A big oak a few steps from the house had started dropping branches. We took it down in sections with a climber, a 60-foot bucket truck and negative rigging.
This oak stood about 100 feet tall, a few steps from the back of a Green Hills home and its patio. It had recently dropped some big branches on its own, and the homeowners wanted it down before the next one landed on the house.
We saw the same thing on a lot of big oaks around Nashville after this year’s very hot, dry September. When a hardwood dries out, the wood gets more brittle, and heavy limbs can break under their own weight.
Big wood this close to a house is often a crane job. We did this one without a crane, so nothing heavy could be allowed to free-fall anywhere near the roof. That meant planning every cut and every lowering line before the saw started.
We brought in our climber and a 60-foot bucket truck. The crew took the limbs off first, then worked the trunk down from the top in sections.
Near the house, every log was negative-rigged: tied off before the cut, then lowered on a rope system instead of dropping. We kept lowering sections this way until the trunk was short enough to drop safely into open ground. Two ground crew ran the ropes and cleared wood as it came down, a skid steer moved the heavy trunk pieces, and the wood left the property in two loads.
The oak came down with no damage to the house or the yard. The trunk measured about 40 inches across at the cut.
We had planned to grind the stump, but the homeowners decided to keep it as an outdoor table, so we left a clean, flat cut instead.
Every tree is different – height, trunk size, access and what sits underneath all shape the plan. Tanner looks at every tree in person and gives a free written estimate on site. For a general range first, try our tree removal cost calculator.
We will look at the tree, the access and what sits underneath, then give you a written plan and price. Free estimates across Nashville and Middle Tennessee.
