Your Local Tree Surgeon Glasgow Wide

Tree surgery and tree care is nearly always something you should look to hire a qualified professional for. Some small jobs where you have both feet on the ground may be handled by a confident homeowner. However, generally if any tree work involved not having both of your feet of solid ground the you should always look to hire a professional. The work requires years of proper training and experience and can often involve risks to peoples safety and the safety of surrounding property. To make sure you keep yourself protected and get the best service from any tree care professional you hire there are some basic important questions you should have covered from the beginning.

1. Up to Date Insurance? This is the single most important question. In the UK, you as the land owner are legally responsible for any work carried out on your property. To safeguard yourself and any neighbors or passers-by you need to make sure that your tree surgeon or arborist has an to date insurance and that you will not be liable for any potential injuries, accidents or damage to property. Normally every tree care professional will carry both public liability insurance and a professional insurance as their work is potentially hazardous and they understand the need to protect themselves against the worst happening.
2. Tree Surgeon, Arborist or a Man with a Chainsaw?! Not all tree care professionals are the same. A groundsman who works only on the ground will usually as a minimum hold a chainsaw qualification but they will usually only be there to help the tree surgeon or arborist while they are working at height and to keep the work area clear. A tree surgeon will have some training in trees and tree health and the best ways in which to carry out pruning or felling safely and by minimizing any damage to the tree. A climbing tree surgeon, as the name suggests will also have qualifications for working at height often climbing into the canopy of the tree . An arborist, as well as having any or all of the qualifications of a tree surgeon will have studied arboriculture and will have an in depth knowledge of how to best care for the health of a tree throughout its long lifespan.
3. Are they Qualified? What Credentials do the have? Unlike professions like medicine or engineering tree surgery and arboriculture to not have one over riding body controlling qualification. There are a range of training, education and certification bodies all of which go towards the credentials of a professional tree surgeon or arborist. As a minimum the workers should carry the required NPTC certification and although it is noty a requirement it is often a good sign if they are Members of the Arboricultural Society. There are a wide range of membership types with the arboricultural society and just because a large company is an ARB Approved Contractor does not mean that a smaller company or individual is any less capable or qualified but it can be a helpful indicator.
4. References. These days references can be easily found online through sources like the company’s Google Business Page, Facebook Page or some directories such as Yell.com. Look for 4 and 5 star reviews as a good guide of happy customers.
5. A Detailed Work Estimate. For small one day jobs a verbal quote is often sufficient and in Scotland verbal contracts are still legally binding. However for larger works requiring several days or extra men or machinery it is often advisable to get a detailed work summary and written quote so that you and the contractor both know where you stand. Before the job starts you should be aware of how the work will be carried out and what men and equipment will be used. You will want to know if any heavy machinery will need to come on site and you will probably want any damage to lawns or flower beds being kept to a minimum and repaired afterwards if some damage is unavoidable. Skilled climbing arborists will be able to minimise any damage using special rope techniques to lower heavy tree sections slowly and safely to the ground for removal.
6. Tree Preservation Orders. This is the responsibility of you as the land owner but a good tree care professional will be able to advise you fully on what to do. Some trees are marked by local councils, usually the planning departments, as “protected.” Sometimes this means that a tree can not be touched and sometimes work can be carried out if the required permission is obtained from the council beforehand. If you do not do this and go ahead with tree trimming or felling works without permission you can be liable to some very significant fines and prosecution.
7. Protected Wildlife. Wildlife such as birds and bats are protected to varying degrees in the UK. Bats are a protected species and as such any trees must be checked for bats roosting prior to works being carried out. If bats are found the tree care professional will be able to inform you of what steps can be taken to continue with the work. From February until August is the official nesting season but in reality nesting can take place slightly before and after this. Trees must always be checked for nesting prior to work taking place and for this reason tree surgery work is much quieter in these months.
8. How Long Will the Work Take? When the estimate and work description is given to you the length of the time the work will take will also be made clear. Following on from the above notes about bird nesting season though it will sometimes be necessary to delay the beginning of the work until there is no threat to wildlife and there is any required permission in place for trees with preservation orders. On top of this a professional arborist or tree surgeon will be able to advise the best time of year to carry out works such as trimming or pruning so as to cause the least harm to the health of the tree.
9. No bad practices! Topping and tree climbing with spikes are two big no nos! Topping is a practice where the height of a tree is significantly reduced by cutting a large portion of the living main stem of the tree. This can endanger the life or longevity of a tree significant;y and should not be carried out unless absolutely necessary due to safety reasons. If a trees height need reducing significantly this may require work to be carried out over several seasons. Three surgeons who climb into the canopy of a tree to carry out trimming or thinning of the canopy should also know that they should not wear boots with spikes which dig into the tree. These cause open wounds on the tree which can allow disease in and reduce the life expectancy of a tree.
10. Safety Standards. Finally you should be re-assured by the tree care company that all required safety precautions will be carried out. from roping off areas to avoid damage to people or vehicles through to safe lowering of tree sections and sectional tree dismantling and the basics such as personal protective equipment being work by all crew. Hard hats , face visors, chainsaw safety trousers and safety boots.

Check Out All The Places We Are Listed Online: Click Here