Cost of having a tree service remove big oak?

[jill.costello]

<PICS ADDED!!> My new property has beautifully placed HUGE live oaks in the pasture; just enough for a bit of shade for the animals. I love it

BUT, there is ONE that the previous owner built the workshed UNDER that just happens to be the one that was overcome with spanish moss and died... It's a marvelous workshed; concrete floors with drain, sturdy workbenches, wired for electric. about 18' x 26', but it desperately needs work on the roof, to include some trusses re-built, from this dead oak tree looming over it and "shedding" large branches in every wind storm!

BF wants to tackle the job himself with his climbing spikes and a chainsaw .......Not in my lifetime!

So, I thought I'd just hire a tree service while he's at work and be done with it, lol, but I need to know how much to save up for a job like this. The tree is as big around as a 17" wheel, and about 3 stories tall.

Technically, only about 1/3 of the tree's canopy branches would have to be cut down to make the workshop "safe" from falling limbs. Is is cheaper to have that done or just have them knock the whole thing at once?

Thanks!

[silverbackMP]

I'd remove the whole thing if it is that close; especially living in FL. Wind can blow the remaining limbs into the shed or even uproot the entire tree.

No idea on costs--I do my own trimming (at my parents) with a still tree saw. I do believe the pros are expensive do to insurance costs and they usually have to be bonded.

[tiogacounty]

Why not ask around your neighborhood for a few references, and then get two or three bids. Unless you get a response from somebody here that #1 is in your region of FL. and #2 is in the business, I doubt that you are going to get any really useful info. If there is a strong possibility of structure damage, some outfits will want to use a small crane, others use a climber and ropes to do the job. There can be huge swings in price depending on who does the work and how they do it. No matter what you do, be sure that the company provides you with a copy of their insurance. Things can go bad in a moment. I know of one climber/company owner who had to have his entire face reconstructed and nearly bleed to death when things went wrong. The time to find out that the guy with the low bid doesn't have insurance is not after the lifefight helicopter takes off from your field. Good move keeping the BF out of it, it can be incredibly dangerous work.

[tyusclan]

Probably around $1000 if they do all the clean-up. Most will give you a pretty good discount if you just let them pile it up and you clean it up yourself.

Live oak makes good firewood, but it's a bear to split. You'd definitely need a splitter.

[thequeensblessing]

My husband is a tree surgeon here in Ohio. He works for a major tree company and he also works on the side. The cost of taking the tree down is going to depend on what you want done with it and the difficulty involved. If you just want it put on the ground and you'll do all the clean up, it shouldn't be too terribly bad. If you want it all chipped up and hauled away, it's going to be pricey. If the tree can be dropped in just a few pieces, it will be less costly than if it has to be taken down in a lot of little pieces.
Perhaps put an ad up on your local CL and then screen the folks who respond. You certainly want someone who is insured, in case the tree ends up coming down on the shed because the person doesn't really know what they're doing! A lot of good tree guys "moonlight" on their own, so it should be easy to find someone.

[foxtrapper]

17" diameter trunk and 3 stories high? Mmmm, BF might well be able to do it himself. That's not a terribly large tree, and with some care, could be handled by a reasonably competent home owner.

Then there's that century old oak I've got, with the roughly 6 foot trunk, 80-100 feet tall, leaning over the shed and suffering from root rot. Estimates I've gotten to drop it and leave the wood were from 7-10k.

[mldrenen]

Originally Posted by foxtrapper

Then there's that century old oak I've got, with the roughly 6 foot trunk, 80-100 feet tall, leaning over the shed and suffering from root rot. Estimates I've gotten to drop it and leave the wood were from 7-10k.

sounds like it may be cheaper just to move the shed and let mother nature have her way with the tree.

[mnn2501]

Around here a tree that size that would be about $1500, perhaps more since they have to be careful of the shed.

Seriously though, anyone that knows their way around a chain saw should be able to drop it away from the shed

[jill.costello]

I added pics to the original post!! Now that I look at it, I could conceivably let BF tackle it IF we used chains and a come-along to pull the trunk away from the shed as it falls.....hmmmm......naaaaaw....maybe not.....cripes! I don't know!

[mothernature]

My DH removed a large oak from behind our house recently (GREAT firewwood), little by little when I wasn't home to stop him of course!! He roped the branches and pulled them down with his truck one by one and was left with a 30' tall stump which he then felled safely into a clearing. I griped and begged for him to be careful and he was!! Good luck with your tree!

[fordy]

...................Very simple answer too your problem.......Hire a professional too drop the whole tree , Away from the building , where Paul Bunyan can then attack it whilst it is laying the ground ! Problemo solved ! , fordy

[Michael W. Smith]

How much experience does BF have with taking down trees? I'm assuming with the tree spikes he has done similiar jobs.

