Tree Removal w/Snorkel Lift

[oliver2-44 8,852]

My son purchased a house a back in July. Between work and helping him with some remodeling, etc it sure has take my up Horse time!

There was a large Cedar Elm tree that had grown to the point that the trunk was actually rubbing the house. The tree trimming companies wanted +/- $2000 to remove it.  So we rented a snorkel lift for $200 for the weekend (2 days). Since the tree was over the house we had to cut and lower it down piece by piece. It took us 2 full days and the lift sure was the worth every penny and was definitely the safe way to do it, (we only damaged 1 roof shingle!  We saved the bottom trunk of the tree to dry and possible have sawn into a fireplace mantel .

[KC9KAS 4,741]

Glad you were able to get the job done a little cheaper and safely!

[DennisThornton 4,769]

5 hours ago, oliver2-44 said:

My son purchased a house a back in July. Between work and helping him with some remodeling, etc it sure has take my up Horse time!

There was a large Cedar Elm tree that had grown to the point that the trunk was actually rubbing the house. The tree trimming companies wanted +/- $2000 to remove it.  So we rented a snorkel lift for $200 for the weekend (2 days). Since the tree was over the house we had to cut and lower it down piece by piece. It took us 2 full days and the lift sure was the worth every penny and was definitely the safe way to do it, (we only damaged 1 roof shingle!  We saved the bottom trunk of the tree to dry and possible have sawn into a fireplace mantel .

That is neat!  Thanks for sharing!

[pacer 3,159]

I recently had the pine trees taken off my property - before the pine beetles got them all - with the stipulation that they would leave the hardwoods, but invariably the falling pines sideswipped several limbs on a few of my hardwoods leaving some bedraggled spots. I have been thinking about renting one of those lifts to trim those places, now with your telling your story I an much encouraged to go ahead with that!! YEAH!!

 

Thanks so much for telling about it and the pictures.

[WNYPCRepair 1,875]

Are you using the lift to lower those pieces down?

[RedRanger 1,468]

35 minutes ago, WNYPCRepair said:

Are you using the lift to lower those pieces down?

I was wondering the same thing.  

[oliver2-44 8,852]

Yes we used the lift to lower pieces down.  This was a 35 ft lift.  When fully extended it had a 575 lb weight rating and a 1000 lb rating  when not extended.  We were able to park where al the outriggers were on the concrete patio to give us a solid base.

[AMC RULES 36,945]

So, this is where estimating the weight of the cut piece you're lowing down becomes critical. 

[Ed Kennell 35,738]

2 hours ago, AMC RULES said:

So, this is where estimating the weight of the cut piece you're lowing down becomes critical. 

 

Glad you got the job done safely.  

  I hope no one takes this as a negative comment on this post,     But I feel obligated say this is not an operation I would recommend for anyone that does not have experience in rigging and  the operation of a mobile crane.   In my 40+ years of manufacturing hydro turbines where lifts in excess of 200 ton were made routinely, I have seen some very nasty accidents and the operators were all trained,  experienced, certified operators.

Just sayin....s@@@ happens especially when chain saws and suspended loads are involved. 

[oliver2-44 8,852]

You got that right AMC!

Needless to say we started lifting smaller pieces and worked our way up learning what the lift could handle as we went along!

Tying the pieces to the lift in a "balanced" fashion and having a tag line to minimize the swinging was also part of that lesson.  When you made that last part of cut and the larger pieces separated from the tree you didn't want them swinging everywhere. On several of the larger pieces we made 3/4 of the cut from the lift with the chain saw, then took the lift above the piece the larger and tied it off and put a little "up" tension with the lift so we were "holding the piece up.  Then we finished the last part of the cut with a long pole saw.

What @ekennell says about the rigging is very true.

Small world, I've spent 37 years maintaining and overhauling hydro turbines at our 6 dams. In the last 20 years we've done major rehab on all 13 turbines. Voith Hydro in York, Pa provided the new turbine runners and refurbished parts for us. I've been to York several times over the years.

@ekennell do you happen to work for Voith, or American Hydro across town?

 

 

[Ed Kennell 35,738]

Thank you Oliver for understanding my comment.   Obviously you have the experience to safely undertake this tree removal task.

Small world it is..I may have met you if you have visited the Voith Hydro  Lab in York.  I have conducted many tours  of the lab for visitors .

I Starter my career with the Hydro Turbine Division of Allis Chalmers as a hydraulic technician in the lab in 1964, and retired as the manager of the Voith Hydro Lab over 40 years later.    During these years, I have supervised the mechanical design, manufacture, and testing of the models of most of the large hydro projects..both new and replacement units.   Much of this work was done for the TVA plants in the South and the US Army Corps of Engineers plants in the Northwest.     I do have several friends at American Hydro, as you probably know, this company was formed by  several key Allis Chalmers employees that left when Allis was purchased by Voith.

[WNYPCRepair 1,875]

3 hours ago, oliver2-44 said:

You got that right AMC!

Needless to say we started lifting smaller pieces and worked our way up learning what the lift could handle as we went along!

Tying the pieces to the lift in a "balanced" fashion and having a tag line to minimize the swinging was also part of that lesson.  When you made that last part of cut and the larger pieces separated from the tree you didn't want them swinging everywhere. On several of the larger pieces we made 3/4 of the cut from the lift with the chain saw, then took the lift above the piece the larger and tied it off and put a little "up" tension with the lift so we were "holding the piece up.  Then we finished the last part of the cut with a long pole saw.

What @ekennell says about the rigging is very true.

Small world, I've spent 37 years maintaining and overhauling hydro turbines at our 6 dams. In the last 20 years we've done major rehab on all 13 turbines. Voith Hydro in York, Pa provided the new turbine runners and refurbished parts for us. I've been to York several times over the years.

@ekennell do you happen to work for Voith, or American Hydro across town?

 

 

I'm not ashamed to admit that would scare the crap out of me, LOL. 

I have the same situation, many trees that are too close to the house to just drop them, and I am not planning to climb them and cut them down. 

I thought about a cherry picker, but one tall enough was about $900. Then again, paying someone would be a few thousand, I'm sure. But I am definitely not brave enough nor knowledgable enough to use the lift as a crane while I am on it. I had visions of the tree dropping, then the rope snapping and launching me into space like a slingshot.

[DougC 2,641]

Looks like a professional job to me. You guys could open up a part time tree service now.     

[JC 1965 1,528]

Nice job, thanks for the photos.