Power Company "Trimming"

[Frank_B]

First, here in southwestern Illinois, spring comes around in late March.  The forsythia are blooming now, many of the shrubs have leaves, and the buds on the apple trees are swelled.  Last February I recieved a card from the power company announcing they would be coming through to trim the right-of-way - they just did that three years ago and IMHO butchered quite a few of the trees.   

Well, I called the power company to talk about the fast turn around on trimming again (the last time they promised they only do this every five years), I was told they only use  licensed arborists, and they would be coming around in April. 

Is it a good idea to trim trees when they're budding out or have already formed leaves?  Shouldn't that be done (dependant upon your latitude, of course) in February?

Thanks,
Frank

[Tom]

Pruning a dormant tree is probably better for the tree, but I bet the tree isn't the power company's priority. 

[Frank_B]

Pruning a dormant tree is probably better for the tree, but I bet the tree isn't the power company's priority.

Okay, Tom, I'll shut up and color.  Next you'll be telling me their "licensed arborists" don't clean their tools between trees.   

[Tom]

   Their license is probably a driver's license.  They need that to get to work.

I was helping a city crew (contract company that begins with A) remove a large water oak.  It was about 6 feet in diameter.  They were lashing out with their chainsaws, so, I got a splitting maul off of the truck.  They said "what's that?"

I showed them and they were like kids with a new toy.  It wasn't long before the big blocks were little blocks and loaded in the chip truck.

They said that they weren't allowed to have anything dangerous like axes on the truck. 

Sometimes I wonder what a tree surgeon really is.  These guys are Right-of-way clearers. 

The first time I saw a "giraffe" it was a right-of-way clearing operation.  A giraffe is a tractor looking device with a long extendable boom and a hydraulically operated circle saw at the end.  The operator just drives down the ROW next to the trees and lops off anylthing he can reach.  He makes the Right-of-way look like the newly sheared side of the head of a new marine.

Since he can only reach one side of the tree, the other side is untouched.

He has to have a driver's license too. 

OK, Ya better wait for a forester. 

[Chet]

I highly doubt most consumers would be willing to pay the absorbanant costs associated with only trimming one month of the year.  

Chet da arborist: licensed, certified, and insured. 

[SkidrowJoe]

Believe it or not, there are licensed and ISA Cert. Arborists that care for ROW, large and valuable shade trees, ornamentals, and what not.  I happen to be a Cert. Arborist!!  Frank I do not see you complaining when you flip a switch and a light turns on, line clearance is an intergal part of electrical distribution.  The tree trimmers should prune to the desired clearance specs with proper pruning cuts.  Do they disinfect their tools after every cut or tree, apparently you have never worked for a tree service before?   If we disinfected after every cut or tree we would never leave the same line for weeks.

[Sawyerfortyish]

They have a 150 ft right of way through my farm and have been here 3 years in a row. Certified Arborist My foot the crew leader is the only one that speaks english. Last time through they cut and badly split about 3000 feet of red oak. There 150' right of way is now 225' they can't read a ruler either. After some runarounds we did get the big bosses that own the right of way to send out someone to look they thought we would just let it slide. Well it seems that they know a court battle will cost more that a few trees so we came to an agreement on the value of ruined timber. My advice is to watch those guys trimming like a hawk. There all tree hacks here. They split it felling it and hack it into unusable pieces when it hits the ground

[Furby]

That sounds like all the ROW trimmers I've seen in action around here. They don't have a care in the world as to what they are doing to the remaing trees or the mess they leave behind on the ground.
While I know there are some ISA Cert. Arborists that care for ROW.....  they are a major minority, with most of the work being done by untrained, unskilled or uncaring workers.

[wiam]

Sawyerfortyish, you have no use for 5' boards?   Yeah that is what happens here.  If it is crooked enough they can leave it full length.

Will

[Tom]

Around here, a lot of that short stuff came, validly, from the pulpwood industry.  ROW trimmings were left for Short-wood pulpwooders.  The carried their load, like the picture above shows, cross-ways on small trucks.


To keep them from being a dangerous item on the road, the paper companies restricted lengths to 5 feet,  Some would take 6 feet, but anything longer than that was turned away.   Because they risked having a load turned away, most cut their logs 5 feet long.


This was reinforced, somewhat by a state law that restricted vehicle width to 7 feet.

Since the ROW clearer's were depending on Short-wood operators to "clean up" after them, they would cut stuff to length to make it as appetising as possible.

