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Trees, Trees, and More Trees

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
I get manure from a dairy and mix it with my wood chips. Let it breakdown for a summer and have nice, rich compost to amend my garden with every fall. The logs (any species) gets hauled back to my house and processed for firewood. I don't cut trees daily, more like couple jobs a month. Just enough to get paid to process my own firewood. I burn about 7 full cord a heating season.

Still loving your thread @John Griffin . I wish I could have had a crane on my last removal. Seven red oaks towering over a lake cottage on a very tight lot. The smallest oak was 24" dbh, the biggest was 40". The bottom 16 ft of logs were full of nails, wire, insulators and screws. I spent more time swapping chains than I did cutting at the end.
I still dont understand the need for folks to screw stuff to trees. Ive found all sorts of stuff in them.

We do a lot of tight access close quarters removals so the cranes are a huge help. We also stay pretty busy so they help speed up the difficult jobs. I could have roped all of these trees but no where as quick. 15 trees since yesterday morning. Got a small load of logs and some stump grinding to do.
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
We are mob'ing into your neck of the woods next week for a big box retail addition. It has 6 planted water oaks in 3 islands to be demo'd however they are pretty big at 8-10" in dia and 20' tall so probably out of your wheel house size wise. :D
Maybe I could do them on my lunch break.

Are you actually working in huntsville?
 

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
Have you ever ran into tree huggers sabotaging tree's that need to come down? Years ago I heard there was some tree's that had to be removed in a rural location and some tree huggers were driving big nails into tree's to damage chain saws and potentially injure the operator.
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
Have you ever ran into tree huggers sabotaging tree's that need to come down? Years ago I heard there was some tree's that had to be removed in a rural location and some tree huggers were driving big nails into tree's to damage chain saws and potentially injure the operator.
No. Most of the time no one know what trees except the property owner and the tree guy. Ive hit plenty of nails with a saw but they were all inside the tree. I dont really see how it could injure the operator as it just rounds the cutting edge over a bit.
 

mowingman

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 10, 2010
Messages
1,228
Location
SE Ohio
Occupation
Retired
You like being covered in clay dust and wood chips?

We grind our own stumps usually. We use a grinder i built on our mini ex.
I had a stump grinding business for 15 years. I know all about dust and chips. I started with a little Rayco 25HP machine, buy later on had several bigger tracked diesel machines. I enjoyed that business, but, you are right about dust and chips. :)
 

skyking1

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2020
Messages
7,463
Location
washington
Have you ever ran into tree huggers sabotaging tree's that need to come down? Years ago I heard there was some tree's that had to be removed in a rural location and some tree huggers were driving big nails into tree's to damage chain saws and potentially injure the operator.
For the same reasons I have a metal detector when I am repurposing salvaged lumber. They make these little sticks that find nails and screws.
One nail sure messes up a set of planer blades.
 

colson04

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2016
Messages
2,057
Location
Delton, Michigan
You like being covered in clay dust and wood chips?

We grind our own stumps usually. We use a grinder i built on our mini ex.

You got any pics of your stump grinder attachment? I do a fair bit of stump grinding, but I rent the machine. A local rental yard has a Vermeer SC552 that they rent quite reasonably with a trailer to haul it. I can easily grind 5 times the rental rate in an 8 hour day with it.
 

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
No. Most of the time no one know what trees except the property owner and the tree guy. Ive hit plenty of nails with a saw but they were all inside the tree. I dont really see how it could injure the operator as it just rounds the cutting edge over a bit.
I just remember the article mentioning it. If the the chain broke and flew off could injure someone.
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
I have broke chains multiple times. They can hurt you a bit depending on where they hit you. Other things are much more likely to hurt you.
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
You got any pics of your stump grinder attachment? I do a fair bit of stump grinding, but I rent the machine. A local rental yard has a Vermeer SC552 that they rent quite reasonably with a trailer to haul it. I can easily grind 5 times the rental rate in an 8 hour day with it.
0928221045.jpg

Ill try to find some better pictures or take some.
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
Its funny how small of a world it is sometimes. Cm1995 was doing a job about 20 minutes from our lot. We ended up helping him out with it by taking down 6 oak trees.

0613231354.jpg

No more trees. We left the stumps high for them to have leverage when digging them out.

0615231020a.jpg0615231021.jpg
 

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CM1995

Administrator
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Messages
13,247
Location
Alabama
Occupation
Running what I brung and taking what I win
John and his guys came in and knocked it out. We have yet to meet in person so all this was done over the phone and email.

John tell your guys good job! If it works out I'll see you next week.
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
We had a codominate Maple tree failure. The standing portion had a large vertical crack. Whe it failed, it would land square on the house. Thankfully we were able to get it down before that happened. The part that did fail hit the pool fence and the backyard fence. It did bust the pool deck concrete.

0619231137_HDR.jpg0619231137a_HDR.jpg0619231137c_HDR.jpg0619231411.jpg
 

John Griffin

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2018
Messages
264
Location
Huntsville, AL
John and his guys came in and knocked it out. We have yet to meet in person so all this was done over the phone and email.

John tell your guys good job! If it works out I'll see you next week.
Ill let them know. I actually took them out to lunch after we finished your job as a thank you.
 

The Peej

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 6, 2012
Messages
323
Location
Connecticut
No more trees. We left the stumps high for them to have leverage when digging them out.

I Personally hate when tree guys leave the stumps high. I don't find it any easier digging them out and when loading the stumps in a dumpster or truck they take a lot more room.
 

joe--h

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2009
Messages
1,259
Location
Utah
Strange no one is watching, seems the whole neighborhood should be out to see that thing performing.
2 people late in the action but that's it.

Joe H
 
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