Way O.T., tree info. needed

[john pearce]

I have a very large Oak tree in my front lawn that I'd like to get rid of, my question is are there any small local lumber companys that would take down a large tree for free or for a reduced rate so they could get some good lumber. Or, even someone who sells split wood by the cord. If I pay to have it taken down it will most likely end up in a dump or land fill. It seems like someone might be able to put it to good use.

[Bug Guy]

John,
If you cut it down, there is no reason to send it to a dump. The solution may be to pay to have it taken down and then get paid selling it to someone who can use it for firewood, mulch, furniture, etc. At the very least, I'm sure there is someone out there that would come get all the wood so you wouldn't have to take it to the dump.
Bob

[27 sailfish]

Try calling the guys advertising firewood for sale in local papers. They might work out a deal with you for the wood.

Dropping a tree near a house reqires some skill - they can fall the wrong way if not cut properly.

[NachoLibre]

FWIW, cutting trees down can be dangerous. I'd recommend that you have an experienced, licensed company take care of it.

[crabby and son]

Hey John, I went through the same thing at my house a few years ago. I took down 7 huge Poplars and 2 huge white oaks. I cut them down myself and cut up everything but the trunks. After many phone calls to lumber companies and saw mills, I finally got a guy to come out and take all for $350.00. They won't come for a small amount of trees. If you can't do it yourself, hire a tree company ( get several estimates ) and have them drop the tree. You can cut the wood into firewood lengths and sell it. It goes for about $200.00 per cord split. Depending on how they have to get the tree down ( dropping it or limbing it ) you will pay between $1500.00- $3000.00 Hope this helps...........Gary

[V.B. wells & irrigation]

A reputable, licensed and insured (insured with G.L. and WORKER'S COMP!; and ask for their current certificates for both) tree company needs to do the work. If a worker gets killed or maimed on your property and the company that you've hired is some kind of hobo deal with no W.C., (G.L. doesn't cover a worker getting injured) the lawyer's for the dead or maimed are going to look for money anywhere that they can find it. If the company involved doesn't have assets worth suing (and your looking at lots of 000's) then the next target are the assets of the property on which the incident occured. Your homeowner's insurance. And if that don't cover the whole suit, your equity is next. .i.e. you're done. Don't screw around with big trees getting worked on in your yard. It's probably one of the highest W.C. rates of any industry. For a reason. Good luck.

Jimmy

[Chris Surowiec]

Very few if any sawmills will accept trees from someones yard. The reason is 50 years ago someone could have put nails or lag bolts in the trunk and they are still there waiting to destroy an expensive sawmill blade. My suggestion is if it's near the house or overhead lines get a licensed tree service to drop it and chip up what is too small for firewood then sell the big wood left in your front yard on Craigslist to offset the treeservice bill. I would be interested in the wood for my woodstove and though I have dropped many large trees on my own property within reach of my house, I am NOT a licensed tree service and won't touch it if it could land on your house. If you need a reference for a quality tree service there is one I used twice for trees close to my house that were beyond my skills. Send me a bmail if you want the name (I don't want to be accused of advertising)

[V.B. wells & irrigation]

Hey John, I went through the same thing at my house a few years ago. I took down 7 huge Poplars and 2 huge white oaks. I cut them down myself and cut up everything but the trunks. After many phone calls to lumber companies and saw mills, I finally got a guy to come out and take all for $350.00. They won't come for a small amount of trees. If you can't do it yourself, hire a tree company ( get several estimates ) and have them drop the tree. You can cut the wood into firewood lengths and sell it. It goes for about $200.00 per cord split. Depending on how they have to get the tree down ( dropping it or limbing it ) you will pay between $1500.00- $3000.00 Hope this helps...........Gary

Crabby's right too. Professionaly done, a large Oak is gonna be a few grand. If you get the tree company to haul it away, they aren't going to give you a discount even though they are going to sell it, they are going to charge you a lot more. I've found that the best bet is to get the tree down and get them to take the brush, cut the big stuff up and leave it. Negotiate this in the beginning. If the Oak is cut up and lying in your yard, it will disappear quickly. Good luck.