Even with the increase of vehicle width to 8 feet and the carrying of logs in covered trucks or long-wise, it seems that trimmings and prunings are cut short even today.  It is either habit or the idea that it is the right way to process the logs.  I'm sure it has to do with the weight of a piece of wood as well.  A lot of the larger stuff is cut in 16 to 20 inch lengths so that they can be managed.

[Frank_B]

Well, I can see there are few "neutral" feelings on right-of-way trimming 

I do appreciate having power available whenever I flip the switch.  Just like we all enjoy a tremendous number of luxuries than folks who live in less advantaged places; however, that doesn't mean its okay to take a kindey when the doc went in for an appendix.   

I know, I know...  bad example - maybe.  The point is we all expect a certain level of customer service from all our suppliers to whom we pay our hard earned dollars.  In this particular case I'm not so concerned about trimming the trees, as I am about the timing and methods.

The last time, three years ago, the "certified" crew sat in the truck hour after hour, then  trimmed for a few minutes and left.  The frontage on my place is less than 1,000 feet - the job took them a week to finish.  Somebody was paying for a service and not getting what they were entitled to from that vendor.     And I'll betcha their only license was issued by the DMV 

R,
Frank

Bottom Line:  I want the trees trimmed to save my neighbors and me from unwarranted power outages during the summer storms.  I don't want to lose any trees in the process.

Frank

[Chet]

The real sad thing about the comments spoken in this thread relate greatly to my real life experiances with public perception. Problem is, those same folks that usually belly ache about unqualified people in the business, will hire them same "trimmers" over myself or another qualified person to do their private work because they are cheeper.      Go figure.   

[thecfarm]

I cut all of the trees in the ROW.There is nothing to be cut.I hate it when they leave stumps 6 inches high,but I don't blame them any.Keeps the saw out of the dirt and away from the rocks that way.It does have to be done.I've seen that cut the tops off pine trees.Don't live to long.No matter what someone is not going to be happy.

[Furby]

I don't see a lot of trimmings taking place around here Chet. It's almost always a complete removal.

[beenthere]

I have had good relationships over the years with the outfit hired by our Utility Co. They send a scout around 6 months to a year ahead, and he contacts the landowners, and lets them know when approx. they will be in the neighborhood, and what they will likely be doing. Then they review their plans and talk about what I would like them to trim, what they would like to take, that they will treat the stumps, and chip the brush.  Really has worked out well. I usually tell them, "when in doubt, cut it out". They will not cut on oak after April 1, but only during dormancy.
My concern has been how 'trained' the crew is, watching two of them hold a tree or push on it high up while the other uses the chain saw just below them to saw it off. Or have two saws running close to each other.  
Couple years ago the Utility dropped some lines for a half day for me to drop some white oak that were hanging too close for comfort.  At first they said they don't do that, but when I asked what I should do and who I should call if I took them down and didn't drop the trees perfectly (meaning their lines were down), they said they would send a foreman to look at it, but they were not allowed to lay the lines down because too many people get panicky when they see down lines.  They could only knock out the power to these lines.  When the foreman stopped by, he said "After we cut the power, how about we just lay the lines down for a day and you get the trees out, then we'll put 'em back up".   Brilliant mind he has.  

[JJackson]

As one of those certifed "hacks", I am going to tell you to contact you local power company, they are the ones that set the standards for the work.  We will ask the customer for permission to do removals, what length they want the wood in (not always possible to comply due to safety).  I meet with the owners, or at least call to make arrangements, answer any questions that the customer/consummer has.  Our contractors seem to lack some training, our own utility crews are highly trained and I mean highly trained.  Pruning when trees are not dormant is ok but then again you guys have problems with your oaks. Remeber your utility company sets the standards that the work is performed in.

[Dana]

I wouldn't complain too loudly about trimming. They can always get the herbicide out. Then you will have an eyesore to look at.

[Ron Scott]

Improve the woodland aesthetics and require underground lines.  If the trees are yours, you have a right to have the trees trimmed and prunned in a prudent and reasonable manner.

We seem to be having more and more concerns and lawsuites concerning power companies and tree service companies concerning their line clearing practices both trimming and use of herbicides.

In one such case the power company can no longer go on the landowner's property for line maintenance without being accompanied by a professional forester agreeable to the landowner.

[beenthere]

OUCH!!!

That will get to be expensive to the customers.

[Chet]

What alot of folks don't realize is URD (underground) lines require digging and in many cases that equates to heavy equipment and a path large enough to operate in. Then as repairs or upgrades become necessary quess what, more digging.
Utilities don't run their conductors overhead just to keep the line clearance people working. They do it because in the long run it's cheaper. If their customers were willing to absorb all the extra costs, I'm sure things could be done differantly.