Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to cut
down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about £1000 how far out
am I?

Thanks

Siggy

It all depends!
1. on the size and lay-out of your land; if constricted they'll have to
climb up the tree and fell the upper branches first, and take it down bit by
bit, so to speak.
2. Do they have to cut it all up and cart it away?
Here in the country I have lots of space, and felling a tree can be done in
30 minutes. It would take the rest of the day to saw it all up and remove
it. And for that you need transport (like my tractor and trailer).
I would not, therefore expect to pay someone with the equipment and know-how
more than about £350. And if I gave them the wood, it might only cost me
£100. The rubbish would become a bonfire.
David

"Siggy" wrote in message
...
Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to cut
down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about £1000 how far out
am I?

Thanks

Siggy

david wrote:

"Siggy" wrote in message
...
Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to cut
down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about ?1000 how far out
am I?

It all depends!
1. on the size and lay-out of your land; if constricted they'll have to
climb up the tree and fell the upper branches first, and take it down bit by
bit, so to speak.
2. Do they have to cut it all up and cart it away?
Here in the country I have lots of space, and felling a tree can be done in
30 minutes. It would take the rest of the day to saw it all up and remove
it. And for that you need transport (like my tractor and trailer).
I would not, therefore expect to pay someone with the equipment and know-how
more than about ?350. And if I gave them the wood, it might only cost me
?100. The rubbish would become a bonfire.

Yes, £1000 does seem to me to be a bit OTT. It'll be (relatively)
expensive to have a single tree felled but even than I think, like
David, I'd reckon on the £300 to £500 area.

--
Chris Green )

Maybe I was being pessimistic pricewise. The tree is in a fairly combined
space (about 8M away from 2 houses either side, which is why it needs to
come down) so it would have to be cut down bit by bit. Also the area is a
bit restricted with access through an archway so a tractor would not be able
to access the land. Hopefully it shouldn't cost too much, I was just
panicking when we realised that it would have to come down.

Thanks for you help.

Siggy


"david" wrote in message
...
It all depends!
1. on the size and lay-out of your land; if constricted they'll have to
climb up the tree and fell the upper branches first, and take it down bit
by
bit, so to speak.
2. Do they have to cut it all up and cart it away?
Here in the country I have lots of space, and felling a tree can be done
in
30 minutes. It would take the rest of the day to saw it all up and remove
it. And for that you need transport (like my tractor and trailer).
I would not, therefore expect to pay someone with the equipment and
know-how
more than about £350. And if I gave them the wood, it might only cost me
£100. The rubbish would become a bonfire.
David

"Siggy" wrote in message
...
Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to cut
down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about £1000 how far
out
am I?

Thanks

Siggy

"Siggy" wrote in message news
Maybe I was being pessimistic pricewise. The tree is in a fairly combined
space (about 8M away from 2 houses either side, which is why it needs to
come down) so it would have to be cut down bit by bit. Also the area is a
bit restricted with access through an archway so a tractor would not be able
to access the land. Hopefully it shouldn't cost too much, I was just
panicking when we realised that it would have to come down.

Thanks for you help.

Siggy

We pay around £350 a day for a good team of 3. They should be able to chip and remove the rubbish and the wood if
you don't want it. Should do it in a day or not much more. Check their insurance and if poss speak to recent
clients. Fixed price jobs tend to come in more pricy than paying by the day.

Rod

"Siggy" wrote:

Hello Siggy

S Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree
S surgeon to cut down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm
S guessing about £1000 how far out am I?

Depends on:

1. Access - if you want it taken away it'll be a lot more, even if
they can get a wagon right underneath.

2. Viability of felling. If it can be felled then it's far cheaper. If
it has to be climbed and dismantled, lots more - especially if each
section has to be lower on rope.

3. Region. The SE is more expensive, from what I've heard.

A grand could be realistic, but it might be a lot cheaper (I've felled
and burnt similar trees for half a days work for two guys, 100-200
quid). But a job like yours, worse case, might take 3-4 days for 3-4
guys (and I'm talking absolute worst case).

Get some quotes - the best tree surgeon I knew (and worked for) never
advertised at all, but other good ones do. NEVER allow a surgeon onto
your property for a large job like this unless they have adequate
public liability insurance, and do check the certificate. (1-2 million
quid is the norm) If they also contract for the council and the
services (power, mostly) then they should be ok, especially if they've
worked there for a while.

3 quotes should give you a fair idea. Cheapest not always best, but
neither is the most expensive. Cowboys do exist in this area but are
hard to spot unless you know how the work should be done. Good and bad
both use scruffy vehicles and look rough - the only judge is
reputation, and it's hard to get that outside of the trade.

Don't rely on much of a discount for the timber, poplar isn't really
sought after for timber or firewood.

