it's a pita packing the polesaw around in a tree.

 

[vharrison2]

I've just thought of a type of job where a groundguy is essential - where there's TRAFFIC, pruning over a busy street. For the sake of public safety, I think a ground man is essential.

Yep, that pretty much covers Key West. Our guys would never work without a goundman, and they each have their favorite. The work goes smoother with a team.

 

[Tree Machine]

Traffic makes having a groundguy critical and essential. Do you guys drive all the way down from Marathon, or do you have a division set up in the southern Keys? As a boss orchestrating tree care, it would be risky and unreasonable to send men out Solo, although my first boss did. I WAS the tree care division of his landscape company.

POLE SAWS. I can't comment on that as I've been meaning to get a polesaw for several years. If it's too big for the Corona Bull Loppers, I can climb out and get it with a Silky

I use pole pruners, and I wouldn't generally think of going up in a pruning job without them. The pole pruner has a 'limb hook' inclusive, so you just hang it when not using it.

As far as rope tangling, yea, I understand. I've gone to having a number of ropes, and choose the shortest one that will go from the ground, to the T.I.P. and back to the ground. Wads of excess rope can be a pain, but generally speaking, tangling is caused by having limbs or branches drop on the rope, and this can often be prevented if you're deliberate.

I've also found the 11 mm's to tangle less, as well as just being lighter in weight.

 

[Stumper]

Jim, There seems to be a disdain amongst the current crop of climbers for polesaws. I will grant that many are good enough to be able to do almost every tree well without using a Polesaw in the tree-but they also could save time and wear and tear on their bodies by using a polesaw on those 3 little dead branches out near the tip instead of fighting into a new position that nets them nothing except those cuts.(Or worse yet-guys dropcrotch a whole lead because it is too hard to climb for those little but obvious dead twigs!) Even if you are good enough to practically never need a Polesaw in the tree you NEED a polesaw. Many jobs don't reqire climbing. Quite a few waste time climbing to make what could have been 3 polesaw cuts from the ground. I probably use a pole saw more than almost any other treeman in the world-I don't think my way is the best way for everyone but it works for me. I admit that sometimes I use a polesaw to prune an entire tree and I could have done it about as fast climbing-When its close I usually keep my feet on the ground. However there are lots of jobs where I can finish with a polesaw before I could saddle up and make my ascent-polesaws boost efficiency. Solo Cat is an efficiency fan-I' surprised he didn't explain this to you! :angel:

 

[vharrison2]

Traffic makes having a groundguy critical and essential. Do you guys drive all the way down from Marathon, or do you have a division set up in the southern Keys? As a boss orchestrating tree care, it would be risky and unreasonable to send men out Solo, although my first boss did. I WAS the tree care division of his landscape company.

We have 2 locations, one in Marathon that services the lower keys. The ride to Key West is an hour, so we factor that into the quote. The other is in Islamorada and that services the upper keys. Really looking for a foreman/climber in that location. Lead guy moved to Orlando.

 

[treeseer]

Jim, There seems to be a disdain amongst the current crop of climbers for polesaws. ...guys dropcrotch a whole lead because it is too hard to climb for those little but obvious dead twigs!)...there are lots of jobs where I can finish with a polesaw before I could saddle up and make my ascent-polesaws boost efficiency.

Right you are. My guess is thta the disdain comes from reasons that have naught to do with working efficiency or tree care. Like any piece of gear it's a hassle to learn how to use well. ( I use a flipline less than once a month, for instance--other means of ascent are more efficient for me) They're as easy to carry in a tree as a chainsaw--easier really cuz they're lighter--they'll snap on the same dogleash. Telescoping polesaws are the only way to go--too often 8' is too short and 16' is too long..

I often use mine to pull a branch to me so I can use handsaw or secateurs. (French words are magnifique! Le Meilleur!) Also great for advancing ropes--handlines etc. Also for cleaning out skwerl nests instead of climbing thru them and getting attacked. the list goes on and on.

Like SoloCat my ground help is usually the client. It helps them to appreciate what goes into good tree care; the more impressed they are, the easier it is to :Eye: $ value in the service. Climbing alone is generally a bad idea.

Man vh I do miss the keys. Do you get into tamarind trees much? I'd love to taste a fresh one again; send me a boxful, willya? pm me if you can and let me know how much.

 

[clearance]

I carry a Jamison tested pole pruner with two extensions up in the tree with me if I need it, TreeMachine is right about the fact that they can easily be hung on a branch. As far as getting your rope tangled, ha hah ha hah, another reason why climbing with spurs is better. I climb up, cut away, get my clearance, take my coiled rope from my belt, tie in and come down. After everthing that could have caught my rope is on the ground. I always climb r.o.w.s. with another guy, but when he is a few hundred feet away in another tree it would be stupid to have to wait for him to come down and hear "get my rope, my fu%$&ng rope is caught"

 

[MasterBlaster]

Clearance, you have a spur fixation.

I would love to get you in a giant oak, no spurs, just trimming. You would love it!

 

[Tinwoodman]

I just wish spurs weren't so blame expensive. If they were a little cheaper, I could buy a pair and it would so help with my free-climbing-- so far I've never used a rope-- just free-climbed. Usually I free-climb dragging my tow-chain up the tree, so I can set it up high and pull the tree over. Spurs are rediculously expensive, looked like $300 for a good pair. Can't afford 'em yet.

 

[MasterBlaster]

But once you get em, you got em.

 

[treeseer]

Usually I free-climb dragging my tow-chain up the tree,

That sounds so primeval it's scary. "Free climbing" often means not being tied in; please tell me I'm wrong.

I worked with TreeCo--may he post elsewhere in peace :angel: --and saw him flip a throwball 60+' up through a tight hole to set a line. Saved us hours.