Need advice felling damaged tree

[musch]

I have a tree on my property that had a limb broken off in high (almost tornado strength) wind.
When that occurred, the entire tree seems to have twisted, and split, almost to the base.
I would like to cut it down,
It leans toward the direction that I would like it to fall, and there are no obstructions, wires, etc in the way.
Are there any considerations that I need to pay particular attention to?
I figured as long as I cut a v on the felling side, and have an escape path, I should be OK, but I don't want to do anything particularily stupid either. I am deffering to the obvious experience and knowledge of the group.
Thanks in advance

 

[Ekka]

Cut as low as possible to the ground so you minimize the possibility of the split interfering with your cut.

Also, if it's leaning in the direction of fall you may want to put a ratchet strap and tighten it up somewhat above your cuts, say 2' above. This too will help prevent the possibility of it splitting.

Finally, due to the possibility of splitting, twisting and barber chairing you may want to do the back cut by boring all the way thru to set up your hingewood. Cut backwards toward the back of the tree stopping short and leaving a holding strap of timber. Remove your saw from the bore cut and cut that strap off (below the backcut). the tree should simply pop over.

 

[clearance]

Not bad, you can also use a chain, check that lean out good, any doubts, use a wedge.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Well, these guys know LIGHT YEARS more than I do, but I'd be very scared of that tree. Tornadoes can do some seriously strange things. If it's twisted, it's possible that there are some strong torsional forces built up in the wood, and that could cause some unpredictable behaviour when you cut it loose.

Be careful, and look up a lot. Have a spotter where you can see him/her, and watch your spotter.

 

[smokechase II]

split

The split could be incredibly dangerous.
Got photos?

Be very hesitant to take this on if the split is parallel to your intended hinge.

 

[musch]

These are the kinds of issues I was considering, the split and torsion.
I appreciate the input. I'll take some photos this weekend.

Good suggestions so far though!

 

[OTG BOSTON]

Throw a throwline from the side that you want the tree to fall, let the throwbag come down on the side where your back cut will be; no need to isolate the throwline.

Install your bull line or whatever you use for pulling trees over, as you normally would. Instead of tying it off with a bowline at the top, pull the line all the way through untill it is about chest high on the side of the back cut. Now take the short end and "wrap" the whole trunk together (should look like a barber pole when you're done) tie the line off at chest height with a clove hitch or whatever.

Back cut low and slow as others have posted.

I hope this makes sense. It is actually easier to do than to describe!!

 

[pbtree]

Post some photos if you can - it can really help get you more accurate info.

I would be sure to carefully analyze that split...

 

[Ekka]

Yeah, this is fun, got pics coz we gots saws and are itchin to use em. :greenchainsaw:

 

[TheGrasshopper]

How severe is the lean on the tree? From the base to the top what kind of degree angle are we talking about? Is the split running parallel or perpendicular to the lean? What kind of tree is it, how old is it? was the tree in good health when it was ravaged by the wind? I think some pictures would definitely help out. I definitely would recommend not doing anything with this tree until you get someone qualified out there to look at it, or get some pictures online so we can see it. opcorn:

 

[musch]

Mission Accomplished!

I appreciate all the helpful suggestions.
I was able to fell it without a hitch, but went pretty slow in case it started twisting or bucking back towards the cut.
As it happened, it fell almost exactly where I wanted it.
And for those who are saw buffs, I used a Husky 570 with a 24" blade.
Went very smoothly, all things considered. It was about "32" wide at the base

This site is awesome. Thanks a lot

 

[Ekka]

Oooo, quick, delete that last pic!

Glad the tree went where you wanted and all is fine, good on you.

 

[musch]

Problem?

Why take the last photo down?
If there is an error, I would like to know for future reference,
or are you guys just disappointed that I didnt hire a certified arborist!
:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[John464]

Why take the last photo down?

scary notch. you're lucky you werent injured or killed. some people will do anything to save a buck, including putting their own life at risk. why not hire a proffesional that knows what they're doing? for less than $500 a pro could of done that for you safely. I don't get why homeowners place such little value on their own well being

 

[clearance]

scary notch. you're lucky you werent injured or killed. some people will do anything to save a buck, including putting their own life at risk. why not hire a proffesional that knows what they're doing? for less than $500 a pro could of done that for you safely. I don't get why homeowners place such little value on their own well being

$500 to fall that, you have got to be kidding, other than the slanting backcut lower than the undercut, its all good. Good for you Musch. And arborists are not fallers, $500 if thats what you would have charged John, you are a scammer of all scammers. And the thing stayed together, oohhh, we need an arborist, not. That tree looks to be about a 2 out of 10 on the danger scale, if you lived next door Musch, I would have advised you were to place your cuts and watched you do it.

 

[Ekka]

Here you go

See, I told ya you should've got rid of the pic.

There's always one in a crowd. But it was safe enough and leaning favourably so your chances like Clearance said were pretty low of a mishap.

 

[John464]

$500 to fall that, you have got to be kidding, other than the slanting backcut lower than the undercut, its all good. Good for you Musch. And arborists are not fallers, $500 if thats what you would have charged John, you are a scammer of all scammers. And the thing stayed together, oohhh, we need an arborist, not. That tree looks to be about a 2 out of 10 on the danger scale, if you lived next door Musch, I would have advised you were to place your cuts and watched you do it.

it is obvious the guy doesnt understand how to face cut nor back cut judging by the pics. all it takes is one little mistake to get hurt if you dont know what you're doing. Especially on a tree that is struck by lightning due to the potential of it splitting, cracking, or barber chairing when you are felling. thats all im saying.

And ya that tree looks to be worth about less than(please read I wrote less than) $500 . That could mean $100-$500 depending if the guy wants the wood hauled and brush chipped.

 

[clearance]

Fair enough, cleaned up and bucked, couple of hundred, fell, free.

 

[Stumper]

John, Granted that the picture doesn't show me everything but what is there to complain about in the face cut? The angled backcut has already been addressed by Ekka and Clearance. I to am frightened and frustrated by some of the things that I see homeowners attempt...... but some of the most terrifyingly incompetent felling cuts are performed by "professional" arborists.

 

[musch]

2 things

1. The notch is still partially there on the stump, I probably should have knocked it out, but it was giving no structural support to the tree.

2. The undercut is not below the notch, and the tree was leaning downward on a hill of about 45 degrees. I suspected that was what you meant.
I think that the photo is misleading. It should look more like this

The red line shows where the notch was cut.

Incidentally - Not every homeowner is an idiot.
I agree that there is a time and a place for professionals, but if none of us ever tried anything, none of us would have ever DONE anything.

I was posting to let the group know that I appreciated, and FOLLOWED the suggestions given. When I took the last photo, I was not thinking about how it would be viewed by those who have not seen the actual tree and bluff that it was on.

Again, thanks for all the advice. I certainly have learned a lot on this forum.