Dead & Hazard Tree Removal in Hale, Lupton & the Tawases
A dead tree gets more dangerous and more expensive every season it stands. Send a photo and we will tell you how urgent it is.
Around Hale, Lupton and the lakes, the dead trees mostly have two causes. Emerald ash borer has killed nearly every ash in the area, and the grey, barkless trunks along the drives and the wood lines are what is left. Oak wilt, confirmed in Iosco, Ogemaw and Arenac Counties, takes a red oak from green to dead in a few weeks in summer. Add the old hollow maples, the pines with a new lean after a wet spring, and the cottonwoods dropping limbs on the road, and there is a lot of standing hazard out here.
Reinhardt Tree Service takes them down before they come down. Larry looks at each one, decides whether it will hold a climber or has to be worked entirely from the bucket and the ground, and prices it in writing. Dead trees are brittle, they do not hinge the way live wood does, and the tops let go without warning, so this is careful sectional work with rope on everything that has a target under it.
If you have a dead ash, do not wait another year. Once the bark sloughs off and the top starts breaking, the tree is unsafe to climb, the drop zone is bigger, and the price goes up with the risk.
What is included
- Emerald ash borer killed ash, standing or already breaking up
- Oak wilt killed red oaks, taken down with the wood kept on site
- Hollow, cracked and fungus-at-the-base trees near structures
- Leaning and root-heaved trees after storms and wet springs
- Dead tops and hanging limbs cut out of otherwise healthy trees
- An honest look first: we tell you when a tree can stay
Ash and oak: why waiting costs more
Emerald ash borer has killed the ash across our whole area, and a dead ash does not stand and wait. The wood dries, goes brittle, and the top starts coming apart; within a couple of years the tree will not safely hold a climber, so it becomes bucket-only work with more rigging and a wider drop zone. Every season you wait, removal gets riskier and costs more.
Oak wilt kills red oaks within weeks and spreads through root grafts and on beetles that land on fresh cuts. Get a wilt-killed oak down promptly, keep the wood on the property, burn it or cover the pile tightly through the next summer, and do not move it as firewood. Prune the surviving oaks only in winter, never between April 15 and July 15.
How it goes
Call or send photos
Call (989) 305-9731 or send a photo of the whole tree, the base and the bark. Ash with the bark falling off and D-shaped exit holes tells us a lot.
Assess it and price it in writing
Larry looks at how far gone the tree is, what it would hit, and whether it can be climbed at all, then puts one price in writing.
Take-down day
Sectional removal from the bucket where the truck reaches, ground rigging where it does not, and nothing dropped on anything you care about.
Cleanup and walk-through
Brush chipped, wood hauled or left in rounds, oak wilt wood kept on site, and a walk around the yard with you.
Dead and hazard trees
A dead tree prices like a live one of the same size, with one difference: waiting makes it cost more.
| Job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Dead tree, under 30 feet | $250 to $650 |
| Dead tree, 30 to 60 feet | $450 to $1,200 |
| Dead tree, over 60 feet | $900 to $4,500 |
| Brittle ash or long-dead pineIt cannot be climbed safely, so it is all bucket and rigging work. | Adds 15 to 30 percent |
Emerald ash borer killed the ash across this whole area. A standing dead ash gets more expensive and more dangerous every season it is left.
These are the ranges most jobs in our area land in, not a price list. Every job is priced on site or from your photos, in writing, before anything is cut.
All typical price rangesDead & Hazard Tree Removal questions
How do I know if my tree is dead or just stressed?
Scrape a twig with a thumbnail: green underneath means alive. A tree that leafs out late, drops leaves in July, has bark falling off the trunk, has mushrooms or shelf fungus at the base, or is riddled with woodpecker holes is in trouble. Dead limbs across most of the crown mean it is not coming back. If you are not sure, send a photo and we will tell you what we see.
Why is a dead ash more expensive to remove than a live one?
Because of the borer. Once emerald ash borer kills an ash, the wood dries and goes brittle fast, the top starts breaking up on its own, and within a couple of years the tree will not safely hold a climber. That means bucket work only, more rigging, and a wider drop zone. A dead ash near a house taken down this year costs less than the same tree next year, and less again than the emergency call when it falls.
My red oak died in a few weeks this summer. What happened, and what do I do with the wood?
That is almost certainly oak wilt. It moves through root grafts to neighboring oaks and by beetles to fresh wounds. Get the tree down, keep the wood on your property, and either burn it, debark it, or cover the pile tightly with plastic through the next summer; do not sell it or move it as firewood. Do not prune the surviving oaks between April 15 and July 15. If you have a lot of oaks, ask MSU Extension or the DNR about root-graft trenching.
Is there any point in waiting until winter?
For a dead tree that can hit something, no. For a big dead tree on a soft lawn with nothing under it, frozen ground in winter can make the job cleaner and cheaper, and we will tell you which one you have. Oak wilt trees should come down promptly regardless.
Dead & Hazard Tree Removal in your town
Plus everywhere in between across Iosco, Ogemaw, Alcona and Arenac Counties. See the whole service area.
Ready to talk about dead & hazard tree removal?
Call Larry or send a few photos. Estimates are free, and you hear back within 24 hours, same day for emergencies.