# Cost for cutting tree that fell?



## Chris

Well, with all of the massive rain, I have a nice oak that topped over (I have a strange patch of trees out in the field that have grown and this patch is just too low and wet at times, I think caused the ground to lose the battle with holding the tree in place by the root systems) --- This tree looks like it could just be staightened up and sit back into place.  ---- Alas, it is pretty big around (nothing valuable like a 200 year old live oak --- just a scrappy white/water oak) ---- Was wondering what it would cost for a service to come out and chop it up into manageable pieces. 
I will not need them to haul it away --- just drop it when they cut. 
I can remove the debris after cutting so this should reduce the cost. I have a chainsaw but it needs to go back to the shop again and frankly I am not an expert woodsman cutter with em anyhow.  (and it is not a Stihl) 

In any case, if someone can give me a rough or wild estimate.
Tree is probably about 40-50 feet tall, widest point --- probably couple feet thick at least. Not a small tree --- just not a HUGE tree either. Any ideas or insight?

Jody get your saw. 

Andy


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## Argee

I can't give you an estimate in that regard, but if you have woodworking enthusiasts or furniture builders, it might be of interest to them. Line up a few and let them bid on it!


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## Live Oak

If the tree is leaning over and on its way down; perhaps you can get a ladder and hook a long cable to the tree and pull it the rest of the way over with your tractor?


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## Rodster

Hi
I live in the northern suburbs fo Detrioit. We also have a cabin
170 miles in north Michigan. A job that costs $100 at the cabin
would cost $300 at home. I could not believe the cost difference.

There is a disease affecting the Oak trees at the cabin and we
are losing a lot of trees. It is spreading in the area up north.
Rodster


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## Rodster

Should read OF Detroit not FO . HA HA My proof reader is sick today.
Rodster


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## Chris

Chief,

It is down on the ground and it is a little larger than I remembered from yesterday. Wonder how much it will cost to get this thing outta here and cut up? Who knows.... 

Andy


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## Live Oak

I would suspect that the cost of paying someone to cut the tree up would be nearly as much as the cost a buying a chainsaw big enough to do the job. You might try advertising in the local "Peddler" or trade/sale publication and over it as free firewood. I have cut these big trees up and it is a LOT of hard, time consuming work. You might be able to find some kids that want to make a few bucks for the summer vacation to do it. My experience has been that if it involves a lot of hard work.................most folks just aren't interested. Tree cutting services can be very expensive depending upon the job and area.


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## Stewart

We had a Bradford pear tree that was splitting and it cost us $600 to have it taken down, chipped up , hauled away and the stump ground. That is the Oklahoma price. I wouldn't thing it would cost you that much to just have it cut up. I would think it would lean, (no pun intended) toward an hourly rate. Good luck and if you are goung to haul it your self drink plenty of water and protect your back!!! Green oak I am sure is very heavy!!!!


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## Chris

Hmmmmmmmmmm....

It all sounds really fun! 

So, how much for a good Stihl chainsaw that can handle this again? :furious:


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## Stewart

Not to sound funny, but how much do you want to spend? 
I forget how much I spent for my Stihl 025 but it is probably too small for your task. I think it was about $280, I have the receipt at home somewhere. I don't mean to bash any other brand I just am partial to Stihl products. Husky makes good saws as well. Happy hunting if you can't get your saw repaired! 
I think Neil Nassau and Amicks sell Stihl stuff and could maybe give you an idea of cost. Stihl doesn't list prices on the web, I guess they want you to go to a dealer.


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## Live Oak

> _Originally posted by admin _
> *Hmmmmmmmmmm....
> 
> It all sounds really fun!
> 
> So, how much for a good Stihl chainsaw that can handle this again? :furious: *


Andy, for most folks who have occasional clean up, firewood, and misc. cutting work; I would suggest the Stihl MS290 Farm Boss with a 20 inch bar. MS 290 STIHL Farm Boss 

This saw is not too big or too small and has a good power to weight ratio. It is also the most popular selling chainsaw Stihl makes which makes it priced the most economical. 

I personally own a Stihl O-66 which is the same model as the MS660M. I cut about 10 cords of wood a year with it as well as other clean up uses. They AIN'T cheap! My O-66 cost $900 about 10 years ago. The MS290 is about 1/3 the cost. If you use a chainsaw more than occasionally; would suggest looking at one of the commercial grade Stihl chainsaws such as the MS440.


