Tree Removed

I have satisfied my commitment to Solargain to remove the large tree in front of the verandah.  This was required in order to maximize roof exposure to the eastern sun, the primary vector for sunshine on the solar panels.  The hard work has paid off.  At 8.15 AM today the Fronius inverter was reporting 2.05 kw of power being produced by the solar panels, a performance that I had never seen that early in the day.

My original plan was to engage a professional to either lop the tree heavily or remove it altogether.  I was leaning toward complete removal even though I was extremely reluctant to remove a large healthy tree that had been here before I purchased the property in 1975.

I had a look at the tree several times and realized that imposing as it was, the tree was basically a large thick trunk about chest high from which vertical branches grew at various angles.  It seemed feasible for me to do the job myself, as long as I worked patiently and slowly, carefully thinking out each step.  I was prepared to stretch the job out for weeks.

Tree before removal

Three days ago I began the work.  The preliminary task was to sharpen the chain of my trusty (and venerable) Makita electric chain saw.  Its oil pump has not worked for years and I have hitherto relied on oiling the chain from an oil can.  Unfortunately I could not find the oil can and came up with an improvisation that was a much better solution.  I poured a small amount of chain saw oil into a plastic container then stuck the end of the saw blade into the oil while moving the chain by hand.  Thus the entire chain was totally dipped in oil.

Sharpening the Chain

Before doing any cutting I experimented with access of the various branches and concluded that it was safer to do the cutting from the tree itself rather than from a ladder, where I would be below the falling branches.

I then began dropping the lower branches to make room for the upper branches to drop.  The procedure was greatly helped by the sharp chain and relatively soft wood of the Queensland box tree (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lophostemon_confertus).

At end of first day

By 5 PM only three vertical branches remained - the most difficult and in one case the largest one by far.  I decided to not push my luck and called it a day.

The second day was a hard one.  I began by dropping the three remaining  vertical branches while I was fresh and clear headed.  Then I spent three hard hours cutting up large sections of branches and dragging them up the hill to the top of the property for burning.  At 12.30 PM I took a break for a shower, clean change of clothes, lunch, and a 1-hour nap.  At 2.30 PM I began the second shift of cleaning and dragging and worked until 5.30 PM.

At end of second day

Yesterday, the third day, I spent three hours finishing the cleanup, which included sweeping the driveway.  Only a short section of trunk and a small stack of pieces remained on site.  The rest of the tree I had carried piece by piece up the hill to the top of the property for burning.

The entire job has required about 15 hours (so far) of hard work.  Had I engaged a professional to do the job I doubt if I would have gotten much change from $1000.  I stated "so far" because in about one year's time when the stump has had a chance to dry I'll burn it to the ground using the pieces of wood stacked around it.  Managing the fires with a hose and rake will be physically easy work.

End of third day: job finished and area tidy

Four stacks to be burned before spring