Felling With Precision
Felling a tree is a science and can be an incredibly risky process without the proper experience and tools. Heavy material, precarious leans, unknown condition of a tree's heartwood, falling branches and barber-chairs; there is a reason that logging/timber felling is considered the most dangerous job and should be left to the professionals! Crown Down brings a practiced hand to the stump for clean cuts, precise measurements and accountability for property to land trees exactly where they belong.
Measure Twice, Especially When You Can Only Cut Once
Felling operations in urban forestry settings (or anywhere near property susceptible to damage) are often conducted in tight quarters with minimal margin for error. When you only get one shot in a process like felling, assurance that the tree will not only go in the direction you want it to, but will also fit in the space you are dropping it in to and that the impact will not damage property is critical.
Using a Notch® Cross Sight to determine tree height and wedge lift requirements to fell the target tree in a desired direction.
Considering All the Variables
Every decision while engaging in tree felling operations is made with an eye toward safety. A thorough inspection of the tree is conducted using tools and techniques to ensure that the structural integrity of the tree permits felling and that no limbs will become bound, stopping or adversely affecting the path of the tree's fall. Measurements of the tree are taken to determine drop zone length and safety margins are built in to every step of the process by allowing for extra room in all directions. Crown Down's philosophy is that If the tree can't be felled safely, it should not be felled at all!
Using a plumb bob to check direction of lean of a tree over a septic field.
Protecting Your Property
We aim to leave your property better than it was found, 100% of the time! Crown Down utilizes a systematic approach to ensuring that unseen hazards to your property are identified even in less than obvious scenarios. When a tree is identified as a candidate for felling, it is identified as such in the written estimate and is always subject to approval before work ever begins!
Cribbing with logs to keep a tree that was fallen across a driveway from damaging the asphalt.
Advanced Felling Techniques
Crown Down employs an arsenal of advanced felling techniques that have been practiced hundreds of times. Split-Level notching, Sizwheels, Soft and Swinging Dutchmans, Pushing, Cripple Cuts, Tree Folding, Felling Against Natural Leans and more. There are no shortage of tools in our tool box!
Sparing the owners of this tree the headache of cleanup by successfully falling this log in to the woods using a swinging Dutchman.
The Stump Never Lies
The hallmarks of an expert feller are always where the cuts are made; a stump's characteristics after a tree has been felled will reveal the experience (or lack thereof) that simply can't be faked. Undercuts and back cuts that meet perfectly, clean hinges and a distinct absence of property damage are all indications of a properly executed fall. Crown Down is proud to claim every stump we leave behind.
A perfectly sized hinge on a large poplar stem during a contract climbing job.
Is it "Feller" or "Faller?"
"A tree feller can fell a tree but a tree feller can't fell a fallen tree if it has already been felled and they should not be considered a faller unless they themselves are falling."
~Nate Hardy, 2021 Crown Down Tree Feller Training
The dictionary definitions:
-Faller (n): "One who falls."
-Feller (n): "One who fells trees. A lumberjack."
-Fell (v): "To make something fall. Especially to chop down a tree."
When is it appropriate to use felling as a method of removal?
Felling is a removal process that can either be the most dangerous way to remove a tree or the safest depending on 4 main factors:
1.) The available space to fell the tree in to.
2.) The condition of the tree.
3.) The factor's working against the desired direction you wish the tree to fall (eg. lean, terrain, crown weight, etc.)
4.) The experience of the feller.
Budget is only ever a factor when determining what constitutes an acceptable degree of damage to turf but In all cases, the factors above will take precedence.
Is felling a tree cheaper than climbing?
In most circumstances, yes. Typically, there is less labor involved with simply putting the tree on the ground but especially when clean up is required, crashing a tree in to a wood line full of briars can result in more work than if the tree were climbed and rigged out. The arborist that conducts your Free Estimate will give you options and make recommendations with respect to your budget while accomplishing the goals you set for your property.
Are you insured for this type of tree work?
Yes! This is one of the most under-asked questions in our field. It is absolutely imperative that Clients and Client-Contractors verify that the tree-service that works on their property have the correct types and amounts of insurance with no limitations or restrictions on working at height or the height of the tree itself.
A LANDSCAPER'S GENERAL LIABILITY POLICY USUALLY DOES NOT COVER TREE FELLING INCIDENTS IF THE TREE IS OVER 15 FEET!
Crown Down will happily provide a certificate of insurance (COI) to any client that requests it and a COI will be provided as standard for subcontract agreements.