Hivernant Arborists
(Pronounced " Hee-Ver-Non ")
RF Wood, Owner
ISA Certified Arborist, Certified Tree Worker/Climber Specialist #NE-6308AT
Colchester, VT
Insured for your Protection
When Should I Hire an Arborist?
It is wonderful that more homeowners are gaining interest in taking care of their trees. Much of what You need to know resides in your own vault of knowledge! More can be learned on the Internet or through a local seminar on trees.
Taking care of your trees can be enjoyable and rewarding. It is sometimes difficult to know when a Professional should be called to help.
Of course your Personal Arborists at Hivernant are available for all of your tree care needs and are of great value you to you when you have questions or concerns.
Your health, life and safety are of great concern to us at Hivernant. Whenever you have even the slightest doubt or might be placing your personal safety at risk give us a call. We want to you stay healthy & safe so you can enjoy your Trees!
So when are the times that you absolutely, positively should have the help of Your Personal Arborist from Hivernant?
We don't have the space to list them all, so here sampling:
Ladders:
Your Personal Arborists at Hivernant have but one opinion of Ladders: LADDERS KILL!
Falls from ladders are a major cause of serious injury to homeowners.
Your Personal Arborists at Hivernant are so concerned about ladder safety that we refuse to carry them on our trucks and we will only use ladders in rare, well controlled situations.
Please, for your own safety Never Use a Ladder In A Tree!
Pruning:
When a limb is too large to be cut with hand shears or loppers then it is large enough to cause injury or damage.
When a limb is too high to reach from the ground, then it has the potential to cause catastrophic damage.
If a homeowner chooses to climb something to reach such a limb, even if only a few feet off the ground, they will be high enough to seriously injure themselves if they fall.
The UK HSE compiled some workplace statistics about falls. Falls were categorized as low fall (2 meters or less) and high fall (more than 2 meters).
The report shows that of the major injuries caused by falls 77% were caused by falls of 2 meters or less and 23% caused by falls over 2 meters.
The report also shows that low falls only accounted for 30% of fatal falls while high falls accounted for a whopping 70% of fall fatalities.
We must remember that a "High" fall can be as low as just over 6 feet! (Statistics from HSE, UK HSE-UK Fall Report)
Working off the ground in or near a tree adds risk factors that the HSE report cannot account for: falling limbs can swing, sweep or drop suddenly and in unexpected directions and branches can break while standing on them.
If working on your tree means leaving the ground then you should contact Your Personal Arborists at Hivernant.
Targets
Any time there are targets such as wires, a shed, car, people or buildings you should contact your Personal Arborists at Hivernant.
Limbs being pruned and trees being felled almost always end up much longer than they first appear and have a tendency to land on things you don't want harmed.
And let's not forget the most important target...YOU! Standing under a tree while working on it puts you right in the cross hairs of whatever is falling out of the tree.
Take downs
When it comes to takedowns it becomes a whole lot easier to discern when to call your Personal Arborists at Hivernant.
- Is your tree greater than 8 feet tall?
- Does the tree lean, especially in the direction you do not want it to go?
- Do you think it needs to be climbed, limbed or topped?
- Do you think it needs to be pulled over with a rope?
- Could you live with yourself if the tree landed on someone or something?
Taking down a tree can be a safe and simple process but there are myriad things that can go wrong: misaligned face cuts, bypassed hinges, defects in the tree, widow makers, hardware in the trunk, obstacles not previously noticed, the tree is bigger/taller than thought.
Even when everything is set up according to plan the tree can do something unexpected, like the picture up and to the right. That tree was laid out, notches cut and ready to go. Though we cannot be sure, it looks like the tree rolled as it started to go and fell opposite the intended direction. Not only did it seriously ruin the tree cutter's day, we're sure the homeowner wasn't too happy!
All of these skills can be learned and certainly Your Personal Arborists would be happy to help you learn to do them. But one little mistake, one simple miscalculation, one small error with a saw and the consequences can have eternal consequences.
Unless you have Proper Approved Equipment, PPE, Specialized Training and Experience, Never Attempt to Climb A Tree!"
Tree work is recognized as one of the most hazardous jobs in the world. In fact, as a category it has been suggested that people working with trees are less likely to come home alive at the end of the day than Police, Fire Fighters and Combat soldiers COMBINED.
This ranking is apparently due, in large part, to under-trained and amateur tree workers. Unfortunately, home owners also account for a huge percentage of chainsaw and tree work related injuries
Somewhat tongue-in-cheek Our Safety Philosophy at Hivernant is simple: "Everyone goes home at the end of the day, with all their body parts and fluids!"
We want you to go home safe at the end of the day too!
Other Times to Call Your Personal Arborist
Storm damage, widow makers, power lines all make for unpredictable situations that you should have an arborist take care of.
Unfortunately we cannot possibly list all the times you should consult Your Personal Arborists at Hivernant. Prudence, judgment and rational thinking should be your guide.
Your Personal Arborists at Hivernant are here to help you, not make your life more difficult. Remember, our Mission, It is all about a mutually beneficial relationship of integrity.
Here is a You Tube Video you might find enlightening.
While they may make us chuckle, we must realize they resulted in some pretty serious consequences. It is interesting to keep in mind, that all of these folks "knew what they were doing" and were confident in their abilities!
Please note that these videos are handled by You Tube. At the end of the video You Tube offers additional videos for viewing. Some may be inappropriate for some viewers. We apologize for the inconvenience as we have no control over what You Tube displays. Thank You for your understanding in this matter: