cabling?

hl_tree

hl_tree

Location
New Fairfield, CT
I've got a couple of properties where people have gone overboard in the past on cabling systems. My question for the masses is 2 fold...

1, if a cable was originally installed where it was not needed, is it still necessary to keep proper placement by installing a new cable?

2. I realize that 2/3rds of the way above the weak point is the accepted practice... so at what point in general do we say that a cable needs to be raised?
 
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I've got a couple of properties where people have gone overboard in the past on cabling systems. My question for the masses is 2 fold...

1, if a cable was originally installed where it was not needed, is it still necessary to keep proper placement by installing a new cable?

2. I realize that 2/3rds of the way above the weak point is the accepted practice... so at what point in general do we say that a cable needs to be raised?

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place the new cable at the rule of thumb 2/3 the way up (depends on many factors like tree type and diameter of wood you can put in into and if there is decay or not plus other factors) like you said...once the new cable system is installed take out the old one
 
The 2/3's point will always be changing though... so I mean technically speaking, every time I can move the cable a foot I should... but that's not exactly the best thing for the tree.
 
When you said "where" it is not needed, did you mean that the tree did not need cabling at all, or that the cable was placed in where you thought it should not have been installed at?

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removing existing cabling systems is a dangerous practice. i installed ehs cabling at the proper height in a 120 Ash a few years back. about midpoint in the tree was a tangled mess of wratchet binders and ad hoc cabling devices. At first inspection i determined to remove them. I made one cut and the whole tree ripped in two from where I was to about 30 feet below me. i never descended so fast in my life! so word to the wise be careful.
 
Perfectly healthy limbs, with no defects got cabled, but when I got onto the property, the cables were less than half way up. So technically speaking, the cables should be moved... but they weren't needed in the first place.
 
" At first inspection i determined to remove them."

It would seem that the tree did need the cables. Did you remove the old mess before or after installing the new cable?

When I found trees with unneeded cables I would never remove them. The liability is bad enough with proper systems. Adding a new, generally higher system, meant removing the lower/older system.

An addition after reading Norm's reply..we wrote at the same time
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If an old system is going to be removed I get rid of the cable but I only remove the hardware if I can do it without damaging the tree.

I've used existing hardware that was adequate and shortened or replace the original cable too. When it comes to cabling a belt and suspenders/braces approach isn't a bad idea.
 
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once the new cable system is installed take out the old one

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I think this is probably unnecessary.

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Agreed.
Leave the old system in unless it is sagging. It may help in the long run. The anchors are getting sealed over and become more solid as they get buried.
 
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I've got a couple of properties where people have gone overboard in the past on cabling systems. My question for the masses is 2 fold...

2. I realize that 2/3rds of the way above the weak point is the accepted practice... so at what point in general do we say that a cable needs to be raised?

[/ QUOTE ]

No need to install a new system every year. Go as high as the tree will allow. Sometimes a little more than half way up, sometimes as much as 3/4's the way up. An annual inspection is required to do a visual.
 
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once the new cable system is installed take out the old one

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I think this is probably unnecessary.

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Agreed.
Leave the old system in unless it is sagging. It may help in the long run. The anchors are getting sealed over and become more solid as they get buried.

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what i was thinking as you explained they were not put in properly with would make me believe that they are sagging or wrapped around the tree for all we know...thats why i said what i said...also if the system is overgrowing the lags or eye bolt and growing down the wire this prevents the tree from completely compartmentalizing because of the movement of the wires...so what is best for the tree then? wouldnt we want the tree to seal completely over?
 
"if the system is overgrowing the lags or eye bolt and growing down the wire this prevents the tree from completely compartmentalizing"

Any time that I removed a tree with a cabling system I saved the chunks with the hardware. When I got back to my shop I would split them open so that I could study the decay/wounding.

What I found was that the tree developed solid, clear wood starting the next season after wounding. Of course it would, CODIT applies. As long as the cabling system didn't move there was no decay. What I did find was that the decay inside, from the lag or through bolt could be extensive.

When I split the chunks I would try to put my wedge in line with the anchor. For the most part the split would follow the anchor and the wood that developed around the eye and cable would split apart with the same structure as a branch collar. Another 'duh' revelation...CODIT at work again.

After doing this with many pieces from many species I concluded that the tree would not develop decayed wood on the outside of the anchor point. Inside...well...that was a whole different issue. On silver maple I found that if the anchor went into the heartwood the tree would have huge, long decay columns. The anchor point would be discolored and sometimes punky rotten to the point that the lag would have NO support for the system. All of the support was developed in new wood enveloping the eye and cable splice, nothing internal.
 
Agree with tom that old cables stay in unless they restrict needed movement and are totally unnecessary.

Don't cut the old until the new ones are in, EVER!

Annual inspections are overkill in most cases. Overspeccing inspections can make support systems seem too onerous to the owner.
 
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