Photo’s
After chipping branches in The Basin on Mt Dandenong, we came back to Cockatoo and fell some trees from a house renovation.
The small trees we felled in Cockatoo were just the right size to fit into the backyard. When falling trees it is really important to understand where they are leaning, and how the tree will behave as it departs the stump.
On many of the trees I fell today, I used rope and tackle to ensure that in the event of a mistake, or failure in the hinge, the tree would still fall in the intended direction. Ensuring that good distance is made from the tree by the use of escape routes is essential. Cockatoo, like Emerald, Avonsleigh, Clematis, Belgrave and other towns in Cardinia Shire – has a vast mix of tree species. Sometimes the tree can be felled, other times the tree must be climbed and lopped.
Nasty storm damage tree removal in Belgrave a few weeks back. A large Pin Oak (Quercus palustris) had blown out of the ground during a storm that swept through Belgrave.
The tree uprooted and fell downhill through a neighbours roof. There was over 15ton in the trunk alone, and access to the property was particularly tricky given the steepness of the terrain, the season and the sheer volume of tree to be cleaned up.
The tree had fallen heavily onto the Belgrave neighbours roof.
The first task was to stabilise the tree to prevent further damage from being done. We used 3/4″ Steel cable to prevent the tree from moving further. This was pre tensioned with a tree winch or tirfor.
Using the cable, we pulled the stump back into its hole
Tree removal in Belgrave can be tricky given the terrain and sheer size of many of the trees that have grown at the base of the Dandenong Ranges. We used our trees jacks to take the weight of the tree off the house.
A rope access system was installed to ensure work could commence as safely as possible. We then removed any tree branches not touching the roof. Jacked the tree up some more, giving us some more clearance. Removed larger branches, working our way back to the gutter. Once we were clear of the roof, we could easily use the excavator to lift heavy wood sections that were sitting in free space, and load them to go off-site.
We pulled the stump back into the hole (after clearing the stump hole of mud!), and used a stump grinder to get rid of it.
- Stabilise The Tree to Prevent Further Damage
- Reduce the weight of the tree on the structure
- Remove branches and chip them into mulch
- Remove Tree Wood from the Belgrave site
- Return stump to its hole
- Grind the stump out
I’ve uploaded some photos of the Belgrave Tree Removal, by the time we had removed many cubic meters of wood from the site the photos became less frequent, but you’ll get the idea.
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- Using the cable, we pulled the stump back into its hole
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- The tree had fallen heavily onto the Belgrave neighbours roof.
An emergency job came up where a tree had fallen onto the roof of a house in Cockatoo. The tree had caused structural damage to the house, and the pitch of the roof made access quick difficult.
When we work close to the edge of roofs, or the pitch is too great to work safely on we use rope access systems to keep us safe.
We used our heavy lift tree jacks to lift the tree from the roof, allowing us to handle the tree under control.
The tree had tipped out of the ground after some very heavy rain, landing on the roof of the house. We stabilise the stem so it can’t slide any further then take the weight off the roof.
All the branches were then chipped and the mulch taken away.
Had a recently lightning struck tree removal to do in The Patch. The bark was starting to fall off, but the tree was still reasonably sound. Trees that are struck by lightning rarely seem to survive, and sadly they are often trees of good stature. The lightning will often hit the tall dominant trees. This was no exception.
Anyone that knows The Patch area knows how steep the ground is, we have special techniques for sectioning the tree down so that blocks don’t go flying off down hill into houses and property. Sometimes this includes the use of ropes, other times barriers and catch-rigging.
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- Graeme blocks the tree down with the winter sun throwing spectacular lighting on the sawdust
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- Graeme out on a limb, cutting the tree down peice by peice.
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- Graeme gets to the top of the tree to set some rigigng and safety lines for removing the tree.
Be very wary of well meaning arboricultural reports and opinions on the health of trees. Defect inside of trees is difficult to spot and often the opinions expressed are not based on experience of tree removals and storm damage work.
The recent spate of jobs in the Dandenong Ranges has left us with some ugly examples of tree failure.
If you have concerns about a trees declining health, seek independent opinions that are not driven by a desire to maintain the tree, remove the tree or do nothing.
