When to make the decision to postpone a job due to weather?

[mikewhite85]

So I did trees in Socal for 8 years. Weather was not much of an issue. I've been in PA for a few years now. I've always struggled with when to call off a job. Today for example, I have an easy $5500 crane job. 9 locusts you can park right up to. Anyway, last night the weather said thunderstorms throughout the day. I wavered for a bit and finally texted the customer and my guys at about 8:30pm last night and said we'll reschedule. But the weather today turned out to be great.

Do you wait until the morning to call it? I hate to see my guys pull into my yard only to send them home. What best practices for this kind of thing do you guys recommend?

 

[arathol]

Get up early, check the current weather, look at any live radar feeds from the area, usually you can tell by 5AM if the weather is going to be ok. Stuff like localized thunderstorms can be very unpredictable though. It might be fine where you are but raining hard with 60 mph winds just a few miles away. Even so, its not really a good idea to have a crane up if there are going to be thunderstorms anywhere nearby as lightning can travel for many miles. Thats something you need to monitor during the day if you have a smart phone. If storms are predicted just watch the weather closely and if needed you can call the job at any point before unsafe conditions start.

 

[benjo75]

I've worked in storms in the past and it never paid off. Drying all the gear and ropes in the shop in front of a fan all night. We've showed up and the bottom falls out. We've called it and turned out to be a nice day. Hard to get it right 100 percent of the time. My Radar app is a good one to have.

 

[tree MDS]

I wait until the morning to call it. Try and get up early and let the guys know around 6:00 or maybe 6:10 after watching the second round of predictions (I get up at 5:20). Never call it the day before - unless it’s something like a crane job, where it’s probably better to wait for a solid, good day.

I tell them “plan on working, but if the weather is as bad as they say, I’ll text you around 6:00 and probably call it (if there’s no shop work or whatever).

 

[tree MDS]

That said, we’re going to be investing in some high end rain gear pretty soon. Can’t afford to miss any days anymore. Lol. That way if your crane job was a no go, just do something else instead.

 

[ATH]

You own or rent the crane? Makes a big difference IMHO...if you are renting, want to be sure to get the whole day. If you own, not as big of a deal to bail at 11 am.

 

[mikewhite85]

We definitely rent one! We only do a few crane jobs a year.

Thanks for the advice. In the future I'll give a heads up the night before and then make the final call in the early a.m.

 

[jefflovstrom]

A weather app is what I use, it is pretty awesome to have real time conditions. In California, if the guy's come in and I send them home, the still get 4 hours by law. This is the app I use after trying others, it seems to be the best!
https://www.wunderground.com/wunderstationJeff
It was a beautiful day!

 

[BC WetCoast]

We never call it unless the trucks cant drive due to snow. If we didn work jn the rain, we would never work. Working with wet ropes is a given.
We rarely get lightning, so no issue there, and like Jeff, if the crew marshalls then gets sent home, they get 2 hours.

 

[The Singing Arborist]

It seems like if I decide to drudge through it, the weather keeps on coming. But the moment I call it, the weather clears up. I've tried fooling it by walking outside and yelling "let's call it for the day"! But it seems the weather knows what I'm up to and continues 'till I call my team and my customer.