My big Ash

[Demo]

Well being some what new to this I thought I'd share my first photos.


I was called in to remove some storm damage and some extra removals so to begin the storm damage.

 

[Demo]

the cut

 

[Demo]

the result

 

[Demo]

At 75 ft getting ready to top out the ash.

 

[Demo]

And finally me goofing off and what should have been a notch and watch but the customer was worried about the tree going over the property line so I topped this little 35 footer.

 

[RogerM]

"at 75 ft"
Is it a perception thing for me? Is that house between
you and the lense of the camera 5 stories?
IS there a real steep bank down hill from the house?
just curious. Maybe thats a bad angle or something. Please clear it up for me. thanks.

 

[Phil]

as soon as i saw that pic i called shenanigans on the height claim....please verify that number cus if i had to place a bet i would say you're 25'-30'max. Although 75' would be a really vigorous ash tree.

 

[Demo]

THe picture was at a funny angle and the drop off behind the house held by a nice little 15ft retaining wall. plus a 3 story house. THey have a bunch of ash trees on the land all over 90ft but mostly just like that one tall skinny and supported by others.

 

[Roger_Barnett]

Guys, you gotta consider the camera angle and perspective. The shot was taken from the front of the house, with the camera pointed up. So, demo is way above the roof peak, at est 35-40 feet. Add the 15 foot drop he described, and I'd say he's up 60 feet plus, maybe even 75, But there's still 35 feet above him, however, my guess is, some of those top out at well over 90 feet.

 

[glens]

That's how trees prefer to grow - in a tree community - isn't it? They certainly make for better firewood that way at any rate!

I live in a wooded community and except for some of the "earliest settlers" they're all "built" that way, and the mean height here is about as Roger estimates.

We dropped a nearby bitternut hickory the other day that was pushing 200 years (standing dead over the house in its front yard for the last two). It was near 24" at 60', about half its total height, and about 30" DBH. We won the final battle, but it had been the victor in a couple of skirmishes with the house, which should not have thought it could get away with commandeering the root field twenty years ago

 

[Phil]

Well, I stand corrected then, pictures are always a little harder to desipher than I'd like....must have been interesting at 75' on a bean pole of a tree.

 

[Mark Chisholm]

Yeah, that pic looks like the tree might be 75'. Anyway, I've remove 110'+ Ash trees here in NJ. I remember one pair of ash trees. They were both dbl leaders and 110' or so tall. One was struck by lightning and it jumped to the other leader, then into the ground and up the other tree (or so it seemed). Not an easy day as I remember it. /forum/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[Demo]

There is no hard feelings guys. I should have been clearer in the description. It is not the person listening job to understand what I am saying, It is my job to make sure the person I am talking to understands.

 

[eucmaninshorts]

A pat on the back tells you you’ve done well in the past, criticism lays out what you need to do well in the future.

With that in mind - I’m not seeing your climbing line being utilized for much more than a butt weight. Draping your climbing line around the trunk in the first 3 shots is better than nothing, but I would have like to have seen you tied in. Could you have found a crotch in a nearby tree to drop your line in? Or climb to the top of that broken stub, flush cut the defect out of it, then carve a well rounded, vertical notch across the center. Drop your line into this for an attachment point. Oh, and you need to stand higher in your work. What I mean by this is your saw is at shoulder height not allowing you full range of motion. If you took a half of a step up to make that cut with your saw about even with your midriff, you’ll have better control over it and be less fatigued by day’s end - nothing’s written that you have to cut a limb off from just one position.

As for the 75’ Ash, I’m going to estimate you’ve trimmed the lower limbs as you ascended. I’m basing this on the angle of your stubs (you’ll stop leaving these after you catch a couple in the chest or hang a ‘hitch on them a few times…) shows they were cut at or even with your shoulders. Also, if you had climbed to the top to crotch in, I believe you would have tied a tipline while you were there to assist in what looks to be a butt hitch you’re now tying. You should really climb to the top of the tree, install your line and then descend, working the tree from the bottom up. It sounds like a lot of effort but your risk of cutting yourself out of the tree is greatly reduced. Think about the time it’ll take to haul your crumpled body to the hospital and compare that to what it takes to be tied in properly. I know a climber (maybe I should call him a “faller”) out in Western New York who’s cut himself out of a tree 5 times by working off just his lanyard.

 

[Demo]

Well I could have climbed the big one then decended, but there were only about 3 limbs on the lower part that needed to be trimed off and it would mean alot more work to trim off just 3 cuts, The other three photos where you saw me wrapping the rope around the trunk well all of those trees didn't have tops before I even showed up on the job site, and were pretty rotten infact I wanted to put in a hand line to help pull it over and heard some wood breaking beneath me, I got down pretty quick after that. An all the other trees were pretty small saplings, The best one nearby had its first desent crotch about 80ft up and I tried but the angle just wasn't right to get my throw ball in it.

Now those nubs were for my next TIP for the last peice I was gonna chunck down. I normally leave nubs for remocals depending on how Im gonna chunk down the wood So I have good TIPs, But for hanging tops and roping stuf down I make sure there smooth.

But what you said is very true and was taken to heart I do perfer to work the way you described.

 

[Mark Chisholm]

Demo, if it's true that you are not tieing the climbing line into the spar when working, you need to change that right away. All you need to do is tie a running bowline around the trunk with your line and then add your friction hitch. I would also like to see a meunter hitch on a krab or something as well, but at least the bowline won't let you hit the ground.

Check the articles here on TreeBuzz. I wouldn't say it like this unless I felt as strongly as I do on this.

 

[Steve Connally]

Mark, do you put the meunter as well as the friction hitch? If so can you send a pic of the set up? I just use the VT and my flip line. Do you back up the VT?

 

[Mark Chisholm]

Yes I do. Look at the articles section. You'll see that I used to use a fig. 8 but now prefer a meunter above my hitch. The meunter will take the heat for the hitch. I'll try to get a pic tomorrow or Monday.