Cutting tree from top down..??

[Woodhog]

Does anyone know the proper way to cut a tree down starting at the top.....

I would assume you have to throw a rope to the top  area for a safety line for step # 01...

The tree is an old spruce about 60 feet high and 2 feet dia at the butt end..

There is no room to fall it, no place for a bucket truck (too expensive anyway) and close power lines...

Thanks

[Nate Surveyor]

First off, I am an idiot. 

But, I have done stuff like this before. 34" butt white oak. Leaning over house. I wound up climbing to the top, and slowly cutting SMALL pieces, one at a time, and throwing them to a place where no damage would occur. The bigger pcs had to be TIED off, and lowered.

For some trees, I don't think there is another way, unless you have a nice helicopter, and the helicopter can take the whole tree away at once! (wink).

It was my dad's house, and it took me all day to remove it.


Anyway, I am sure somebody else will have better ideas than me.

Nate

[beenthere]

Woodhog
Check out a recent video put up by Kevin....he showed a way to tie-off what he was cutting out of a top, so he could fall it in the direction he wanted it to go (to avoid some tele or elec lines).

kevin in tree

Do you like heights?

Also check out some of the AxMen shows...they have men in tree tops, removing them, and attempting to stay out of the fall path. Not the every-day guys work tho. 

Where are you located? Nothing in your bio, but you've been a long-time member.

[chet]

There is no room to fall it, no place for a bucket truck (too expensive anyway) and close power lines...

Da last thing ya want ta do, is mess around power lines. They are very unforgiving.    My advice is ta see if da power company can help ya out or hire someone that is capable (trained)for such a task.

[beenthere]

And I agree 100% with Chet...

[PineNut]

Had one case of a power company not wanting to remove a dead tree by their line. The only other way for it to fall was on the house. Took a cable and tied it off so that the only way it could fall was on the power line. Power company took the hint and removed the tree.   

[Woodhog]

I am up in Canada (Maritimes)..

It is not close enough to the lines for any problem except for felling it in one piece...

I have cut thousands from the ground but never from the top..\

I guess its just a matter of climbing up, and start  sawing off pieces one at a time and letting the pieces fall to the ground... there is loads of green limbs to stand on... and probably a small saw should be used..

[Ironwood]

My friend just took down an urban walnut, I bought the log from the landowner. I chainsaw and I climb (rock and ice, so good rope experience), but I NEVER mix the two. I have been mountaineering with my friend in these pics, and I have rock and ice climbed with him, TREE WORK is a VERY different animal, I am in complete AWE of how good he is at what he does. He has been at it for 23 years, it shows. He was in the tree hanging from his harness for 9 hours+ on Friday. I showed up thinking he'd come down to share the lunch I'de picked up for him, "NOPE, I aint coming down, send it up" WOW. at times he'd have two saws and a pole saw, fuel and supply bag hanging up there, THIS IS SERIOUS stuff, the stamina alone, let alone the forsight of rope skill/ management, and the physics of this was INCREDIBLE .He is a high angle take down tree surgeon. This is his specialty and all that he does, other tree sevices hire him to come in on the difficult ones.  All I can say is if I ever needed a high angle rescue, I hope he is running the show. Don't mess with the high stuff, way too risky. I deal with a few other local "climbers" for tree work. The saying holds for this pursuit as well " there are old climbers, there are bold climbers, there are NO OLD BOLD CLIMBERS". Get a pro, your life is worth it.


 
 

 Ironwood

[Woodhog]

Nice pictures, yes I agree, most should not get up in that type of tree.

The tree I am concerned about is a big old white spruce tree, limbs are so thick you could hardly crawl up thru them, so there is all kinds of footholds and limbs to climb on.

It would be almost hard to fall down thru the dozens of limbs.

[rebocardo]

> Does anyone know the proper way to cut a tree down starting at the top.....

Hire a pro 

Everyone I have hired starts by taking out all the lower limbs. If you drop the top, not only do you have to pull it away from the tree, you have to be belted to the tree, at a min., so you do not get whipped out out of the tree.

What many do is delimb the whole thing, bottom to top, and then drop the trunk in 2-3 foot sections while leaning back on their flip line.

If you leave limbs on the top, it stands a chance of hitting the tree on the way down or worse bouncing when it hits the ground and knocking over or breaking the trunk.

If you take a 16 oz weight and arborist line up with you, you can lower it and use it to pull up (how I have done it) bigger rope to tie to the top for the ground helper to tie off to direct the top.

[nas]

It would be almost hard to fall down thru the dozens of limbs.
[/quote]
Just make sure it's not the stupid tree or you just might hit every branch on the way down

[Jeff]

It might be hard to fall down through the tree, but it might be quite easy for a little old dead dry stub to stick you in the throat or somewhere else vital.  Get someone to do it for you that knows what they are doing so you or someone else doesn't get killed.

[LeeB]

Can I get an amen to that.

[Ironwood]

AAAHHHMENNN.

[beenthere]

Amen....shoot it down   

[cuttingman423]

i wish i had the knowledge to do that kind of climbing then again i might want to lose a few punds 245lb might not be ideal for climbing and falling trees from the top down.

[chet]

If'n ya don't know da purpose of each of da ropes in da above pics, yer better off hire'n someone dat does. 

[LeeB]

The first thing you gotta do with them is find one that has a "lever B" on it.

[Nate Surveyor]

I heard a story about a NEWBY to tree work, wanted a job, and so to IMPRESS the boss, be tried the STYROFOAM trick. Tree leans over house. Cover house with STYROFOAM. Hook rope to tree, and to bumper of truck. Pull OVER the top of house, TOWARDS house. IDIOT in truck is BURNIN his tires off, and finally manages to PULL the tree down ON the house. Apparently he had first partially cut the tree! It crashed through the living room, and several other improvements!

I wish I had that on video!

 

Nate

[Ironwood]

My friend Tim in the picture IS quite a beefcake. Maybe 230 lbs, built like an OX, I have no idea how he can hang in that harness ALL DAY. I am 245, similar build, it would kill me.

 Ironwood