--
Simon Avery, Dartmoor, UK Ý http://www.digdilem.org/

"Siggy" wrote in message
news
Maybe I was being pessimistic pricewise. The tree is in a fairly combined
space (about 8M away from 2 houses either side, which is why it needs to
come down) so it would have to be cut down bit by bit. Also the area is a
bit restricted with access through an archway so a tractor would not be
able
to access the land. Hopefully it shouldn't cost too much, I was just
panicking when we realised that it would have to come down.

Thanks for you help.

Siggy


"david" wrote in message
...
It all depends!
1. on the size and lay-out of your land; if constricted they'll have to
climb up the tree and fell the upper branches first, and take it down
bit
by
bit, so to speak.
2. Do they have to cut it all up and cart it away?
Here in the country I have lots of space, and felling a tree can be done
in
30 minutes. It would take the rest of the day to saw it all up and
remove
it. And for that you need transport (like my tractor and trailer).
I would not, therefore expect to pay someone with the equipment and
know-how
more than about £350. And if I gave them the wood, it might only cost me
£100. The rubbish would become a bonfire.
David

"Siggy" wrote in message
...
Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to
cut
down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about £1000 how far
out
am I?

Thanks

Siggy



Be careful
.......................large trees should be felled a 1/3rd at a time each
year in order to avoid heave/subsidence etc
its not best idea to fell a large tree in one go

On Wed, 20 Aug 2003 20:08:44 +0000 (UTC), "bnd777"
wrote:

......................large trees should be felled a 1/3rd at a time each
year in order to avoid heave/subsidence etc
its not best idea to fell a large tree in one go

nor is it better to start with the bottom third :-)
--
Martin

Siggy typed:

Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to
cut down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about £1000
how far out am I?

Thanks

Siggy

Get Lots and Lots of quotes, I had two trees cut down last year most
expensive quote was £1500 the cheapest £350. A huge difference in price.
The cheapest was in fact from a recommendation by the local councils arbo
(spelling !) tree bloke..

The message
from "Siggy" contains these words:

Has anyone got any idea how much it would cost for a tree surgeon to cut
down a 25M poplar tree in our garden? I'm guessing about £1000 how far out
am I?

That depends on its position vis à vis buildings, boundaries etc.

Felling it in one go should be a lot less than that, but if the
operator(s) has/have to climb the tree and bring it down in sections you
could be about right.

I used to be a partner in such a concern, but we all got too old and
infirm innit.

--
Rusty http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/tqt.htm
horrid·squeak snailything zetnet·co·uk exchange d.p. with p to
reply.

The message
from (Simon Avery) contains these words:

A grand could be realistic, but it might be a lot cheaper (I've felled
and burnt similar trees for half a days work for two guys, 100-200
quid). But a job like yours, worse case, might take 3-4 days for 3-4
guys (and I'm talking absolute worst case).

Very, very worst. We took down two poplars in North London. They were
polled at about twelve feet, and the three trunks on one and the two on
the other were over 120 feet.

The owner couldn't find a company to cover his household insurance
because both trees were rotten to some extent, and were already
dangerous.

The main boles were nearly six feet in diameter at the bases, and our
36" Pioneer power saw only just met in the middle when we came to take
them down.

Because there was nowhere to take them down in one go we (about five of
us) spent four days taking them down from the tops downwards.

Our charge was one thousand five hundred pounds, but that was thirty
years ago. The nearest quote he had to ours was three thousand, and one
company wanted ten thousand.

--
Rusty http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/tqt.htm
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reply.

Rusty Hinge wrote:

Hello Rusty

A grand could be realistic, but it might be a lot cheaper
(I've felled and burnt similar trees for half a days work
for two guys, 100-200 quid). But a job like yours, worse
case, might take 3-4 days for 3-4 guys (and I'm talking
absolute worst case).

RH Very, very worst. We took down two poplars in North London.
RH They were polled at about twelve feet, and the three trunks
RH on one and the two on the other were over 120 feet.

Yeah. We used to specialise in the dangerous ones at one time, and
some of the worst were a stand of five 100' douglas fir that grew on
an unstable bank another 20' above a major roadway which in turn was
20' above a busy beach in Salcombe, surrounded by other roads and had
a house directly underneath. Took ten of us (three climbers, three
groundsmen and four muppets) five days to dismantle and remove,
including 3 days hire of a 100' crane and traffic lights so we could
close the road. That was about the most expensive single job we did
and was knocking on the door of ten grand. I was quite happy to be a
groundsman on that job, and not having to work up there. The crane
driver wasn't too careful either, freewheeling lumps of wood down of
about 1/2 a tonne and then slamming the brake on at the last minute,
causing the back of the crane to lift up. Got rid of him after the
first day and used another firm.

RH The main boles were nearly six feet in diameter at the
RH bases, and our 36" Pioneer power saw only just met in the
RH middle when we came to take them down.