As a company the specialise if tree removal and tree care, we often decline opportunity to assess tree health. It is a conflict of interest, because in most cases work will need to be done.
Carefully consider where the opinion is coming from when you seek advice on your tree. Some species of trees decay very quickly, and after 12 months of rotting the decay may become so bad the removal is dangerous and expensive. The costs of dealing with these kinds of trees in the long term are rarely considered by those promoting habitat retention.
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- after sectioning down this mountain ash, the ants nest was obvious. from the outside it was just a lump.
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- This tree was deemed safe, the large hollow ran for 50′ and was on the tension side of the tree.
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- a pile of wood from the defect tree showing the extend of decay. in peppermints this decay is quite rapid and soon becomes dangerous to climb.
Removed a considerably large Blackwood in Clematis recently, every so often you come across these which have survived longer than the species normally does.
The tree had been damaged and was over hanging a house and power line, in the photo below we are lowering off a large limb.
This kind of technical tree removal is helped by years of experience working in the Emerald, Cockatoo and Belgrave areas.
If you need:
- Emerald Tree Removal
- Emerald Tree Pruning
- Emerald Tree Lopping
- Emerald Tree Care
- Emerald Tree Service
Give us a call on our tree removal hotline, and we would love to help you out!
Angus and Graeme work together to remove a large blackwood over the top of a carport in Emerald.
P’n'F Travel Towers gave us a hand doing some tree removals in Cockatoo today. There were three dead trees to be cut down, all but one was too dangerous to climb.
If you are thinking about getting a tree cut down at your property, the cost of the job is affected by the complexity of the tree. If the tree has been dead for a long time, climbing the tree can be slow due to the increase risk. If you have a large enough driveway, a suitably sized travel tower can be used to help expedite the process. Contrary to common belief, when this is possible, the cost of the removal can be lower. This may give you the customer additional budget to have things like chipping done.
The exception to this is when companies are only interested in doing a particular type of work i.e. tree climbing OR travel tower removal. As a customer, it is hard to discern the difference but this is why it is worth exploring the companies expertise in your particular job. The size of the tree being removed or pruned, is NOT always proportional to the price!
Sherbrooke Tree Service has expertise in both tree climbing and travel tower removals. We take pride in applying the right tree removal technique, to the right job.
- The first tree was a tall, vertical and very dead tree. To remove we set the cherry picker up, and blocked the tree down, from top to bottom.
- The second dead tree was tall, with a multi-stem leaning over the absorption trench.
- Using ropes and tree cutting techniques, we removed the tree to ground level without damage to garden or absorption area.
- The tree was so dead that climbing would have led to catastrophic failure, using a travel tower was a cheap and safe option
- The third dead tree was hanging over a carpark. It was a wide spreading, heavy leaning tree.
- Climbing was possible, but suitable high points were scarce and progress through the tree’s canopy would have been slow.
- Cutting the tree down with the tower allowed us to drop blocks into a safe zone quickly
- After removing the three trees from the house in Cockatoo, we moved up the road to remove another two large trees.
- The size of the trees meant climbing would be slow
- Since we had a large driveway to use, setting up the travel tower was ideal
- We striped the branches and limbs from the tree, and returned later for the trunk
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- Graeme McMahon from Sherbrooke Tree Service and Paul from P’n'F sets up the 150′ travel
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- Paul backs the travel tower through the gates of the next tree removal
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- Graeme heads up to remove the dead tree over the driveway
We had another emergency tree removal job today. A small tree had uprooted from the ground and was leaning out over the neighbours house and water tanks in Mt Evelyn.
Mt Evelyn is in the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, not far from
- Monbulk
- Silvan
- Montrose
- Wandin
- Kalorama
We couldn’t tell what exactly was holding the tree up – obviously it was branches, but by themselves they were not really strong enough to hold the tree in place.
The main priority on these kinds of jobs is getting the tree stabilised so it can fall no further. During the main storm damaged tree season, this can be difficult to achieve; it is darker sooner, often wet or rainy making everything heavier and more slippery to handle. In this particular case we had two strong high points, reasonably close to the tree that was tipping out of the ground. We also had enough daylight left to make the job not require extra lighting. There are some photos of the tree being rigged up and stabilised.
