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Tree Risk Assessing

OSUTodd said:
Another thing that keeps me out of trees is poison ivy. I've scouted areas that had it on pretty much every tree around the deer sign/travel path, so I just kind of mentally labeled the whole area off limits.
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Yep, and it's tough to ID the vine when the leaves are off. I climbed one once and then realized there was a vine (I didn't look closely enough at ground level and the vine was on the opposite side of the tree and matted down and covered by rough bark). I googled it in tree and was about to climb down and wash myself and gear, but then discovered it was likely Virginia Creeper. The vine looks very similar to poison ivy, but I rolled the dice that day and was fine afterward.

One thing I've done while scouting is cut in half poison ivy vines with a machete in the hope that at some point after it is dead and some time passes that the oils will be gone. The oils have to deactivate at a certain point (or we'd get poison ivy just by touching soil) but I have no idea how long that takes.
 
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I can imagine a situation where the builder explained the hazards of the dead tree and the owner said they knew better. If the price tag was high enough and the contract stated that the contractor had no liability for the structure or the tree, I could see it going forward. But I’m guessing there are no building codes or building inspectors in this area?! Crazy town.
 
Jammintree said:
I can imagine a situation where the builder explained the hazards of the dead tree and the owner said they knew better. If the price tag was high enough and the contract stated that the contractor had no liability for the structure or the tree, I could see it going forward. But I’m guessing there are no building codes or building inspectors in this area?! Crazy town.
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There are building codes and inspectors. It’s probably the least regulated county in MD but it’s still MD. It’s likely no permits were pulled and this was built by the owner. It took close to a year to construct.

I was torn, I wanted to stop in and tell him how bad of an idea it was when I first noticed him building it but decided to mind my own business.
 
GCTerpfan said:
There are building codes and inspectors. It’s probably the least regulated county in MD but it’s still MD. It’s likely no permits were pulled and this was built by the owner. It took close to a year to construct.

I was torn, I wanted to stop in and tell him how bad of an idea it was when I first noticed him building it but decided to mind my own business.
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Yeah, that would be awkward if you didn't know them. A lot of folks get defensive in those situations. I had a guy next to me at the gun range shooting a DIY thick aluminum plate (with obvious molten splash marks) at like 5 yards with his young kids and not even eye protection. I had to leave after I explained to him how dangerous that was and he roughly responded with "nothing bad has happened yet."
 
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GCTerpfan said:
There are building codes and inspectors. It’s probably the least regulated county in MD but it’s still MD. It’s likely no permits were pulled and this was built by the owner. It took close to a year to construct.

I was torn, I wanted to stop in and tell him how bad of an idea it was when I first noticed him building it but decided to mind my own business.
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That’s a lot of money to park on a rotting bole.
 
BTaylor said:
He prolly sealed the tree to prevent further decay. :rolleyes:
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That was probably close to the exact thought process:

"Now hear me out guys. Houses are made of wood that is no longer alive. This tree is wood that is no longer alive. Therefore, if it is safe to build a house out of 2X4s, then it is safe to build a giant structure on this dead tree."

I wouldn't even swing on the tire swing that was probably hanging from the cable coming off the large branch to the right.
 
TreeRecon said:
Do you have a pic ? If it's a silver maple, I'd stay out of it. They're strong when healthy, but when they get decay, they go downhill quickly. Red maples (very common in the US) are generally bomb proof. A crack is never a good thing, but I'd need to see it. In the trunk is very bad. In a "V" (included bark) is pretty normal if crown reduction/pruning wasn't done to reduce weight
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Pretty sure this one limb is compromised...
Screenshot_20240318-172820-601.pngScreenshot_20240318-172849-405.png
 
TreeRecon said:
Yea that's an old silver maple. Not sure how much longer she'll be around. Any more pics ? Have any larger limbs dropped ?
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I had some bigger limbs come out of the top last summer in some high winds. Not off that section. That were on the other limb.
I'd cut that limb out. But it's hanging over the service to my house. I got a few other ones I should probably have taken down. To many trees on my little property.
 
Yea I'd say that tree has some decay. Eventually it may take out your service line. I'd get it removed
 
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