Dad ash, with poison ivy, has to come down.

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HDRock

Minister of Fire
Oct 25, 2012
2,239
Grand Blanc, Mi
Some how I did not notice this dead ash on my property until today, it's about 10 or 12 inch diameter
As you can see in the pictures it has some poison ivy vines , which I assume are not dead.
Once I get her down, I think I can strip the bark off with an axe or hatchet and burn it just fine.
What I am concerned about is going at it with a saw, and having the chips from the poison ivy vines flying around .
Oh yes, I get poison ivy at least once or twice a year, the area where this tree is, I avoid , because there's a lot of Ivy , I have managed to kill off some of it.
I have never cut down a tree with vines on it like this though , so ! any suggestions how to deal with it.

EDIT: The good thing is ,it's ten feet from the end, of my dead end street, and leaning toward the street, plenty of room to drop it, on the street n clean it up.

IMG_20130221_152122.jpgIMG_20130221_164425.jpg
 
I hate to say it but, if your like me your gonna get it! Go back a few threads, there is lots of input on poison ivy, best thing I can say is, protect yourself as much as possible, "DO NOT LET CHIPS GET IN EYES"! !!! and what was repeated to me by a few people on the forum and my mom is, wash with fels-naphta soap after your done cutting. ;) Good luck!..... nice tree, go get it.....
 
Cover up, use gloves, change your clothes, wash, don't sweat while taking down; ya you'll be fine. Nice get.
 
!!! P-O-I-S-O-N I-V-Y R-U-N......
 
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If I cut 10 trees here - 9 of them have PI vines. Just be careful and mind what you touch after you touch the stuff. It will be on your gloves so either use oldies that you can toss or wash your hands with them on after you cut. The good thing is it is dead ash so it often just comes off with the dead bark. Try pulling it off before you cut it with the saw to mitigate a lot of the risk.

Bar and chain will clean themselves while bucking but the handle will be toxic. I have never washed the saw but if you are super alergic it may not be a bad idea to wipe it down good with windex or some type of grease cutter.

Nice score
 
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You must tale the time and strip those dormant vines completely off the tree after it is down. The aerial roots peel off rather easy and will save you potential misery later. Those vines are just as infectious as any other part of the plant. I handle a lot of Poison Ivy vines both dormant and active. At the extreme end of the spectrum like spring through fall, I wear a Tyvek (paper) suit, rubber gloves taped down, rubber boots. When its hot and I sweat I use the "Invisible Glove" coating sold in auto supply that keeps grease from out of your pores, you can apply it to your face and neck when its too hot for full suit coverage. The only true way to be sure not to get a rash is to shower with Tecnu poison ivy wash which you can find in drug stores, some supermarkets, or in quart bottels off Amazon. You really have to apply Tecnu to dry skin while in the shower on the exposed parts and then rinse down under warn water. Rinse-repeat. Tecnu works like degreaser, or Gojo, or pine oil on sap. Its a wood pulp product and lifts the Urushiol off your skin. Just like good dish detergent on greasy dishes, it emulsifies. Be sure to get the sweat lines on your forehead, ears, neck and those missed areas between underarm and forearm. And never forget to really scrub your fingers first before even starting the shower routine. If you use good laundry detergent and hot water the oils will wash out in the machine. Many of the trees I handle in my area have creeper and ivy vines on them, some are 1" dia, you have to peel them off its just not worth cross contaminating anything or anyone with that nasty rash...ugh. On the Ash subject, I strip the bark off most of my standing dead ash and it showcases as premium fire wood in its own stacks and is the ultimate kindling and top-down kicker. Be safe.

Jim
 
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I almost got it looking at the pictures. :eek:

Don't cut it with the saw, axe it off & peal it off the tree where you need to cut .
Then clean it off before bucking it up.
Gloves & coveralls. ;)
 
I have handled the vines carefully, before in winter and didn't get any rash, had PI over my entire body when I was about 12, have had it many times since, but usually, I got it when I didn't know it was there.
I have educated myself quit well about poison Ivy, but I have learned some new things from your input here, I do have a couple pair of rubber coated gloves, I bought and didn't like, but will work for this, anyway
Got an idea from another thread, I think, before I drop the tree, I will chop the bottom of the 2 large vines off, and see if I can hook a chain on em and pull em off the tree with the Jeep
 
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Got an idea from another thread, I think, before I drop the tree, I will chop the bottom of the 2 large vines off, and see if I can hook a chain on em and pull em off the tree with the Jeep

That should help a lot.
Keep driving until you are in the next county, the unhook & get out of the area fast :)
 
I almost got it looking at the pictures. :eek:

Don't cut it with the saw, axe it off & peal it off the tree where you need to cut .
Then clean it off before bucking it up.
Gloves & coveralls. ;)
Hay ! Dave ;lol I guess I was typing the above post while U were posting this
 