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## DeereBob

Admin,
The cost of a new chain saw would be about the same as paying someone to remove it. I just replaced my two old saws with a Stihl 280 CQS with a 20" bar for $440 which would be an excellent saw for the job. I once took down a 36" diameter oak tree and will never do it again. However, if money is an issue here's an alternative. Rent a commercial grade saw and cut it up into 2' logs. Unless you want the wood to burn, get someone in who wants the firewood to split those logs into smaller pieces and haul it away. With a good saw, like mine, or one you could rent, cutting is not the work, it's the splitting. With a tree that size you might have to sharpen/replace the chain once or twice. A 2' oak log 2' or more in diameter will weigh several hundred pounds so it has to be split into more manageable pieces, even to put onto a hydraulic splitter. If you want to do it yourself, get a splitting wedge, and a sledge or splitting mall. Another little trick I learned for splitting logs that size is score it with your chain saw with a cross first. Then put your wedge or maul into the groove and the log will split much easier. I went through two malls and several sledge handles since oak is such a hard wood. The fiberglass handled sledge or mall will not break but the fiberglass does not absorb the shock as well as wood which is the trade off...and we haven't talked about the smaller branches and bark yet!!


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## slipshod

*Andy*

Does your mess look worse then this?


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## Stewart

Slip,
That is not a mess that is money!:money:


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## Rodster

Be carefull hiring kids and non insured handymen. If they get hurt you are liable.
Rodster


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## jodyand

> _Originally posted by admin _
> *
> Jody get your saw.
> 
> Andy *



Your out of luck i don't own a saw But am willing to help if you need it.
Jody


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## Chipmaker

I agree with Chief and the others about buying a new or bigger saw and going at it yourslef and you'll save mney, with one exception...........Buy a Husky not a Stihl  

Other than that minor point, I found lots of folks ready and willing to get wood from a felled tree, that is at least when you ask them if they want it. Everyone always says yes, sure do, but then try and get them to come and get it is another issue all together. Especially this time of year, next years wood supply for the woodstove is the last thing on anyones mind right now, and won't be until the temps get low again. If you were closer to me (within 50 miles) I would cut it up for free and haul it all away except the root mass, and any branch less than 1 1/2" in diam. 


I routinley cut large oaks for firewood on my place, and I have a system for the equipment I have that saves a lot of extra hand work in getting up branches etc. I cut the tree into manageable pieces where it lays. I only more branches to gain access, if need be, other than that they stay where they fall unless they make for a hazzard. Once it is all cut up I collect all the good pieces (usually all of a tree with the exception of brances and tips less tha 1 1/2" in diameter. Then I go back and cut into these smaller branches to sort of get all the Y's etcx out of them so they are more or less not sticking out all over. Then I hook up my homme made set of forks on the 3 point. At the vertical portion of these forks I have a piece of heavy gauge expanded metal mesh welded so things do not push back into the rear of the tractor. I then put the forks on the ground and back into a pile, manuvering it up against another tree which I use to crush and compact the pile of limbs against. The forks fit around the tree and crushing them is easy. Once I get sufficient limbs heaped and crushed like this, I either push the entire pile with forks in reverse to a burn pile or back up into the pile, and compress it, and lift it off the ground enough so I can get a big nylon tie down strap around the pile and fasten to the tractor then I can pull off forward with all the branches stuck on the forks and take em to where I burn. Forks are easy to make and very handy, and I can clean up a lot of limbs like this in no time, with the only need to get opff the tractor is if I use the nylon tie down strap. Once all the major stuff is gotten up this way I usually have less than a small L & G trailer full of small junk to pickup by hand.


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## Stewart

What in the $%^& do you mean Husky and not Stihl!!!!!
Huskys are the biggest pile of junk known to man!!!
Stilhl is the only saw to own!!!:tellyou: 

Just kidding I have always wanted to do that.....Yes I have a warped sense of humor!

Husky makes great saws as well. 

Andy, what is wrong with your old saw??:stupid: 

:cheers:


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## Chipmaker

Don't get me wrong but my preferance is Husky over Stihl but I have both brands myself and both are fine saws. I can say with 100% experience that a HUsky vibrates less than a Stihl does, as my left arm is a testimoney to that as its very suspectible to vibrations. I can use any of my Huskys all day long but only can use my Stihls for an hour or two bfore my left arm goes crazy. I had the Ulnar nerve in my left arm repositioned 2 times and its very sensitive to any vibrations or cold.

And justy how many remember this statement on the "other forum" when the topic of what is the best chainsaw came up.....

