ScottF

Pics! Please?

Not sure about your sums there. With the trees ranging between 30 and 60cm dbh, how did you come up with .27 cube of planks per tree? Depending on how thickly you cut them, you might only get 2-4 good-sized planks per tree before you're getting very narrow. Also, bear in mind stem taper, relatively thick bark and the fact that an Alaskan mill, unlike a portable mill which runs a bandsaw-type blade, has a very thick kerf which results in a cumulative loss of volume. You also have to reckon on "breaking a few eggs" and losing some to wastage with the first few times you use the mill if you're learning. They can be hellish fiddly things to set up, particularly in windblow where you might not be able to position yourself ideally. I think 4hrs per tree in this situation, or your own, might be optimistic. Also, do you have a kiln? If not, you're not comparing like for like. And I certainly wouldn't pay £2k per cube for planks, particularly when processed on an Alaskan mill. If this is a long-term proposition for you, it might make lots of sense (particularly if you can get other work for the big saw, whether an 66 or an 88), but I really wouldn't count of you recovering your outlay in the first outing. I'd still suggest that a pro with a good-quality portable mill (i.e. not a chainsaw-driven one) would be the way to go. Best of luck.

Always found this mashup pretty funny: [ame] [/ame]

Certified arborist is a useful ticket if you want to work anywhere but the UK. I tried to register for a risk assessment training course in Canada this year and they wouldn't let me on it because I'm not a certified arborist. They wouldn't recognise my UK level 7 qualification, QTRA or anything else. It seems officious but there you have it.

Lots of capital outlay for not much return. Have you looked at the cost of buying that much timber (bearing in mind only a fraction of the logs will be converted into nice wide boards) vs the cost of all the tools? Will you use the tools much beyond clearing up this windfall? Have you thought of seeing if there might not be a local person who could do it for you, either on a price, or in return for some of the wood? I've always found the french quite amenable to a bit of tax-free commerce.

Isn't this the sort of issue that the Arb Association should be addressing on our industry's behalf with the EA? How can it be waste if people are willing to pay to have it tipped on their gardens? Some councils around here pay reasonable money for clean chip. Doesn't this make woodchip, as the very least, a recycled product? We don't take it to landfill, do we? Idiots.

Great vid. Not sure how a couple of those lads did their stunts without their huge knackers getting in the way. They must have had their self-preservation glands removed at birth.

I'm going through it (9001 & 14001) with Gavin Jordan at Interface in the Midlands Interface: ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification and have found them very efficient. It helps that Gavin has a background in international forestry and understands our industry. I'm finding ISO will make filling out Pre-Qualification Questionnaires loads easier (usually allows you to bypass 3-4 pages of questions on the applications.

Jumping from space. Yep, bit tricky to beat.

Having had a good look around we're going with Digiterra. Very flexible and supremely idiot-friendly.

Usually a block of taught modules, often with some being "core" subjects and some being electives (including how to "do" research) for the academic year, followed by your dissertation. The dissertation subject can usually be within a pretty wide spectrum, provided it's relevant to the subject matter of the course. You'll be assigned the most appropriate tutor to help you along the way and provide periodic feedback and guidance. Some MScs expect you to cram it into the spring and summer, to submit in the autumn. Others give you more time. Being an MSc, the subject will generally need to be a piece of novel research, statistically tested and robust in its conclusions. Costs-wise, they seem to be running at between £3.5-£5k for tuition, but count on a fairly large book budget if you want to get anything done (the popular texts are never in the library). Some MScs require a relevant first degree, but some will look at a period of suitable industry experience as a way on, but may ask you to do some foundation maths or science the summer before to get you up to speed. MScs, particularly ones with a vocational angle (arb and forestry would fall in this category) are now increasingly being offered as block study or distance-learning courses. Bangor do one now, and I think Myerscough do, too. If you're interested in doing some further learning, you could do a lot worse than going and speaking to the people offering the course you might be interested in. If, as I gather, you're fairly interested in mycology (ahem), then Dr Mike Hale at Bangor my be able to offer some advice.

