That morning I took down a 90 foot dead oak in a tight backyard in Portland

Last fall I had this job in southeast Portland where a huge old oak was rotting from the inside. The backyard was maybe 12 feet wide with fences on both sides and a garage right next to it. I spent a whole morning rigging ropes and dropping it in sections with a friend on the ground. What made it stand out was how everything clicked - no close calls, the customer brought us hot coffee, and I finished by noon. Has anyone else had a job go so smooth you still think about it months later?

2 comments

2 Comments

kais6719d ago

Wait, was it really that smooth or did you just get lucky with a simple tree? A dead oak that size in a tight spot usually has hidden rot or branches that snap without warning, so one coffee run doesn't make it a perfect job. I've seen too many "easy" removals turn into near disasters when the wood fails in the wrong spot.

phoenixp9019d ago

You been burned before or what? Every dead oak is different, that's just part of the job. Sometimes you get a clean one where the rot is obvious from the bark and you can plan around it. Other times you find the soft spot during a cut and adjust on the fly. Coffee run doesn't make it a perfect job but experience helps you see the trouble before it happens.