In article ,
"Bob F" wrote:



If you are going to do this, I'd attach the chain using a double connection,
one
high (a few feet above roof line), and one lower (a few feet below roof line,
on
a single chain. Have the chain running through a metal loop so it can slide,
then attach that loop with another chain to the vehicle. This should lessen
the
bending moment on the middle of the trunk and still give you good mechanical
advantage.

Thanks, that sounds good.


How long has the tree been dead? If it has been long, the risk of sudden
fracture is higher.

Don't know.


You could set up the rope system, apply pressure, then cut the base so that
the
pivot direction will be towards the truck, so that the tree is unlikely to
land
on the deck. I did this last summer with a living maple which was growing
less
than a foot from the rail of a deck several feet above the ground. (10-12"
base)
I also attacked a cable to the trunk above and below the cut (about 6 feet
up)
to keep the trunk from dropping after it fell, to protect a hydranga under
the
falling trunk. I tensioned the rope to the tree with a come-along attached to
a
tree 50 feet away using wide webbing to avoid damageing that tree.

I made the cut, not so far that it fell, but it started to make cracking
noises.
I then went out to the tensioned rope, grabbed it, and started rocking the
tree
by putting my weight onto the rope. A few pulls, and the tree fell over
exactly
as planned, and the trunk stopped above the hydranga. I cut away most of the
unsupporting branches, and propped the trunk up with a couple of the cut
branches. I then removed the cable holding the trunk up, and guided the trunk
pivoting on the supports as a few friends pulled the top of the tree away
from
the deck and over the hydranga. I then cut the remaining stump down to
rounds,
ending a few inches above the ground, and covered that with dirt to rot it
away
over the years.

If you don't absolutely need the roots pulled out of the ground, something
like
the above might be more likely to work if you know the basics about cutting
trees.

Thanks for the details. I may go this route if I don't end up hiring a
professional.