If you need help with trees that cannot be done by emergency tree services such as CFA or SES, we have the equipment and expertise to stabilise the tree.
- Storm Damaged Trees
- Emergency Tree Service
- Confined Space Removals
- Complex Tree Rigging
- Stabilisation and Sectional Dismantling
If you need a quote for your trees call 03 5968 8041 or 0428 383 677.
We had an urgent tree removal to do today in Mt Evelyn. A tree had uprooted through the night and pulled the fence line with it. Fortunately no-one was walking along the footpath when it fell.
Often in wet weather, the increased amount of water in the ground allows the development of pools to occur in the root ball. As the tree moves in the wind, the roots hydraulic causing the dirt that holds the tree to be turned to mushy mud and pushed away. Over a few days this destabilises the tree and often leads to failure.
This tree was large enough to cause considerable damage to the fence line and surrounding garden. After chipping the branches and cut the tree into firewood and left the firewood and mulch for the home owner.
These kinds of tree removals are not unusual at this time of year, as trees tip out of the ground due to prolonged wind and rain. If you need your tree removed call us!
CONTACT US IF YOU NEED ASSISTANCE with storm damaged trees.
Emergency Storm Damage Tree work is our bag. We have access to a huge variety of rigging and stabilisation equipment to make storm damaged trees safe.
Sherbrooke Tree Service is turned to by contractors nationally for dangerous trees, storm damage and emergency works.
What makes us different?
We are a light weight, highly experienced organisation that has built a business around complex tree removal for over 35 years.
Our equipment surpasses many of the large tree organisation and the experience housed in our small crew is incomparable with most tree practitioners.
When a storm hits, our company is the goto for fast, safe response.
Trees on homes, caught up in other trees, splitting and tipping out of the ground are all part of what we do. We have access to heavy cables used in skyline operations that can lift whole trees, helicopters, tree jacks, slings and 50+ ton lifting pulleys. In extremely hazardous situations, we use explosives to remove or reduce the hazard to a manageable level.
What will it cost?
Cost varies significantly from job to job. Sometimes we cannot safely complete the job in the weather conditions, we decide this on each job. Often we can stabilise the job and make safe for completion in better weather and daylight.
We provides quotes prior to commencing any work, and can discuss with you the options available.
Cardinia Shire is where Sherbrooke Tree Service is based, servicing the surrounding shire councils like Yarra Ranges.
Tree lopping and maintenance on rural properties is quite common for us. The range of works is everything from pruning, weight reduction, canopy thinning and trimming, through to large scale tree removals, lopping, cutting and felling.
The job we completed last week in Upper Pakenham was for a semi-rural property needing a fence line cleared of trees. Under the 10/30 tree removal laws set out by DSE, we were able to move along the fence line removing problem trees, and pruning trees that satisfied the owners needs.
Managing the trees land owners have is preferable over large removals, as they form important wind breaks and green corridors. Our experience in clear fell logging allow us to easily handle large volumes of tree removals, however we always encourage careful consideration when performing drastic changes to the vegetation – once they’re gone you can’t put them back up again!
On this particular job, the land owner was happy to do the clean up, however we also provide tree clean-up services such as mulching and stacking for fire heaps.
We often do work on trees that are obstructing solar panels from receiving maximum sunlight, or satellite services. Sometimes the tree has grown toward the available light, other times the solar or satellite service was installed in a poor location. Most of the time the tree can be pruned and trimmed to allow good service.
Recently we completed a job for a new solar panel installation where a number of large trees were blocking out almost all of the available sun throughout the day. Trees are very good at doing this as their major source of energy is through photosynthesis – this makes them natural competitors for light.
When considering how you are going to manage the installation, it is important to consider the effects of performing tree works to the surrounding environment – not just the improvement of light!
By removing or heavily pruning trees your property has a higher exposure to wind, and is less protected from extreme weather. The shade that is normally cast over your house during the summer may be gone, increasing the energy cost of keeping cool. Increased wind flow can affect other trees which did not grow accustomed to high wind loading, potentially leading to failure. The wind can also reduce your homes ability to stay warm.
