Introduction
When you have a fallen tree in your backyard it’s very difficult to remove it. That’s why you need to search for “tree service near me“ and hire professionals for the job. However, every contractor or tree service company isn’t the same. The best have numerous complex machines and equipment for the job. Let’s check out the equipment that a professional tree company should use.
The Equipment
- Safety Gear – While safety gear is the least complex gear owned by professional tree companies, they are crucial for the job. No one wants their employees to get hurt during the job. This doesn’t just affect the company, but also you, the client. You don’t want someone to get hurt on your property since it may lead to legal issues, and you may be held liable.
While reputed tree service companies always have insurance and train their employees well to avoid such situations, you want the tree service company to not be negligent with safety and equip their employees with the best gear. This includes helmets, gloves, face shields, earmuffs, safety glasses, and work boots.
- Wedges and axes – Axes have existed for thousands of years. While the ancient ax was made by chipping away stone into a crude sharp triangle, the modern ax is much more sophisticated. When tree removers have trouble with a chainsaw, they prefer to use axes for cutting small branches and other such sections of the tree. Since they are sharp and dangerous tools, landscapers and tree service professionals handle them with extreme care and caution.
Wedges are also an important tool for feeling trees. They aren’t used for cutting trees. Instead, they are used for leverage so that the tree can fall in the desired direction. For small trees, landscapers don’t use wedges. However, they are necessary for medium and large trees. After the trunk is partially cut with a chainsaw, a wedge is inserted in the gap before the felling cut is done. After placing wedges in the gap, hammers are often used to knock those wedges deeper for greater leverage.
- Chainsaw – Chainsaw is the most used equipment in a tree service company’s arsenal. Without it, most jobs would be impossible. Chainsaws are usually powered by gas or electricity. gas-powered chainsaws are usually more powerful than electric chainsaws and offer a lot of mobility. On the other hand, powerful electric chainsaws come with extension cords that can become a hassle and a risk at dangerous job sites. However, with the improvement and evolution of lithium-ion batteries, electric chainsaws are getting more powerful.
Chainsaws have numerous sharp metal teeth that can cut through trunks and branches with ease. However, this equipment also needs to be handled with extreme care. There is a certain way the chainsaw needs to be lifted and there are protocols for handling the chainsaw and lifting it up while climbing trees. All that’s done to ensure the safety of the worker and minimize accidents as much as possible. That’s why chainsaws are completely different tools in the hands of professionals.
- Climbing tools – One of the riskiest tasks for workers of a tree service company is climbing the tree. If a tree service company operates at a large scale or if the area of operation has certain regulations, they may use a powered access platform. These platforms allow workers to climb heights while standing on a platform that is raised up by hydraulic arms. However, a lot of tree service companies who are new to the business or lack capital can’t afford to get powered access platforms.
That means the workers need to climb the trees in the old risky way. These companies use lots of tree rigging ropes, ladders, pulleys, arborist blocks, rigging plates, snap hooks, rigging rings, and other such climbing and rigging equipment. However, that shouldn’t be a cause for concern since trained, experienced and skilled workers use those tools very efficiently. They use them to climb trees safely, cut branches, lift or lower tools, and get back to the ground. Experienced workers in a tree service company are so smooth with these tools, that they make it seem easy.
- Woodchipper – A woodchipper is as essential as climbing tools for any tree service company. While moving a tree, debris needs to be removed and that’s where this machine comes in. a woodchipper ‘eats’ branches, sticks, twigs, and trunks and turns them into mulch. These kinds of machines come in various sizes and a tree service company gets one that fits their scale of business.
For instance, there are brush tree chippers that are smaller and require the trunk to be cut into several sections before it can be inserted into the machine. Brush chippers can usually take up logs as big as 18 inches. On the other hand, there are large chippers that can swallow a tree whole and turn it into mulch within minutes. These chippers can easily accept logs that are 30 inches or more in diameter.
- Stump grinders – Stump grinders are the most heavy-duty machine after large woodchippers in this sector. As the name suggests, they help to remove roots and stumps after the tree has been hacked down. While stump grinders can help you make all traces of the old tree disappear, you can’t just plant a new tree immediately.
You need to wait for a year or two. That’s because sawdust left in the hole sucks out nitrogen from the surrounding soil and inhibits plant growth. Even after a year or two, the soil at that place needs to be treated with nitrogen-rich fertilizers before you can grow plants. Stump grinders are great since they don’t allow the old stump to rot and spread diseases to other plants.
Conclusion
As you can see, a professional tree service company uses a wide array of tools and equipment. It helps them to tackle complex and challenging tasks and provide high-quality service. If you need to hire a tree service company for your property, you can search for “tree service near me”.
