Big tree = Big equipment

[Skier76]

If you've got some time to kill, this is what we were dealing with: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/40416/

Cliffs: a big arse Poplar pretty close to our weekend house in SoVT. I had a few estimates; one very high, one very reasonable and one who never put it in writing.

The big day was yesterday...the crew rolled up a little after 8AM. Our house is on a dirt road that gets narrower as you get closer to our place. It was quite a sight and sound to see/hear this parade roll down the street: Crane, 2 trucks, one towing a big chipper and a grapple truck.

They positioned the crane one way...then moved it. But these pics give you an idea.

In addition to "The Tree of Life" (as my wife called it), we had 4 pines taken down. The crew made quick work of these. The climber was hoisted into each tree, hooked up the rigging, made a cut, the crane did the pick, dropped the section, they hooked it to the chipper winch and the tree was gone. I was in awe. This chipper was sucking in anything 12-16" in diameter or less. They didn't even have to limb. I don't know how big the engine was, I just know it was a turbo diesel. I could hear the turbo spooling up.

 

[Skier76]

Once the pines were done, it was time for the Poplar. This tree took the most time. It was tall, the crane was at it's limit for reach and the climber had a lot of work to do. The climber was up in the tree for hours while the job was getting done. He communicated to the crane operator via a whistle. It was a really neat operation and they worked well together. The entire crew did a great job.

I was able to get a few shots up the trunk when they took a lunch break.

I also got a shot of the chipper looking where the 4 pines used to be. You can also see my awesome external chimney in this shot.

 

[Skier76]

I apparently watch too many logging shows on TV. I thought they'd cut the bottom of the trunk (4' in its widest spot) with a Stihl 880(or some other 100cc beast) and 72" bar. However, they used some type of Husky with a modest bar and it did just fine. They notched, made a plunge cut, cut around the entire exterior, used some felling wedges, then two guys pulled it down. It made a helluva "thud" when it hit.

Here's the company we used: (broken link removed to http://www.turnerandrenaud.com/) I'm not getting a kickback or anything for posting their info. They did an awesome job. They were extremely professional, showed up on time, ran a first rate operation, the entire crew was friendly and they cleaned up amazingly well. If you're in SoVT and need tree work, I really recommend Turner and Renaud.

After they were done with lunch, I asked them if they could cut us two rounds from the Polar so we could make some end tables out of them. In the last pic, that's what in my trailer.

It was a really cool way to spend the day off. Our property goes up a slight hill behind the house, so we had a great place to watch while staying out of the crew's way. We even managed to get in some chainsaw work of our own and cleared a bunch of small trees up back. So it was a busy day at our place yesterday.

 

[loon]

WOW!! very cool stuff ;-)

great pictures...

loon

 

[Flatbedford]

I guess you have a lifetime supply of firewood now?

 

[Skier76]

I guess you have a lifetime supply of firewood now?

I was going to save some of the wood, but I think it would have cost me more money. Plus, I have no way to split those huge rounds. Also, it was all pine and poplar. While I'm not "wood snob", it wasn't a huge loss. I can get a cord of hardwood up there for $160-180....split and delivered.

 

[savageactor7]

Wow that's a large tree. Around here we call that a 'cottonwood' it has leaves like a poplar but the bark is furrowed instead of smooth and waxy looking and they grow tall and straight. Mills make molding out of 'em.

 

[firefighterjake]

Very cool pics . . . I would have been sorely tempted to keep the wood though . . . even if it was poplar and pine . . . and I didn't have a splitter on site.

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

I'm guessing you didn't get that job done for 1,600, am I right?

It sux to PAY someone to take a tree down for you, PLUS have it be junk you can't use at the end of the day.

 

[thewoodlands]

Skier76 nice pictures, I noticed a brook or creek, how high does that get in the spring or with heavy rains.



zap

 

[Skier76]

I'm guessing you didn't get that job done for 1,600, am I right?

It sux to PAY someone to take a tree down for you, PLUS have it be junk you can't use at the end of the day.

$1600 on the nose. The estimate was for 3 pines and the poplar....$1500. He charged another $100 for the extra pine we added. Figured might as well get them all done while they were there. While $1600 is a good chunk of change, we thought it was a very fair price for 4 decent pines and a huge poplar. Especially factoring in the crane they had to use.

zap,
I doesn't get too high; even when it really rains. Oddly, it'll get high in the winter, when it ices up and backs up at our neighbor's small culvert. We did have some rain last fall when it was really high. I think something upstream let go. There was an amazing amount of water coming down...I could hear rocks rolling.

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

I'd say thats a GREAT price for a crew plus a crane for 3/4 of a day!!

Still sux to write a check for Poplar :shut:

 

[CJW88]

I used to work for a tree service and that is a really good price. We did a couple similair operations on a bunch of red pines. I wish I could have just watched the action instead of working. Those chippers are neat pieces of machinery aren't they? Up until the point a limb whips around and cracks you.

