cleanup w/ tree trimming...price?

[Expert Lawns]

to make this short and sweet...

one time fall clean up: 2 hours, solo = $145.00


customer wants 4 trees trimmed. they are 20 ft high. he wants 8ft taken off the top, and then rounded off or shaped. i will be purchasing one of those pruners with the long pole and a string on it (name?). i've never done this before, i've helped with other LCO's that i've worked for in the past. how do i price this? it will be done same time as the cleanup. thanks guys

ps. good price for the cleanup? i've only done one other one time cleanup

[MATTHEW]

You didn't mention what type of tree it was, but my guess is that you will take much more than 2 hours (for everything) without experience.

You should just price it by the hour unless you are sure how long it will take. Then you have your dumping fees to consider.

Good luck.

[darryl gesner]

I believe you're talking about a pole pruner. Without info on what type of trees we're talking about, I doubt that anyone here is going to be able to be able to help you. Topping trees is generally not recommended.

As far as the clean-up price, it looks fine if you can live with $72.50/hr.

[Runner]

You better be careful on the customers request of tree trimming and know exactly what they want. I don't know, I just don't like the sound of this "8 ft. taken off the top" thing. Whatever kind of tree it is. Just remember one thing in tree trimming. Disposal. There is a simple rule of thumb when it comes to tree trimming. What ever you are going to cut off, is TWICE as much material when it hits the ground. It's aMAZing how these branches grow on their way down to the ground.:blob4:

[Art Stubbs handy 58]

If you are going to use a manual pole prunner, try around 6-8 hrs to top and shape plus clean up and disposal. I dont think i could that with my powered prunner in that time, not sure what type of trees but like runner said, double the amount that you think when your looking up at it from the ground, sounds like more around $500-$700 job.. Call your local Rental shop and ask if they have a powered prunner for rent , that would save you a lot of time and back ache... Good Luck with your bid

[AielLandscaping]

i'm not an expert on trees and when i get a job like this, i tell the customer up front that i'm not an arborist and i don't know nearly as much about pruning as they would. but i can cut a tree down, or take it back really far to the point where everything starts to branch out. i'm sure that you could kill a tree doing this, but i haven't killed one yet. i've tried just cutting off the highest stuff with a pole pruner and from my experience it always takes twice as long as i thought it would. another thing you want to consider is can you leave the limbs in the street for the city to pick up? or do you have to haul it? if you have to haul it, this in my opinion is the fastest (maybe not the smartest, or safest) way to get the limbs to a dump site. first cut build up the sides of your trailer, and/or truck bed. second cut off as big of branches as you can. get as big of pieces into the trailer or truck as you can. you'll have pieces sticking out all over the place. when you think you can't possibly fit anymore in, and wish that you'd cut it up first, jump in with limbs and use your chainsaw and cut 3 or 4 times across the bed from side to side, then once or twice down the middle. be careful not to cut too deep so you don't cut the bed. then jump up and down on the pile. repeat. you'll be surprised how much you can fit and how fast it goes. if you can leave it in the street, but it has to be in 6' length or something like that, pile everything up, then cut the piles all the way through every 6'. but i'd figure 2 hours per tree without having seen them.

[Expert Lawns]

thanks for all the info. i have a lot to think about. as for the kind of trees they are. i'm not sure, all i know is none of the limbs are too thick. a the most, 2.5-3 inches. i know clean up can be a PITA. i will definetly price accordingly, including disposal fees.

hey runner, where do you dump in flint? i usually dump off of court street, across from Consumers Power. know where that is? pretty cheap. they charge by the yard, so your idea is goood......chop em up and smash em down.

again, thanks for all the imput

[AVRECON]

I'm experienced in this. Just do it fast and get it done right. It's a tree not a pansey. It will not die (in most cases) this time of the year. And you will be fine. Always figure a few more hrs more than you would expect on a job like this because it ALWAYS takes longer than you would expect it to.

[Runner]

Originally posted by Expert Lawns

hey runner, where do you dump in flint? i usually dump off of court street, across from Consumers Power. know where that is? pretty cheap. they charge by the yard, so your idea is goood......chop em up and smash em down.
again, thanks for all the imput

Occasionally I will dump over there, if it's more deamable to do that, rather than drive back up here. If it's just one load though, I bring it home, and dump it in back. Anymore, I burn once or twice a year. (large property) As far as cutting it up alot to save on dumping fees, it depends on two factors. First, what can you hold? If it's really necessary to crosscut it for capacity, then by all means. I guess it's what you're hauling it with that can also determine that. If your vehicle dumps, than it doesn't really matter, but if it doesn't, don't cut it up anymore than you really have to, especially to save at the dump, because the extra time it will take you to unload may outweigh the extra cost of a bit more bulk. Also, if you do cross cut it, (I do several times while loading, and I can haul aLOT of material then,) try not to cut the very bottom branches, and make sure you have some good 3-4 inchers under there. This will allow you to just lift up on the front (after you get some off the top) and just flip the whole load out. BIG time saver!;)