Do you have the required permits for the works to be done? By going ahead with unapproved tree work, you may be opening yourself up to liability from your local shire or neighbour.
If you have considered the environmental effects of canopy reduction of your trees, then we can help.
I’ve put a few photos of some recent work where a house extension had been planned, solar panels had just been installed and the owner was interesting in maximising the energy gained during the day.
His 11am solar input went from 260 kWh to 2800 kWh. Over 10 times!
With careful planning and analyse of your vegetation problem, we can trim, prune or remove the trees you require to improve your solar power system or satellite reception.
Yesterday Sherbrooke Tree Service held an informal tree rescue day, focusing on simple recovery systems for tree rescue and pole top rescue.
There was extensive discussion on the history, politics and development of various systems of rescue in both trees and industrial rope access, followed by practical demonstrations.
Joe Harris from into trees, and Alex Pinniger kindly spent some time contributing to the day. Fun was had.
Will post a video and some rescue material soon.
Did another job in Kinglake earlier today, removing fire killed and damaged trees from a block.
Hazard trees still posing a threat to the rebuilding effort in Kinglake and Marysville are carefully monitored for defects and future failures.
We removed a number of Blackwoods and Mountain Ash which hadn’t survived the fire, and pruned two Mountain Grey Gums.
Joe Harris from ‘into trees‘ assisted in the tree works. The photos were taking from Kinglake Central with the backdrop of Melbourne (DSE had a big burn on today, so it was a bit smokey around the state).
Removed a few trees at a property in Cockatoo earlier this week. One of the trees we lowered in one big piece.
The tree was a reasonably small tree, leaning over a house. With a suitable high point, it can often be more efficient to set large lines and lower the tree in a single piece.
It is safer because the climber spends less time in the tree, ground staff are not obligated to be underneath works.
This kind of rigging is fairly typical of tree work, especially in situations where simply falling the tree isn’t an option.
A major part of our business is advance stabilisation work for customers that have suffered storm damage or sudden branch failure.
We have an armada of heavy lifting, winches and technical rigging equipment to service trees that pose an immediate hazard to life or property.
After heavy wind and rain, trees can often fail in a variety of places. In most cases these are an expected part of the forest life cycle.
Unfortunately, other times these may be a significant asset or feature to a home owner.
When the tree fails, often the home owner will need to assess the hazards and potential costs of further degeneration.
While these decisions are being made, any immediate hazards needs to neutralised so that decisions are not made under pressure and haste.
We have access rigging devices such as heavy blocks and tackles, jacks, cables, zero stretch ropes, lowering devices through to cranes, helicopters, excavators, harvesters.
We’ve been doing some work with the Department of Sustainability and Environment in Marysville, cabling mature Mountain Ash away from a public access area.
We used tree jacks for many of the trees, others we set large cables and winched over with the DSE D4. The object of the works was to make safe a walking track that passed below many of these dead trees. Graeme has decades of experience in mature tree felling, which makes the task of assessing and planning for works a lot easier in the forest environment.
In many of the below photos you will notice most of the trees are felled from boards. These are used in steep terrain where it is difficult to safely work on the tree.
We had a mature Mountain Ash to fall recently in Sherbrooke. We had a set of tree jacks to test, so we set them up and tipped it over.
The tree was completely dead, and was standing up quite straight – wedging isn’t really practical in this situation.
Click on the pictures to see a larger version. We do tree removals all throughout Cardinia and the Yarra Ranges.
Whilst many of our photos are from Sherbrooke, Olinda, Mount Dandenong, Ferny Creek, Sassafras and Menzies Creek, we also work in the surrounding suburbs of
Emerald, Cockatoo, Avonsleigh, Clematis, Belgrave, Monbulk, Kallista, Upwey, Ferntree Gully, Tecoma, Yellingbo.
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Removed several dead trees from a home in Avonsleigh that were over the top of the children’s cubby house, neighbours clothes line, fence, garden, gazebo and an incinerator.
Nothing was damaged, and the job was done using our well adapted dead tree removal techniques.