 

[Skier76]

ISeeDeadBTUs,
They were there the entire day...showed up after 8AM; didn't roll out until 4PM. So I guess that sweetens the deal a bit more.

We were worried about the tree and it falling. Or at the very least, some branches falling. As you can see, our weekend place isn't huge. A decent sized branch could really do some damage. It was easier to take a day off and watch the action...vs having to make multiple trips up north while a contractor was hired to fix the house after it was damaged by something falling. And we know that would have happened during the winter.

CJW88,
Thanks for the confirmation. We thought it was a good price too...but I always like to get some outside input.

I've seen some big chippers, but seeing the winch and hearing that turbo really impressed me. I didn't know the specs, but that thing was powerful. Granted, it's tough to see wood just get chipped. But for those guys, time is money and I'm sure it's more cost effective to just chip everything vs limbing, bucking, hauling...then storing...ect. They did haul away the bigger rounds. Maybe the pine went to the mill to cut down. The poplar could always be pulped.

 

[Beowulf]

Thanks for posting the pics; very interesting stuff. I think you got a very good price; that would have been twice that out on the left coast.

Depending upon how "green" the rounds are that you wish to make end tables out of, you may want to control the drying process a little. If they dry out too fast, you will get a lot of cracking or "checking" in the wood. I cut a big cedar round about 4" thick from a logged stump to use as a "tea" table in our back lot.

I soaked both sides and the bark with urethane varnish until it would not absorb any more, to seal it and let it dry much slower than it would have normally. Makes a nice place to sit and have tea in the afternoons!

 

[Skier76]

Do you have a pic of the finished product? I'd love to see how it came out. We're still trying to figure out what to use as bases.

This wood pretty damp! It's been outside for a week...and it's still damp to the touch. Also, it's got almost a fuzzly like texture to it. It's not smooth like other woods that have been cut.

 

[Beowulf]

This picture is not of much use, but it is the only one I have at the moment. It's from last winter, no snow yet this year!

I put the ~48" diameter round on top of a ~30" diameter stump that was positioned in the yard about where we thought we would like a tea table. The urethane that I used on the top was a satin finish, so it is not shiny, just nice and smooth. It is dark reddish brown, from the natural cedar heartwood color, no stain used. The table is on a steep slope (like every thing here) so I am in the process of designing an octagonal deck to build around it that will give us a level place to put chairs. I have not bolted it down yet, but am considering running a 5/8" lag through the center, just in case. The top is pretty heavy, as it is, so no movement.

Oh, I did take a saw and shave the top down to about 4" thick, as well, then hit it with an electric hand planer to take the saw marks out, before sealing it.

If I was doing it for interior use, I would most likely have cut some 4" posts from whatever was handy, then bored about half way through the bottom of the round to set the posts in corners for legs, maybe with a router or just a big hole saw bit and a chisel to excavate the hole for the legs. I would most likely have stripped the bark from the posts and just finished them to match the color of the top.

Good luck with your project, it should be nice when you are finished!

 

[Skier76]

I'm partial to snow pics! Table looks really good. We'll have to figure out what to do for the legs before the snow flies. We'll get it done I'm sure.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Skier, even though I've done a bit of that (with much less machinery) years ago I still enjoy watching it done. A neighbor had some big white pines taken down a couple years ago. Those were leaning right towards his house and I don't blame him for taking them down. Both he and I could have done the job but he ended up getting someone else to do it so we just watched. Still interesting.

btw, I like your little cabin too.

 

[Skier76]

Thanks Dennis! It's a great weekend get away. Big enough to relax, but not so big it costs and arm and leg to keep above freezing.

I was really impressed with how these guys worked. It's really cool to see a professional operation in action. And as you can see from the pics, the front pines were close to the road..and utility lines. All thee trees would have been difficult drops. The Poplar would have been impossible.

 

[BucksCounty]

Skier, we just had the same thing done beginning of September. Huge poplar and 5 pines. They came with the crane too. Unbelieveable how quick they work. I kept everything but the trunk. Like your cabin. Very cool!

 

[Skier76]

Great pics BucksCounty! Funny that we had the same types of trees taken down.

 

[gpcollen1]

I guess you have a lifetime supply of firewood now?

I was going to save some of the wood, but I think it would have cost me more money. Plus, I have no way to split those huge rounds. Also, it was all pine and poplar. While I'm not "wood snob", it wasn't a huge loss. I can get a cord of hardwood up there for $160-180....split and delivered.

Usually it is cheaper if they can leave the wood. They charge for 'disposal' around here and many other places. That is why you get all the Craigslist scores. People don't want to pay the $400 for disposal so they leave it to friends or scroungers. But if you did not want to have to split anything - then it makes no sense to keep the wood.