i have a huge oak tree in my backyard that's dangerous?

Question

if it's windy one day this tree drops these big logs,branches, sticks and i have 2 kids that play outside all the time. i had a estimate to remove it and they said it would be 6,000 to remove this thing. i don't have that kind of money. what else can you do? it sort of grows right over my house.

Answer 1

Before you cut it down get an arborists recommendation, it might just need a good pruning. A 4 ft. diameter white oak with no branches for the first 10 feet could be worth $6,000 as a veneer log. Loggers and sawmills are wary of logs in residential settings because of metal contamination. A small nail embedded deep in the tree could ruin a saw blade worth thousands. Many mills use a metal detector to prevent this, some use a portable detector before they even fell the tree. Even if your tree is condemned, someone with a band saw mill might be interested in cutting it for lumber, there blades are about $100. A third option is letting some 'woodchuckers' cut it for firewood, just be sure they have insurance.

Answer 2

I'd recommend having it topped. That will cost less than having it totally cut down. The price of $6,000 seems a little on the high side although it may not be if it is a very large oak and they are cutting it all the way down. To top it should be about a fifth to sixth of that price.

You don't need to top it every year. You might need to do that every 3-5 years or less.

You could possibly contact a logging company to cut it down due to the expensiveness of oak lumber. But normally logging companies are interested in more than just one tree.

Answer 3

Oak generally does not do that unless there is dry rot. One option is to investigate this aspect. Wind forces depend on the total foliage exposed to wind. Lopping off suspect rotten branches and heavy, judicious pruning may help.

Oaks are virtually heritage trees and quite valuable.

Please try to save this specimen. Protecting the children is the prime concern.

Can a second opinion be got? may be from a tree loving neighbour?

Answer 4

I would get a friend, service, or do it yourself. Rather than remove the whole thing, prune the tree. Cut off the limbs that have dead wood or are cracking, and try to cut off sections that would touch your house. If it's not too dangerous try to top it so it will stop growing taller.

You should probably do this at least once a year. Do it just before spring, before the sap rises, but so it isn't too long before the tree comes to life so it can heal itself after the amputations.