"Tree Services" - How do you score contacts with them?

[Spikem]

I've heard a goodly amount of people talk about their "tree services" contacts and how good their relationships with them have been and would like to know, if people wouldn't mind sharing their stories, how they get hooked up with them.

It doesn't have to be local to me, though that would be nice, but even just in general.

*Maybe this can benefit lots of us.*

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Until you talk to them you never know if they are willing to drop off wood.

Matt

 

[Spikem]

Until you talk to them you never know if they are willing to drop off wood.

Matt

Obviously I was unclear.

How do you even find/encounter/meet them?

 

[myzamboni]

found mine on Craigslist. i imagine the yellow pages would be a good starting point.

 

[Tony H]

Seek them out the best way I found is on the job. Stop and talk to the guys, most of the small companies the owner is out running the job.
See what they do with the wood and go from there. If they drop you load drop a little cash on the driver so he remembers you . If you can find them a few jobs and take the wood home all the better. I have one guy that I parked my trailer (15' dual axle) at the job and he just threw wood on it and I can back later and took it home , so he didn't have to worry about getting rid of the wood.

 

[Spikem]

Seek them out the best way I found is on the job. Stop and talk to the guys, most of the small companies the owner is out running the job.
See what they do with the wood and go from there. If they drop you load drop a little cash on the driver so he remembers you . If you can find them a few jobs and take the wood home all the better. I have one guy that I parked my trailer (15' dual axle) at the job and he just threw wood on it and I can back later and took it home , so he didn't have to worry about getting rid of the wood.

Do you mean by trolling for new construction sites and that sort of thing?

 

[rdust]

Do you mean by trolling for new construction sites and that sort of thing?

When you see them cutting stop in and say hi. You could even stop at the office and ask them what they do with the wood. Down the street from my work there are three tree services. If I ever have trouble scoring my own wood I'll be stopping in to chat with them. With the ash bore killing all the ash tree's in Michigan I've been able to stay busy.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I've heard a goodly amount of people talk about their "tree services" contacts and how good their relationships with them have been and would like to know, if people wouldn't mind sharing their stories, how they get hooked up with them.

It doesn't have to be local to me, though that would be nice, but even just in general.

*Maybe this can benefit lots of us.*

Look in the phone book. Make a few calls. Volunteer to take all the pine no one else wants.


I've never done it because tree guys around here sell all the wood they cut, but if I lived in MA I'd be a free-pine burning fool.

 

[smokinj]

Listen for saw's running during a normal weekday and there your crew.

 

[wendell]

Use the yellow pages and call and ask and listen for saws and go and talk to them. Remember, if they don't sell it themselves they have to pay the dump to drop it off. You are doing them a favor.

 

[Tony H]

Seek them out the best way I found is on the job. Stop and talk to the guys, most of the small companies the owner is out running the job.
See what they do with the wood and go from there. If they drop you load drop a little cash on the driver so he remembers you . If you can find them a few jobs and take the wood home all the better. I have one guy that I parked my trailer (15' dual axle) at the job and he just threw wood on it and I can back later and took it home , so he didn't have to worry about getting rid of the wood.

Do you mean by trolling for new construction sites and that sort of thing?

Could be if that's where there is cutting going on. I don't think I have ever went to a new construction site for me it's mostly just people having a tree taken down where I stop by . I also have told a number of people my own little network that if they or someone they know has a tree taken down I will haul it away free and all the tree services give a discount if they don't have to pay their crew to haul the wood. If I see a bunch of wood sitting and it doesn't look like a woodburners house I will leave a note in the newspaper box or mailbox.
I also have a heavily wooded home site and have made it a point to hire different tree guys to do work I can't or wont like stuff that hangs over the house or stuff that can only get to by climbing. Sometimes you just have to try new stuff I cut a bunch of peach for a guy and later when getting a tree my aunt was cutting found the tree service guy has a group of friends that smoke meats that he collects wood for cherry apple peach so I am going to drop off a load of peach and just ask if he will drop me a grapple load when he is in my area in trade.

 

[drdoct]

I think stopping by and asking what they do with their wood is the best option. If you run a saw you could talk a little shop with them and ask if they get some wood they won't sell (if they say they sell their wood). Also one thing you could do is tell them that you are looking for wood and if they run across some they don't want to give you a call. The main thing is that if you get a chance then don't mess it up by being lazy or picky. When you are developing the relationship you've got to take everything they want to give you. Don't expect them to go out of their way in any way at all to give you wood. Meet them with a truck and be prepared to do whatever you have to do to get it all loaded. After you've done the hard work and developed a relationship then you can fine tune it to your needs. Just beware that they work when everyone works so if you plan on getting anything you'll have to take off work.

 

[Wood Duck]

My method is to stop by the place where the tree service is working and ask about the wood. I think most of the tree services take at least some of the wood to sell as firewood, but it seems like a lot of them have more wood than they need, and are happy to have somebody else carry it away. The idea of planning ahead, calling some guy who might or might not show up, etc. seems like a hassle. Telling a guy who shows up with a truck he can have some wood is not a hassle.

 

[SolarAndWood]

Granted, the wood is whatevers comming down, some Great wood, much not so great,...
But, it All burns,+ FREE is hard to beat...

Understanding this is the key to a good relationship with a tree guy. It is going to be whatever species, length, diameter they have to get rid of and often you will get little to no warning. I haven't graduated to the "my guy dumps it in my driveway" level. I am at the "my guy doesn't have a way to make big stuff go away so he calls me" level.

 

[CarbonNeutral]

Company along the way was dropping some pines - stopped to ask what he was doing with them - they were going to a saw mill, but he did tell me that he was cutting my neighbors two black birches - I cut them up after they were dropped. He also now drops pine rounds at my house - he can't do anything with them except pay to dump them. Takes a while to find someone who is like this, but it works well. I won't go out of my way to haul 24" pine, but if they are dropped at my house..

 

[westkywood]

I've got a friend that works for a tree company. He dropped me off 3 truck loads of Oak last week. They normally pay $5.00 a truck load to dump it at a place that chips it up and sells it. He only dropped if off at my house because the place was closed for Thanksgiving Holidays andthey needed to dump it. I'm a little ways out of town so most of the time its more economical for them to just pay the $5.00 to dump it. He said alot of times I can come pick it up at the place they are working , but I'd have to get it that day. He doesnt have many people ask for wood. I think people just have so much of it right now due to an ice storm we had last year.