When Not to Cut Trees Yourself

Sad as it may be to have to cut down a tree, if you are a property owner with trees on your land, sooner or later the time will come when you will probably need to cut one down. If your tree is sick or dead, or growing in a way that endangers you or your neighbors, you'll have to take care of the situation. Unfortunately, tree cutting can be a very dangerous activity to engage in if you do not know how to do it correctly.

There are myriad times when, no matter what, you simply should not cut down a tree yourself. If this is the case, you'll need to pay a professional tree service to remove the tree. This is often the case in urban areas where cutting a tree down in a specific place is simply too dangerous for an untrained person to do it with a simple chainsaw. Here are some other examples below.

Trees and Power Lines
To begin, never cut down a tree that is next to a power line. If a tree falls on the electric power lines there is a very real danger of fire and electrocution. There is also a very good possibility that you will have to pay for any damage you to do the power line! And, not to mention it, I guarantee you that your neighbors will not be very happy with if you cause a power outage :)

Instead, call the electric company responsible for the power line and ask them what to do. There is a good chance the utility company can come to your residence and cut the trees for you. If not, they can give you a list of commercial tree professionals who can safely work around the power lines.

Trees and Houses
Another time not to cut down a tree is when you have a large tree very close to your home (or your neighbors’ home). If the tree falls on a house it could do tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage. If the tree falls on your neighbor’s property you will be responsible for any damage that the tree does. I recommend if this is the case that you call a tree service professional to cut down large trees if there is a possibility tree will fall on your home or business or a neighbor’s home or business.

Trees and Roads
Finally never cut down a tree yourself if there is a possibility that it could fall on a public road or street, a public highway or railroad tracks. You don’t want to do this because if the tree falls on a vehicle or causes an accident you will be responsible for any damage it causes.

Instead of causing thousands of dollars worth of damage, if your tree is in any of the above categories, call a professional tree service and don't try to remove the tree on your own. There should be professional tree services in your area that can remove trees without causing damage.