Jimmy

[Salmo trutta]

Check with the local authorities too. If it's over 30 inches in diameter, not circumference, than you may need a variance request from the state just to remove it. Plus the local agencies like the county might have a problem with you removing it. Yes, even if it's on YOUR property. PITA I know. A licensed tree expert will take care of all of that.

My father and I did two 20 something inch oaks in his front yard. We cut it down piece by piece because it was near some over head wires. It took us two weekends of solid work to cut it all up. But we have plenty of fire wood now. It's a lot of work.

[john pearce]

thanks so much for the replies. I already have somebody set up to take out a large Oak in my back yard. It's over the house and will take some skill, its also dying so it needs to come down, I just thought it would be nice in the fall not to have all those leaves to rake and bag thus the thought of taking out the Oak in front. I think judging by what you all have said I'll just leave it there. I'll get some good firewood out of the Oak in back.

[crabby and son]

John, What I failed to mention about taking all those trees down in my yard. After all those trees were down, I went right outside my yard to take down a dead large Hickory tree for firewood. All the trees I took down in my yard were live. The tree fell perfectly BUT a large branch fell and hit me in the head. It broke 2 vertebrae in my neck, sublexed my neck, broke my collar bone, tore my rotator cuff,and severed a verteberal artery. I was flown to Baltimore Shock Trauma and remained there for three weeks. I am real lucky to be alive much less walking. I have taken down 100's of trees but this one got me good. If you talk to any professional tree people they will tell you it is one dangerous job. I still take down trees in my yard BUT have a whole new respect for them and do things differently now. A dead tree is called a widow maker. Good luck..........Gary

[BIEBS]

I would definetely give a call to Buzzy Abbott, 443-871-1316. He is out of Annapolis and is the man when it comes to tricky jobs or any tree job for that matter.

[JFP123]

Get at least 3 estimates for tree work. Prices will vary wildly. Last job I did, they ranged from 700$-2200$ for the same job.

[BILL H]

Many years back I bought an L-shaped ranch house that had a nice, big (24" DBH) red oak right in the corner of the L. I figured I could do anything. I had a brand new chain saw and a lot of optimism. I knew that I would have to limb it before I cut it down. I went out and rented a set of climbing spikes and a belt. I got my ropes ready and headed up the tree. About the time I got to the first big branch, I realized that I did not have nearly enough arms to do that job. How could I get a death grip on the tree with both hands and still work the saw and ropes? I crawled right back down and opened the Yellow Pages. I did get a lot of great firewood out of that tree.

[stevej00]

Right now all of the mills are slow because of a very low demand.

However evryone is going to be heating with everything that Bge doesn't sell.

You can probably have them dropped, logged and left.

I have done this a good few times.

You can craigslist the logs for free or a nominal fee per pickup truck load

Ask your tree guy about the price break for leaving the logs. If thy say none ask why, maybe they sell firewood, if they don't ask about theier operation... If they are using a small machine for moving wood you should be saving them some cost. There's also the drop in a disposal fee.

[stevej00]

Oops... Forgot to add...since the mills are slow they arent paying much

[HopPocket]

John I had a 50 year old pine tree in my front yard taken down for $0.00, courtesy of Pepco. Yours is probably BGE. Tree was about 10 feet from power lines. I called and asked if there was any assistance provided by Pepco, " just in case" a tree limb or tree fell on power lines. They were EXTREMELY quick to assist. They said they would knock it down for nothing. Obviously repairing power lines was more expensive than calling a tree expert. So all I paid for was removal, and this tree was a MONSTER.. $600... Just a thought.....

[jkapl001]

Took mine down myself. Hire it done. I had a connection to getting a lift so that wasnt to much. It was a ton of work, I just did it myself because I didnt want to kill the dogwood tree that was under it. I didn't trust any tree service not to take out the dogwood. There were a few parts that were quite sketchy, epically with that power line running close to the tree. Also the phone line was running right through where the branches were. I must have the toughest phone line in the world, felt like every time I dropped a piece it hit the phone line.