None in alaska ;)
PI or Ash.
No snakes either :)
 
That should help a lot.
Keep driving until you are in the next county, the unhook & get out of the area fast :)
;lol sounds like a good Idea
I will just drag em over on the other side of the fence onto county property n let em rot
 
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A country boy I knew from down south told me about this and it works great: Bleach. If you get a PI spot on you, get in the shower and scrub the spot with straight laundry bleach - try to keep the bleach on it for at least 10 minutes. Sure it burns a little then, but the next day all the PI is gone. Bleach drys out the oils from the PI. It seems like every decent deeer-stand-hanging-tree has those fuzzy things on it, I get into it somehow several time a summer. I keep a little jug in the shower over the summer.
 
By the way, while out cutting brush away from the fence, U need to know what U are handling, cuz after U take wizz in the woods, It is not fun !!! , believe me :oops:
;lol It is funny now.
 
By the way, while out cutting brush away from the fence, U need to know what U are handling, cuz after U take wizz in the woods, It is not fun !!! , believe me :oops:
;lol It is funny now.
I, um, know a guy and a girl who once got it on their lower torsos after a roadside pit-stop. The female ended up having to go to a doctor it was so bad...
 
here is how i usually handle it. give it a try.

get up early in the am. put on a huge pot of coffee. drink no less than 4 cups. got out and cut continually, ignoring the ivy until you have the urge to pee. make sure your contaminated hand have good glove to shaft contact. then repeat. its fantastic.



in all seriousness, cut the vines, let it sit for a few months, then put on rubber gloves and rip them off. take off rubbers and cut up your wood.
 
If you need a reason to visit the ocean get some PI on your skin....I am very allergic to it and one year had a good dose on my arms and legs. Spent an afternoon at the beach, much of the time in the water...it was all gone the next morning!
 
Keep a supply of these on hand and carry several with you whenever you are in the woods or working in the garden.
http://www.baileysonline.com/itemdetail.asp?item=84661&catID=
I know you recieved info on other such products and they all work well, this is just another wepon in the fight against P.I.
 
A country boy I knew from down south told me about this and it works great: Bleach. If you get a PI spot on you, get in the shower and scrub the spot with straight laundry bleach - try to keep the bleach on it for at least 10 minutes. Sure it burns a little then, but the next day all the PI is gone. Bleach drys out the oils from the PI. It seems like every decent deeer-stand-hanging-tree has those fuzzy things on it, I get into it somehow several time a summer. I keep a little jug in the shower over the summer.

The bleach does work if you get a spot or two on on you. Cotton ball soaked and rub into the skin but it is much better to try to clean the oil off and not get it because the bleach will kill it once you have it but usually scabs up and a little painful.
 
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I got a bad dose in early fall. Nasty stuff. Never really got it before.
 
I've been into the PI several times the past year alone, and never had it before, but the week before Christmas I cut down a HUGE Sandy victim (pine tree) at a buddy of mine's house, to use for lumber. It had a PI vine (dormant, of course, due to winter). Did my thing, minded the vine (used throw-away gloves, cleaned the saw with acetone, etc), and I ended up have PI on my wrists! Never had it before in my live, and I've been into it bad before......
Guess my "immunity" is wearing off!! Be careful, that's nasty stuff to some people!!
 
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It's said you can get it in your lungs from a campfire I was told. So when I do burn processing scrap I make sure to stay clear of the smoke. My woods are loaded with PI .I cut a lot with it on do what others said

In the event you get it, prednizone (prescription ) seems to work well , for me anyway & it's a cheap scrip. The over the counter stuff is expensive & I have yet to have good results.the old calimine lotion is as good as any I've found
 
I've been into the PI several times the past year alone, and never had it before, but the week before Christmas I cut down a HUGE Sandy victim (pine tree) at a buddy of mine's house, to use for lumber. It had a PI vine (dormant, of course, due to winter). Did my thing, minded the vine (used throw-away gloves, cleaned the saw with acetone, etc), and I ended up have PI on my wrists! Never had it before in my live, and I've been into it bad before......
Guess my "immunity" is wearing off!! Be careful, that's nasty stuff to some people!!
Scotty, I could roll in the stuff as a kid, I was about 32, out with my daughter at a play ground, chased a ball for her in the edges of the walkway and "BAM" about three to five days later I'm in the Dr.'s office, my eyes swelled shut, lips are fat, can hardly breath, and doc says, your "full" of poison ivy!!!.... never had it before in my life.
now, I can look at the $%@#!(*&^.... stuff and get it. If I get it, which i did this year twice, I go get the antihistimine shot and prednosone pack. I've tried nearly most of the things on the market with no luck. Although fels-naptha seems to help. It's not your immunity as much as your body chemistry changing, thats what the Doc told meo_O
 
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