It's taken 10 years to build up, to be fair... Maybe only drive on particularly foul weather days to save cash. You'll be thankful for it on one of those wet February mornings when it never seems to become day at all.

Grit your teeth and get through it Tony. With the learning you've already undertaken on your own (which is impressive) just think of the qualification as the "door opener" which will allow you to be doing the sort of work you seem to be after. best

Did my MSc in environmental forestry in Bangor 10 years ago now and while I didn't earn any money for a year, struggled and had to work my ass off, it opened up a whole lot of doors that would have otherwise been closed to me. It didn't feel like it at the time (waiting for the bus into Bangor in the middle of winter in the lashing rain can bring about thoughts of dropping out!), but it was the most beneficial thing I've ever done, work-wise. I work as a project arboriculturist mainly for big engineering firms on ongoing infrastructure (pipelines, roads, schools, hospitals) and town regeneration projects. I also do some safety and general tree health work. And I'm still based in Bangor... Having a higher-level qualification has allowed to to get onto lots more tender lists and enter partnership frameworks with other professionals that I would have struggled to get my foot in the door with otherwise. What I'd say is that at MSc level you really need to be in charge of your learning and lead your outcomes- if you find you're getting interested in something and you want to learn more about it, let your tutors know and they should indulge you. Best of luck with it.

Hi Paul it's sold I'm afraid (to me). Best Scott

You've got to pay to download it from Standards Australia but at £41, it's about a third of the full price for BS 5837. Typical. I was looking at a tree protection standard for Vancouver in Canada yesterday at the radial protection distances proscribed are 50% of ours. I often find 12x stem diameter a bit mean...

Good advice, Tony. Cheers. Looks like I might have to smash the piggy bank again. Best Scott Welcome to FairleyArb.com

Great post, Tim. Cheers. I'm still getting to grips with the device myself. I actually Picussed a beech with K. deusta last week which I would have almost certainly condemned beforehand. I took a few readings at various heights and it suggested that the decay was incipient above ground rather than progressing upward from below.

"Battlecruiser"= boozer (public house) "Jar"= pint of beer "cream crackered"= knackered, tired, exhausted Most of the terminology you're going to need for a stay in the UK can be found here: Profanisaurus Index Best of luck

You'll need to make sure you've got adequate Professional Indemnity cover before offering advice of this kind- essentially you'd be liable if the tree were to fail on the house if you'd advised that it was "safe". Most providers of PI ask to see evidence of your qualifications and some history before offering you a price for cover (well, mine did). Might be more bother than it's worth unless this is an area of work you want to move into.

Snow?

A heartwarming tale. There's hope for us "widowed" Ifor Williams owners out there yet.

Almost certainly anthracnose (Marssonina salicicola). We've had shedloads of it down here in North Wales since 2007. If we have a nice long dry summer the tree could recover and prune and the dead. Still laughing about the "summer" gag.

Not yet- I can see them saving quite a lot of time versus measuring the linear distances between the sensors and then entering the data manually, but I find the price on the high side (C£2.5k). Apparently, Argus are developing a much cheaper set of non-bluetooth calipers at the moment. I appreciate you need get as accurate an image of the stem shape as possible, but I think I'll do it the hard way until I get more work in for it. Did you find the calipers made a big difference either to accuracy or time? QUOTE=Tony Sorensen;289626]I used one when I was with the Council. First thing I'd ask is do you have the calipers?

Hi All. I've recently bought a Picus tomograph and wondered if there were any other Picus users on Arbtalk who'd be into sharing experiences, findings (dare I say, shortcomings) with the device? I've got my first couple of surveys to undertake with it this week, so would welcome any advice from seasoned users, or those who've had surveys done. Many thanks, Scott Welcome to FairleyArb.com