[soccer coach]

Expert, Don't take this the wrong way but you need to call an expert and stick to what you know. 2-3" branches with a pole saw? Don't know what kind of tree? You could damage the tree to the point of death. A good mature tree will cost you thousands to replace when they sue you. :( Do yourself and the professionals a favor and pass on this one. If you insist do you have all the equipment OHSA requires? MOst tree companies don't get out of bed for less than a grand to keep it in mind.

[Expert Lawns]

Runner: that was some good input. i don't have the area to burn, i have to dump. kinda sucks

soccer coach: i have a friend that worked for a tree surgeon for 6 years. he will accompony me. he has multiple tools that i don't have. plus, having 2 people makes it safer. he's there to teach me things....i'm there to learn. with the both of us, we'll be ok. i really wanted to do it myself, but i think for the first time i'll take one for the team and just learn a thing or two. nevertheless, i'll be ready for the next job.

do you guys get many jobs like this? especially you runner. i'm trying to get a feel for this service.i'd really like to add it to my list of services next year.

thanks again

[RedOak]

Load the smaller stuff on first, cross cut, then load on the heaviest limbs. That usually packs in the load well. Are these trees ornamental or soft wood, maybe something like crape myrtles? In that case it would probably be ok to top them.

[Expert Lawns]

Here's what kind of trees i'm working with:


Crimson Maple, Sunburst Locus, Old Apple Tree, Green Ash

none are taller than 20-25ft. again, he wants about 8ft taken off and then shaped. i'm trying to find an appropriate price for this, and if i can do it alone, without any heavy duty ''tree surgeon'' type tools. i'm already doing a fall cleanup for him, and have that price figured out. i will be doing the trimming with the cleanup, so no need to charge extra. (mobilization, gas, etc). any input will help. thanks to those who already posted
:p

[Runner]

Boy, you are talking some expensive trees, here. Yes, I do some trimming and thinning, but this much off the top, I don't know.... I'd even be a little leary on this one. They will then probably have to be headed back for symetry.

[nu83]

Your not going to make any money on this, bid much higher.Think about risk reward, you are talking about walking away with 50 bucks for yourself for possibly 5 hours of work, then figure all that could go wrong, killing the tree or the tree falling on someone/ something. Theres a reason tree trimming companies charge so much.

[awm]

that much off of the 20 ft apple tree and shaping gets the money u mentioned. it gonna be a big job friend.that much per tree mite be more like it .

[Fantasy Lawns]

Sounds like alot more work than 2 hours

I can't say for other states .... but in Fla .... when one get's insurance .... one of the things they ask is if you do tree work n the premium is much more .....

We sub out tree work ..... so if you do work n something happens they won't cover it unless you have the specified coverage ... not that you don't have this ....

In other words our million dollar liability insurance only covers work related to lawn maintenance .... not tree work or spray service as these are specific extras

Is this the same in other areas ??

[darryl gesner]

Expert - No offense, but I think you're biting off more than you can chew if you do it by yourself. It doesn't sound like you've done this kind of work before. Are you prepared to climb these trees, because you may have to in order to do it right. You need to learn how to do this kind of work safely, properly, and understand what is best for the life of the tree. That's why tree work is so expensive!

BTW - Apple wood is hard, and doesn't cut well with pole pruners unless it's really small stuff.

Why not have your friend, the former tree surgeon, go and take a look at the job with you? He probably knows your abilities better than we do, so he could either advise you how to do it yourself or give you guidance in hiring a pro to help.

I've got a couple of climbers I work with. I used to work as a ground man for a climber, so they will let me do the ground work and clean-up. They just do the tricky stuff and drop the big stuff for me.

Fantasy lawns - Yeah, my insurance is the same way, but they go by % of the kind of work you do. I can do small tree take downs/removals or pruning as far as they are concerned, as long as it's only a minor part of my business. Here in CT you have to have your arborist license (which I don't) in order to work on live trees. I've got to admit that I will lop off a low branch here and there for customers, but I don't think they're going fine me for that. As long as I don't hold myself out as a tree professional and advertise as such, I've been advised that it's O.K.

[Expert Lawns]

the two hours i mentioned was only for the fall clean up. has nothing to do with the tree trimming. i think after reading all the posts, its better to work under someone's guidance for the first few times.

also, checking into the insurance would be wise (thanks fantasy)