Taking down a tree successfully and securely requires some necessary steps. To cut down a tree safely, you need to have a plan, think of safety, and have an escape route. Below are some useful tips for cutting down a tree without having to run into any issue.
Get A Safety Gear
Getting safety gear is the first move you need to make when cutting down a tree. Safety must be taken very seriously. Therefore, some of these safety gears are essential when you need to cut down a tree.
It would help if you had a helmet that would protect you from some falling branches. But, at the same time, you take down the tree because this is the primary cause of injuries while cutting trees, safety glasses to prevent dust from getting into your eye, an earmuff to protect your ears and eyes, and Kevlar chaps to protect your legs from logs.
Choose The Best Log Splitter
You need to determine the kind of log splitter to use by the size of the tree you intend to split. For example, if you are going to cut down a tree that is so thick, then you need to choose the best log splitter to make sure you are on the safer end.
Choosing the best log splitter does not really take much thinking. First, you have to determine how much it weighs, if it would be easier to handle and how to maintain it. There are diverse kinds of log splitters, such as those powered by gas, electricity, and the manual, and then there are also the three-point log splitter and the skid steer log splitter.
Make An Estimate Of Your Fell Zone
When you are about to feel taller trees, you need to ensure there are no obstacles around them or even overhead wires. You can estimate where exactly the tree would land after it’s being cut down by using the “ax handle style.”
To use the “ax handle style,” you have to hold the ax handle a little bit distant from you, close one of your eyes, and move closer to the tree until the treetop is equal to the bottom of the tree. Put your feet close to the point where the treetop will land. This is an estimate so give a little more space if something around it can fall on!
Establishment Of Lean
It would help if you established the lean of the tree in the position you would like to place it. First, you need to find the center at which this tree is facing. To establish the lean, you have to look at the treetop, make it on both sides, find its center, and then plum it into the ground. Then, from about 90 degrees, you need to see where this tree leans towards.
Escape Route
You need to move away for about 15 ft away from the lean point of the tree while you still control your movement and make sure no branches or dangerous objects are lying around.
Sometimes things don’t really go as planned, so you need to take extra precautions by moving as far and fast as you can from the tree before it reaches the ground.
Create A Hinge And Face Notch
To create a hinge on a tree, you have to make a notch in the tree of about 70-degrees, and it must be facing the lean point of the tree. The face notch takes about 80% of the tree’s diameter.
It would help cut the tree from the top and beneath, creating a 70-degree notch in the tree. The hinge is about 10% of the tree’s diameter right behind the notch.
Establish A Cut from The Back Of The Tree
The back cut needs to be made right at the corner of the notch or slightly above it. The back cut could either be a plunge cut or a bore cut using the wedge. Before the fall, you need to be sure that you have already planned your escape route correctly.
In conclusion, make your way to the escape route you planned and then analyze the result if the tree felling was successful and according to plan. But with the use of these basic steps above, cutting down that tree would be a lot easier.
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