"Poulan the best dang chainsaw in the whole universe"


I would not have thought that they sold chainsaws in Oklahoma......you mean they actually have trees big enough to use a chainsaw on? Or do you all use em for cutting the grass when it gets too high? I remember seeing a article in the States archieve museum out in OK City that said something to the effect that only native tree was a cotton wood and they were extremely small and only grew in one locality way back in the old days. And that all trees in OK are basically planted trees as there is no natural forests etc. I may have it wrong but its close to what I remember.


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## Chris

So how much to get you to travel a little further down the road
to get the wooden goodies, Chippy?



:furious:


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## Stewart

Actually I did use the saw to cut our pampas grass back! The hedge clippers just weren't quick enough, so out come the Stihl!

I really don't notice the vibrations much but I haven't had nerve problems either!

And yes Mr Smarty pants we have big trees here in Oklahoma! We have a couple of sicamores (wow how do you spell that), a few pine and whole bunch of locust trees.


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## Stewart

See here is a picture!
 
<img src=http://www.tractorforum.com/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=34702>


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## Chipmaker

You call them big trees? They would be equal to a sapling or shrubbery in this area :furious: So evidently they were planted about the time Wal Mart opened the nursery center then right? 

The pines around my house are between 90 and 100 feet easy, and some are over 4 foot at DBH. Mainly long leaf variety Yellow pine and loblolly and long leafpines. 

I have oaks better than 48" at DBH and back when Hurricane Opal came through I lost an oak that would have been second in size in the state record book if it had a decent canopy. But it was a huge sucker just the same.

We have lots of sycamore <<<<<Spelled right :furious: 
I had 4 that I had tethered together over a stream bed, that held up a susupension bridge that topped 90 feet. Bridge was a living bridge basically until I got lazy and never readjusted to top ties and growth occured and the one top snapped out, and there went the bridge..........but it held my old F250 pickup and my 1720 hauling firewood without a problem while it was up.

I'm only pulling your chain about hassling you on trees and size so don;t take any of my remarks as a cut.......

We have some pines that have pine cones larger than a softball. Heck up in the north country my trees would be considered sapling size. I had an opportunity to cimb IIRC a hemlock or spruce in Minnesota that overlooked a lake on a ridgeline that was over 200' tall. It was awesome. A bunch of us tree climbers went up there for a seminar and we got an invite to climb this tree and have our pics taken. Once up in that tree you could see for miles and it was fall season and it was beautiful. It was not too far from Roseau, MN.

PS. DBH is a given for where a tree is actually measured at. Its means Distance at Breast Height..........as some trees have buttress type roots etc so DBH is the standard for measuring a trees girth. If it was measured at the widest part some of these oaks around here would be 10 feet in diameter until you measured all around those buttress type trunks / roots.

Good looking lawn, wanna come take care of mine, I'll even let you use my JD!


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## guest

ive got this old timer who sells wood.. every time i cut some trees i stop by the guys place and he comes and pulls the stuff away for me.. 

im doing a garage and had cleared some trees back he came by and saw i had about a 3 limbed 60 Ft tree that was dead.... it would have been direclty behind where the garage will be going.. he said well its dead if you want i can take it away for you...

to be honest.. i wanted to take it down but it was a bit too close to the house for me to want to do.. the old timer took it down and pulled it all away.. left nothing but a few piles of bark for me to clean up...

no charge.. 

i gotta get him a bottle or something..


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## Stewart

Man that is just plain harsh!!!!

I know you all are just pulling my chain about the trees here. I grew up in Colorado and the trees here are like bushes!!! Things they call mountains are nothing more than a small hill! I never thought I would say this but I do like living in OKlahoma. The cost of living is real good, gas this morning was $1.75 a gallon, and creeping up. We have 2.5 acres and a nice sized house with a pool. We couldn't touch the same setup in Colorado for under $500,000 with or without the trees!! 

I would guess our Sycamore trees are about 30'-40' and they are probably our tallest. They so give us some good shade so this heat doesn't bake us to death!!NANA


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## DeereBob

> _Originally posted by Stewart _
> *...I would guess our Sycamore trees are about 30'-40' and they are probably our tallest. They so give us some good shade so this heat doesn't bake us to death!!NANA *


Hmmm!,
I thought the State tree of Oklahoma was the telephone pole since nothing else grows there but maybe I'm confusing it with another state!!


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## Stewart

Thanks Bob, I do think you are confusing it with IL! Woops that is were you are at!!!! 


That is a good one, the power to our house is underground so we are in trouble!


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## slipshod

*Western New York*

If you miss mowing the lawn for a couple of weeks and come back, there is a forest there.


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