Tree Trimming in Hampstead, NC
Not every tree that is worrying you needs to come down. Most of the time it is three limbs lying on the roof or a canopy that has grown out over the driveway, and my crew and I can cut those back and leave you the tree. The estimate is free and I'll tell you straight which one you're looking at.
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What does tree trimming cost?
Trimming starts at $400 where we can reach the work from the ground or on rope, and at $800 where the lift has to come out. That is the single biggest thing that moves a trimming price: hauling the lift, setting it and working off it is most of a day before anybody touches a limb.
| Job | Price | What that covers |
|---|---|---|
| Trimming, no lift needed | From $400 | Reached from the ground or on rope. |
| Trimming that needs the lift | From $800 | The lift has to be hauled out, set up and worked from. |
They are starting prices, not a band, because two oaks the same size can be an afternoon apart depending on what is underneath — a limb over an open lawn gets cut and dropped; the same limb over shingles gets roped and lowered. What moves it from there is how high the work is, what is sitting below the limbs, and how much brush comes out of it. The estimate is free, so let me look at it and you will have a real number.
What do you actually cut?
The everyday work is limbs over a roof, a driveway or a neighbour's fence, and the dead wood sitting up in the canopy waiting for a windy night. A dead limb thirty feet up in a pine is not a problem until a nor'easter makes it one, and then it is a problem at two in the morning.
I also lift a canopy back off a roofline so the shingles can dry out, raise a live oak off a driveway so a truck can get down it, and take weight off a limb that has started to crack at the collar.
How do you reach the top of a tall tree?
With lifts and climbers. I run a variety of lifts, and for the trees a lift cannot be set under — soft ground after rain, a septic field, a back corner with no way in — I have climbers who go up on rope. That is the difference between trimming a seventy-foot loblolly and telling you it cannot be done.
My equipment also fits through a 36-inch gate, so a fenced backyard does not turn into part of the job. We're fully insured, which on trimming work matters most on the day something is being lowered past your gutters.
What does the yard look like when you leave?
The brush goes out with us. You should be left with a trimmed tree and a lawn you can walk across, not a pile by the driveway to deal with next weekend. That is part of the job, not a line on the bill.
Do I need a trim or a removal?
Ask me and I'll tell you straight. A lot of what gets called in as a removal is really a trim — the tree is sound, it has just grown three limbs too close to the roof. Sometimes it is the other way round, and trimming a tree that is already failing is money spent twice.
When is the right time to get it done?
Before the weather decides for you. A limb over the roof is a planned job in calm weather and an emergency once it is lying on the shingles — not the same price, and not the same night. This stretch of coast takes nor'easters all winter and tropical weather in late summer.
That said, the phone is answered open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If it has already happened, call the emergency line instead of waiting for morning.
Which towns do you trim in?
Hampstead, Wilmington, Jacksonville, Surf City, Sneads Ferry, Holly Ridge, Rocky Point, Burgaw, Topsail Beach, Scotts Hill / Porters Neck, across Pender County, New Hanover County, Onslow County. I live here in Hampstead, so a trim is often something I can look at on the same trip as another job.
Questions I get asked
- Trimming starts at $400 where we can reach it from the ground or on rope, and at $800 where the lift has to come out. Those are starting prices — two oaks the same size can be an hour apart depending on what is under them, so the estimate is free and you get a real number before anything starts.
- Lifts and climbers — I run a variety of lifts, and for the trees a lift cannot be set under I have climbers. Between the two there is not much around here we cannot get into.
- That is the normal job, not the hard one. We rig the limbs and lower them instead of dropping them, which is slower and is the reason a limb over shingles costs more than the same limb over grass.
- Yes — the brush goes out with us. What you should be left with is a trimmed tree and a yard you can walk across, not a pile by the driveway.
- Usually, yes, and it is worth doing before the next storm decides it for you. Tell me which side of the line the trunk is on when you call so we both know what we are dealing with.
Get a free estimate on the trimming
Tell me which tree and what it is hanging over, and I'll come look at it. The estimate is free, and I'd love to be your tree guy.