Lots of places where pine is the prime firewood species.
How do I cut wind blown trees?
- Thread starter Striven82
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Lots of places where pine is the prime firewood species.
I know. And they have my sympathy. Just thought he may be low enough and south enough that it wouldn't be choice firewood. We are blessed here where we don't burn pine and even poplar is consider sub-par.
Ron
Striven82
Just a guy trying to learn
Poplar is sub-par here, too. I'd be burning the pine outdoors and in the garage.
Looks that you probably have more than you need for a long while.
Ron
Ron
That windstorm was even too much for Paul Bunyan apparently ?
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2016/08/04/storm-knocks-over-babe-the-ox
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2016/08/04/storm-knocks-over-babe-the-ox
Ryan'smilling
Addicted to ArboristSite
If Paul couldn't handle it, I'd leave this to the pros!
Striven82
Just a guy trying to learn
Ain't nobody gonna blue Hillary.
Tenderfoot
ArboristSite Guru
If you can find someone with a 5 ton army truck with a winch should do the trick. Particularly if it is a wrecker. The wreckers have 40k winches (I think). Probably be able to pull the root balls out, or close to it.
AT sawyer
ArboristSite Operative
Book: To Fell a Tree, By Jeff Jepson
Quote: "Perhaps the most difficult and dangerous trees to cut are ones that have been damaged by storms......"
Speaking as a non-arborist, but one who has maintained sections of the Appalachian Trail for 20 years of hurricanes, ice storms and derechos, storm damaged trees can be unpredictable. Recently fallen trees will be tension loaded and their rootballs will want to stand up-- keep any helpers away from them. Side bound trees can slab out in your direction with great violence if you cut them wrong. Determine your hazards. Have an escape route. Swamp your area before cutting. Watch for springpoles (while swamping). Wear full PPE. Quit working before you get fatigued.
Quote: "Perhaps the most difficult and dangerous trees to cut are ones that have been damaged by storms......"
Speaking as a non-arborist, but one who has maintained sections of the Appalachian Trail for 20 years of hurricanes, ice storms and derechos, storm damaged trees can be unpredictable. Recently fallen trees will be tension loaded and their rootballs will want to stand up-- keep any helpers away from them. Side bound trees can slab out in your direction with great violence if you cut them wrong. Determine your hazards. Have an escape route. Swamp your area before cutting. Watch for springpoles (while swamping). Wear full PPE. Quit working before you get fatigued.
I have a 40 HP Massey Ferguson. I'd weed wack, clear the area going into the mess, clean, nothing to trip on, parking lot smooth. Tip toe in, looking up a hundred times, tie onto the top of the first easiest tree, and pull it clear. Clean it up, start on the next. If the root ball is still in the ground it may twist around and pull out, or twist around far enough to be clear where you can work on it. With the leaning trees, I'd go to one of our sponsors (I use Bailey's) and buy 3 pole saw extensions and a hook, and 120 feet of braided 1/2" rope. You can sneak up on the leaner, looking up a hundred times, and get a pull line up about 20 feet, or out as far toward the top as possible. Learn how to tie a running bowline, hook it to your truck, and pull from 120 feet away. Maybe a good time to buy a nice used tractor with a front end loader. You will use it the rest of your life. Learn how to walk with your head tilted with one eye looking up and the other at the ground. You have a ton of stuff gravity is trying to pull down on you (Widow Makers), and a ton of stuff on the ground trying to trip you. If you have to step over it, cut it off and clear it out of the way. Any thing you need to pull, use the rope from 120 feet away. If you cut 20 feet of top out, use the rope to pull it over to the burn pile, then cut it up and burn it. You can run the rope around other trees to pull from different directions, or buy a snatch block so you don't damage the bark on good trees. Look up a hundred more times. Having a "Landing" where you can drag Everything to, to process, makes working much easier, and you don't have to look up a hundred times. Nothing over you but birds, good luck with the project, Joe.
A tractor / skidder, and some good rope or chain would definitely be a plus. Pole saws are very helpful. But those trees don't fall in a nice pile. Typically twisted and intertwined canopies; hung up in other trees; poor access lanes for skidding; requires sectioning of branches and trunks; etc. Sometimes cut the tree off the stump and pull it from the bottom, to pull it off of another tree that it is hung up in, and to minimize snagging other branches when dragging clear. Unless the goal is to clear cut the remaining trees, this means that you usually have to work your way in methodically, take a cut, clear the limbs, reassess, wash-rinse-repeat.
Philbert
Philbert
Philbert, I believe rarefish383 was suggesting the use of pole saw poles and a hook to get the pull rope in place. Others have suggested a pole saw for cutting; I have my doubts but no experience with a powered pole saw so I can't comment further. Ron
Love the pole saws, powered pruners, etc. for storm damage clean up. I like the availability of ropes and tractors too. Liked most of his post.
My comment, based on my experience, is that most of these storm damaged trees are tangled, and will not easily pull right out - they need to be cut up and separated first.
And most need to be dragged out by the base, not from a rope placed high, to keep branches from locking and tangling more.
If the property owner wants to protect the remaining trees, options are also constrained, because the storm damaged wood needs to be removed in a way that minimizes additional damage.
Philbert
JanThorCro
ArboristSite Operative
I love your open mindedness to the severity of your situation, and your willingness to ask for help. However I am concerned with "it kinda goes against my constitution". Your willingness to increase your knowledge base to meet this situation is honorable, but as others have mentioned and I agree, this is beyond the capacity of us weekend warriors to understand enough to be safe.
I also think half your answer is in your avatar.