Tricky with that size and with rotten boles. We kept a big sthil just
for those sorts of jobs with a 5'6" bar imported from America (not a
fun thing to start on a cold day, and if you stuffed it in the dirt we
were made to sharpen in on our own time - 12' of chain takes a lot of
setting and checking to sharpen so it cuts straight). I've seen a guy
use that saw 30' when taking down a wind-damaged scots pine at
Greenaway House (Agatha Christie's place nr Torbay) - quite funny
since he couldn't brace himself, the torque from the saw kept pushing
him away from the tree.

RH Because there was nowhere to take them down in one go we
RH (about five of us) spent four days taking them down from the
RH tops downwards.

Definately a slow job, and not one you can rush. Need a good bloke on
the ropes, both above and on the ground too. Seen quite a few near-
misses from a manic climber, and more from an inexperienced
groundsman. TBH, I'm quite glad I got out of that line of work.

RH Our charge was one thousand five hundred pounds, but that
RH was thirty years ago. The nearest quote he had to ours was
RH three thousand, and one company wanted ten thousand.

Eek. It's amazing the difference - I'm pretty sure a lot of companies
take one look, think "Bugger that!" and put in a silly quote because
they don't want the job.

--
Simon Avery, Dartmoor, UK Ý http://www.digdilem.org/

"Rod" wrote in message
...

"Siggy" wrote in message
news
Maybe I was being pessimistic pricewise. The tree is in a fairly
combined
space (about 8M away from 2 houses either side, which is why it needs to
come down) so it would have to be cut down bit by bit. Also the area is
a
bit restricted with access through an archway so a tractor would not be
able
to access the land. Hopefully it shouldn't cost too much, I was just
panicking when we realised that it would have to come down.

Thanks for you help.

Siggy

We pay around £350 a day for a good team of 3. They should be able to chip
and remove the rubbish and the wood if
you don't want it. Should do it in a day or not much more. Check their
insurance and if poss speak to recent
clients. Fixed price jobs tend to come in more pricy than paying by the
day.

Insurance. Our local broker, "You name it, we cover it" cannot get
insurance at any premium
for a qualified tree surgeon to use a chain saw at any height off the
ground!
Insurance companies consider it too risky. This may trickle down to surgeons
only doing
a single cut at ground level to fell a tree!

Dave
who couldn't believe the premium and restrictions

"Dave Painter" wrote in message
...
Insurance. Our local broker, "You name it, we cover it" cannot get
insurance at any premium
for a qualified tree surgeon to use a chain saw at any height off the
ground!
Insurance companies consider it too risky. This may trickle down to surgeons
only doing
a single cut at ground level to fell a tree!

istr seeing somewhere it's down to about 2 specialist companies who insure arborists & they might be having second
thoughts.

Rod

The message
from (Simon Avery) contains these words:

/snip/

Tricky with that size and with rotten boles. We kept a big sthil just
for those sorts of jobs with a 5'6" bar imported from America (not a
fun thing to start on a cold day, and if you stuffed it in the dirt we
were made to sharpen in on our own time - 12' of chain takes a lot of
setting and checking to sharpen so it cuts straight). I've seen a guy
use that saw 30' when taking down a wind-damaged scots pine at
Greenaway House (Agatha Christie's place nr Torbay) - quite funny
since he couldn't brace himself, the torque from the saw kept pushing
him away from the tree.

In the early days when we only had the Pioneer, one man would swarm up
the tree, rig up a block and tackle and then we'd start the saw on the
ground and hoist it to him. Later we got a twelve inch McCulloch and
another about the same size - can't remember the make. Later we bought a
little Stihl that could be waved about with gay abandon.

RH Because there was nowhere to take them down in one go we
RH (about five of us) spent four days taking them down from the
RH tops downwards.

Definately a slow job, and not one you can rush. Need a good bloke on
the ropes, both above and on the ground too. Seen quite a few near-
misses from a manic climber, and more from an inexperienced
groundsman. TBH, I'm quite glad I got out of that line of work.

Quite. We operated from about 1956 until a few years ago - no-one likes
to admit that they're getting past it! We still have most of the
equipment and do the odd easy job, mainly out of nostalgia. We are
spread out over most of East Anglia now, so getting a quorum is the most
difficult bit.

In all that time we never had an accident. Some hair-raising moments,
and some really funny tales resulting from certain jobs. And some good
stands of woodland we've planted in the past.

RH Our charge was one thousand five hundred pounds, but that
RH was thirty years ago. The nearest quote he had to ours was
RH three thousand, and one company wanted ten thousand.

Eek. It's amazing the difference - I'm pretty sure a lot of companies
take one look, think "Bugger that!" and put in a silly quote because
they don't want the job.

Oh, I'm sure that's right. It was a hooter of a job, and more so because
we had to travel about twenty miles to get to it. We didn't really want
the job either, but the householder was a friend of one of the
partners.....

--
Rusty http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/tqt.htm
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