If he has experience, LET HIM DO IT. Otherwise when he comes homes and find out you spent $500.00 - $1500.00 for something he could have done, you will have one MAD BF, or maybe NO BF at all!!!!!!

If he has no idea what he is doing, then hire it done. Can you ask around and try to find somebody who used to work for the professionals? These guys will sometimes work on the side and their prices are alot cheaper than the pros.

I have one guy I know that has the whole set up - several chain saws, ropes, pulley system, spikes, etc - anything you need for taking down trees. He is SUPER careful and will work an afternoon for you and only charge $40.00 - $50.00. We usually double what he asks for. He leaves happy and we end up happy saving money too!

[Mare Owner]

Most professionals will give you a free estimate by coming out and taking a look at the job. I'd ask around to find someone recommended by someone you know, neighbors, anyone you work with, etc.

But if BF wants to do it and knows what he's doing, isn't that part of what BF's are for?

[foxtrapper]

With the added picture, I think the job can definately be done by a homeowner. Remove branches individually. A stout rope and a truck to pull against them will help tremendously, particularly the ones over the shed and fence. Cut them in stages if necessary. Then work on the main trunk, sectioning similarly.

[calliemoonbeam]

It's pretty expensive. I just had quotes from four different professionals, and all were between $1500 and $2000 to take the tree down, leaving the stump and removing the rest from the property...and I have two that need it, so I can double that!

Mine are rotten all the way through, didn't even realize it until one suddenly spontaneously shed most of its lower bark (never seen such a thing, but I was raised a city girl, lol) and then a few days later a huge limb came crashing down from the other one and destroyed my trash dumpster and split open, revealing the rot. Luckily, mine are just far enough from the house that even if they do fall this direction they'll only take out the porch roof, but of course that's bad enough.

Luckily, my lawn guy, who does a wonderful job and is extremely inexpensive in his rates, told me he'd take them out for $400 a tree, if I don't hold him responsible if they should damage the porch, although he did say the chances are very slim since they're leaning slightly away from it (the professionals said the same thing). I think that's more than reasonable, and it's just a metal add-on roof over a concrete slab, so I'm going to go for it.

As some others said, if your BF thinks he can do it and you can live with it just in case something does go wrong and not blame him forever, then let him at it! It will save you a small fortune and make him feel like a he-man, lol. I only wish I had such an option.

Originally Posted by jill.costello

I added pics to the original post!! Now that I look at it, I could conceivably let BF tackle it IF we used chains and a come-along to pull the trunk away from the shed as it falls.....hmmmm......naaaaaw....maybe not.....cripes! I don't know!

If the field with the blue barrels/feeders is yours or can be used it would be very easy to drop the whole tree that direction using chains and a come-along . After looking again it could also be easily dropped toward where you was standing when you took the first picture . When I say easy I mean for someone with some experience running a saw & felling trees .

[fishhead]

Some of the tree services around here have boom trucks. They would just drive up and take it down in pieces or if you were going to cut it into pieces they would just tie at the top and pull it away from the building as they cut the base.

The first picture makes it look like there are more branches (weight) on the building side. That will pull it the wrong direction if gravity is allowed to work.

With a good rope and anchor you should be able to pull it away from the building with a come along. There is a danger with all those branches that the stump may kick backwards into the building after it falls.

[jill.costello]

Yes, I have a "trained eye" and I feel that the majority of weight is over the building, as well. Yes, the whole property is mine; we can fell it any which way is best.

In the picture of the trunk closer-up, I tried to show the "twist" in the trunk; THAT is what worries me.... if I let BF whittle away at the canopy, and we take a ton of weight off by severing branches and limbs and lowering them carefully to the ground, etc, then the twist isn't an issue if we do just the trunk last.....BUT, all I would have to do is look away for a minute or two and BF would probably have that tree chained to MY F-350 and be half-way thru a fell-cut before I could scream "noooooooooooooooo".....

He IS experienced at just about anything; country boy thru and thru; his daddy was a trapper and a coon-dog raiser (and a hell raiser too, from the stories), but there is no health insurance on his rear and no life insurance, neither! At 35 years old, he's just old enough to have the know-how and the strength, but not quite old enough to fear death enough for my liking....

[Bearfootfarm]

All you need is some LONG rope and a truck or tractor to put a little tension on it as it's cut

That's NOT a large tree, and anyone who knows how to use a saw can make it fall away from the building.

The rope and tension are just insurance

[KySam]

Jill
Do a wedge cut on the oppisite side of building. Take the truck and some heavy duty rope or cable and put tension on the tree. Cut on the side facing the building. Just cut about a third of the way through. Fire up the truck and pull the tree over.

You should be able to rent a electric lift that will reach about 40 feet to piece out the tree over the shed. Up here it cost $140.00 a day to rent a electric
lift.