Preparing and Safety Precautions
So, you’ve decided that hiring a tree cutting crew is way too expensive for you, and have chosen to take matters into your own hands. There are many safety measures that you should take in order to make sure everything goes smoothly starting with the gear that is required before you even pick up a tool. Safety goggles, a hard hat, gloves, boots and jeans are the things that absolutely need to be worn before you pick up a chainsaw or an ax and go to work. All these insure that you won’t be affected by the dust or any flying piece of wood that may fly off from the tree.
Investigate your surroundings
Now that you’ve got all the proper clothing and tools, take a look at the area around you. When figuring out which way you’d like to have the tree fall it’s important to know that the tree you're cutting is probably bigger than you think. You can try performing the “ax trick” which allows you to estimate where the top of the tree will fall, and be sure to clear everything out of the way before you start cutting. It’s also important to know where to get out the way when the tree is falling. The safest place to go is a 45 degree angle away from the direction that the tree is falling. Size up the tree like a boxing opponent. If you notice the tree swaying a certain direction or notice that there are a lot more branches on one side than another, this could skew the direction in which you think it will fall. The last thing you want is for a tree to fall toward your house a shatter that vinyl replacement window you just had installed by Wallside Windows.
Timber!
Now you’re finally ready to cut that tree down. You need to perform a notch cut which is a triangle like cut into the side of the trunk of the side that you want it to fall on. Next, wedge the opposite side of the trunk where you performed the notch cut. Simply just saw a line into the tree not too deep to stick the wedge which will help the tree fall in the direction where you have the notch cut. It’s important that you should always have someone helping you at all times. Especially, when you’re performing the cut so they can have a constant eye on the tree and making sure it’s falling in the right direction.
It’s important to know that even though you’ve taken all the precautionary measures you can, and you’re sawing away at that tree, you really never know when it’s going to start falling. Don’t panic because you’ve done all you can to make sure the tree will fall gracefully to the ground with a loud bang. If you do happen to break a window, remember to contact Wallside Windows because that’s where you can get the best vinyl replacement windows.
